Hello everyone, hoping for a quick answer and easy fix here.

I walked out to my 1995 Ranger XL Automatic today to head to work and the truck wouldn't even attempt to start or turn over. It has all power 100%.
I threw some jumper cables on it just to troubleshoot and still nothing. Started checking fuses and #24 (starter/anti theft) was popped, replaced it and it popped again. Put another one in and it didn't pop, however still no changes to anything. I noticed a small amount of smoke in the cabin near the center console when trying to start, however only once and for a split second.

I'm guessing it's a short somewhere but I have no idea where to check. Could it be the starter? Starter relay? Does my base model even have the anti theft (no power windows or locks)?

I can still hear the fuel pump turn on, which seemed to be the opposite with every post I came across. The only thing the truck does is power everything up to the regular level, and the warning light for when the emergency brake is on lights up each time I turn the ignition.

Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advanced!

 

It definitely sounds like you have a short. Start by looking around the area you saw the smoke coming from. Check all wiring in that location. Also, have you had any work done recently or added any modifications? If so, re-check those areas as well.