I recently bought a 1994 Ram 2500 turbo diesel. I'd say that about 9 times out of 10, the truck does not start on the first try. There's just a loud single click coming from the engine compartment when I go to start it. On those rare instances that it does start the first time, it runs fine. Both batteries were purchased in 2010, and I recently charged the batteries, so they're fully charged. I've replaced the ignition switch and checked all the ground wires, and they all seem fine. The truck will not start in neutral, so I don't think it's the neutral safety switch. Any ideas of what I can try next?

 

Clean the connections at batteries and starter, if that don't help starter contacts.

 

I've already tried cleaning the connections at the battery and at the starter. I also cleaned all the ground connectors from the battery to the frame, and from the battery to the engine. That didn't help.

 

Get the heavy duty starter contacts from geno's garage.