Just bought a 7.3L and have a problem!

[Piraya33]

Hey guys, my father-in law just bought a 2003 CC XLT 4x4 (not the one in my sig) and he is having a problem. He says that when he turns the key to the on position, none of the gauges come on. After waiting about 30 seconds, he starts the truck and still none of the gauges work and he cannot rev the engine. I have never had this problem with my truck so I'm hoping someone on here knows what is going on. I feel bad because I talked him into a 7.3L because mine has been so reliable (knock on wood) and he just received the truck today and he's already having problems with it. Not only is he having this problem, but it was also damaged during shipping. Needless to say, but he is quite upset about buying his "new" truck. Thanks for any help on this everyone!

[Cory S]

it is a bad fuse check the fuse panel under the hood

[Dasaliac03]

yea check the fuses, may also be a relay in your fuse panel

[Piraya33]

Anyone have an idea of which fuse it would be? He said he checked all of the ones under the dash, but he couldn't locate any under the hood. He ended up replacing one 10A fuse under the dash, but didn't do anything for him. Sorry for all the questions, he is in Baltimore and I'm in FL. Thanks!

[Piraya33]

Anyone? Can someone post a diagram of the fuses/relays in the truck?

[JJFLASH]

Fastest/easiest thing to do when checking fuses is use a test light and check both posts of EVERY fuse. Never know which ones may or may not be involved.

Under hood fuse box is on the driver's side. Black box.

[JJFLASH]

If it's not a fuse I would pull the cluster out and check the connection. Give all the pins a wiggle etc and make sure it's all good. Might even just take a good whack on the dash lol.

The throttle issue might be the TPS but I bet it's gonna be a fuse issue that's causing both things.

[Piraya33]

Hey guys, we just figured it out. He took it to the local Ford dealership and they told him it was the throttle position sensor and quoted him about $600 to repair. I called BS because the gauges were inop also. He towed it back to the house and I found someone that had this problem on another site.

It turns out that it was one of the wires from the O/D button on the shifter. Over time the wire rubs on a piece inside the steering column and eventually wears through the wire's insulation. This causes it to short out and it blows the #19 fuse under the dash which is a 10A fuse. He retaped the wire and put a dab of grease on it so it will just slide and not come into contact with the sharp piece in the steering column again. He put everything back together and put a new 10A fuse in the #19 position and truck runs perfectly again.

The symptoms of this problem is that the none of the gauges on the dash work, you can start the truck but it will only idle, you cannot accelerate when you give it throttle, and your 10amp #19 fuse keeps blowing under the dash.

I hope this helps everyone. It should be something that everyone should check on their 99-03 trucks. It only takes a few minutes to do. When it happens, it will leave you stranded unless you know what it is. I'm going to check mine this weekend.

[Tick ST]

Good info..........Thanks.

[JJFLASH]

Thanks for the good info in your update I wish everyone who starts a trouble shooting thread would do that.