So heres how it all began...

Car started fine, drove fine, dropped my kid off at school and got back in the car, here is the fun part...

I put my key in and switched to on and the car tried to start itself, made a lot of noise under the hood took the key out and it still sounded like it was trying to start... Noise stopped... Put key back in car started still a little noise, turned off car, noticed that the display shows P and D4 with the box around them, tried to start car again nogo now, when I try to start my radio goes out like I have lost all power but my lights on the dash stay on...

 

did you check the battery? maybe you left something on like the interior light or headlight.

Try jumping it.

Sounds like you might have corroded terminals. Try cleaning your battery terminals or cutting them off and putting fresh ones on. They are only $5 a set *terminals*

 

change the key switch and the barrel as well. i imagine your car key has a bunch of other keys attached to it and this causes these problems in the long run

 

Would be best to turn the ignition on and short the starter solenoid to see if it's the starter first.

 

It was the starter...

 

i dont believe it was the starter. you mentioned you only switched the key in the on position and the starter worked. meaning the starter solenoid and motor are working as it should but not at the desired switch position.
whoever mentioned it, you cannot short a starter. You could bypass all the other switches and relay in the starter motor but you should not short it or you'll increase the circuit current and blow a fuse or toast something

 

If the solenoid was stuck it would do everything he described. And yes, you can short to the solenoid to bypass the ignition switch to test if the starter itself is working independently of the ignition switch - I just don't feel like taking 10 minutes to explain every simple step. You say you work at a shop - what is it, Jiffy Lube?

 

"And yes, you can short to the solenoid to bypass the ignition"

say what? you dont know the difference between a short and bypass. short it to where anyways.

if you bypass the solenoid you would make the solenoid and the pinion gear move in and out but the starter motor will not spin at that time.

if you bypass the s terminal of the starter, the motor andd the solenoid would both work.

how'd you know i work at jiffy lube? o yeah, i saw you at burger king remember> /?

 

The short is a direct connection between two points, typically unintended, but in this case intended for a specific purpose. Call it a bypass, that's fine, but that's what a short is genius boy. You short the solenoid external connections together...a screwdriver works fine. Sorry about the Jiffy Lube comment - I guess I hit a nerve.

 

big difference between the two. a short never reaches the load thats why current increases and toasts wires and blows up fuses.

a bypass eliminates all the other swtiches but the current still gets to the load thereby not damaging anything else on that circuit.

big difference between the two.