Holy Electrical Hell!!!!

[charliesnyder]

Before you say it... I have searched!

It seems that someone has pulled the self-destruct button on the truck... I decided that I needed to keep a better eye on my drivetrain so I added a 3 gauge pod with the standard Auto/Powerstroke gauges. Well right before I started my truck started acting up, surging between gears and spooling up weird. Recently my ABS light started flashing so I threw the good ol' Snap-on Scanner and ran some tests... NOTHING came up, again!

I have had the dreaded issue of having the steering column height effecting my signal capabilities. I noticed today that the brake lights stopped working so I started checking bulbs and fuses. Found the 3rd brake light bulb burned out and the plug fried. All fuses are good still, checked the "BOO" and brake pedal switch both looked good.

I feel I have checked all my resources. I know the bulb is causing some of the issues. But can it all be that?

Help!!!

p.s. sorry for the short story!

[glovemeister]

If you have a 3rd brake light issue it will cause issues with your tranny. In addition are you noticing your speedo needle jumping around? A bad vehicle speed sensor in your rear axle can cause that ( wiring could be chaffed or corroded too).

[BigFuel]

^x2. The ABS light will flash if it sees air in the brake lines(bleed at the ABS block under the truck about where your foot would be on the frame rail) or a vacuum pump issue as well.

[charliesnyder]

I decided to dig a bit more in the truck today and found a few more burnt bulbs. Replaced all the bulbs in the truck as well as the flasher relay and got a couple more lights to turn on!

I noticed my blinker in the dash was not working so I decided to check and see if possibly my blinker issues were caused by that and to my dismay the bulb is fine....

I did however find this..........





The entire electrical backing (not sure what it is) is brittle and rusty.... The layers have started to separate and there seems to have been moisture in them.

[BigFuel]

Look above it to see if the moisture is coming from the bottom of the windshield. I have that happening slowly to mine too. Yeah, the printed circuit boards are old and hard to keep in good condition. I don't know where you could get a new one.

[madpogue]

^^^ And if the traces affected include the arrow indicators for the turn signals, that could be the cause of your troubles right there. Or a part of it, anyway.

[charliesnyder]

The area I showed separated is the turn signal side I am having issues with. I'm about to light this truck on fire....

[charliesnyder]

Well I chased down a few of my electrical demons. Found the blinker issue to be the tilt wheel connector to the flasher switch. The plastic clips that hold the wires in are all broken so the wires pushed out. Ford wants $40 for the clip but I found the comparative on at Oreilly's and I will order it first thing in the morning.

For the 3rd brake light I have the connector torn down and I am going to buy the new bulb sockets and wire them myself. Again Ford wants $40... Not gonna happen.

I will update with P/N and prices for the fixes.

[BigFuel]

Good to hear you're taming those electrical faults.