I have a 2005 Mazda Tribute with 230,000 km. Just yesterday my wife started it with the remote start and when she went to use the key it died and hasn't started since. It seems there is no power to the dash or starter. It's not the battery. I jiggled the key a little and I did get it to start once after a lot of trying but as soon as I took my hand off the key it stalled. I can get little connections here and there, but for the most part, I can't get it to connect fully. I tried changing the ignition switch and it's still doing the same thing. Once in awhile it will make the noise to let you know the key is in the ignition with the door open and then it will shut off.

Somewhere there is a bad connection and I don't know where to go from here. Would a starter relay cause something like this? Also, whenever it's trying to connect I hear a clicking noise coming from under the console but that could just be the half connection making the pcm try to engage or the airbag module to have power.

 

Ok...I found the source of the problem. There's a red wire that comes into the key switch. It should be live but it doesn't have any power. I touched it with a live wire and everything lit up and the vehicle started. I'm just wondering if anyone knows where that wire goes before I strip everything down. Does it go to the fuse box under the hood or the one in the console?