Hey All,
I am new to this forum and have found great resources. But today I ran into a problem here are the facts that I have.

1. drove the car all morning(in the rain)

2. went out to drive it in the afternoon

3. put key in first time radio and dash came on and half a click on the starter when i turned the key.

4. putting key back in no power at all, no lights, dash, radio, buzzer . nothing.

5. hooked up trickle charger, battery was fully charged.

6 figured it might be a bad tumbler so I took it out and tried to start it with a screw driver. No dice

7. I checked and made sure it was in and out of park OK.

8. ground cable on battery is good.

9. fuse box dry as a bone.

10. steering wheel locks and unlocks OK

Only way I can start the car is by jumping the starter
I jumped starter and it fired right up https://streamable.com/l7v87d


is it something as simple as a bad battery? Alternator is 3 years old. there have been no signs of starter trouble as she fires up very quickly. it is a 1984 300d turbo. this my second 300d and love it more than the first. just need to get it back!

thanks in advance......

Ok, I am not an expert on the 300D ignition switch circuit, but here is my suggestions. First, try again to start it with the transmission selector in neutral. I don't think the starter lockout switch is the culprit, but that is one way to test to see if it will start in neutral and not park.

Secondly, check the fuses in the fuse box, just to make sure you do not have a bad fuse. Then, if you have a multimeter, check to make sure you are getting 12V to the ignition switch.

My personal opinion is that your ignition switch has gone south. This is based on the fact that you can start it fine by jumping the solenoid on the fender, and that you have no lights or anything else when using the ignition switch, even with a screwdriver.

Good luck and please let us know what it turns out to be, so if someone in the future encounters the same issue they can draw on what solved your issue.

EDIT: I watched your video and while it started, it started hard (probably because of a cold engine and no glow, when you tried to start it. How does it start when the engine is hot?

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2012 Mercedes ML350 Bluetec 102K (hers)
2005 Corvette 55K (fun car)
2002 VW Jetta TDI 238K (mine)
1998 Volvo S70 T5 Turbo 211K (kids)
1994 Ford F150 4WD 246K (firewood hauler)
1983 Mercedes 300D 384K (diesel commuter)

engine starts fine normally. It ended up being my ignition.switch as you predicted lol. I opened it up It was completely disintegrated inside thus not allowing the key to turn.

Glad you found the problem part, and thank you for posting the solution!

__________________
2012 Mercedes ML350 Bluetec 102K (hers)
2005 Corvette 55K (fun car)
2002 VW Jetta TDI 238K (mine)
1998 Volvo S70 T5 Turbo 211K (kids)
1994 Ford F150 4WD 246K (firewood hauler)
1983 Mercedes 300D 384K (diesel commuter)

Are you speaking of the actual switch where the wires plug in or the innards of the steering column lock, metal parts?

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84 300D, 82 Volvo 244Gl Diesel