'07 F350 CC Custom A/V Interior - (worklog)
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Thank you Zman, I appreciate it. More to come...
Now with the basic unit installed and running, it’s time to wire up the Blower Control Module (BCM).
It’s pretty straight forward, here is the diagram:
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It uses its own power wires and leaves the OEM HVAC circuits alone other than going in series with the wires running to the blower motor. The yellow wire is hooked to the ignition circuit so if it is still running when you turn the key on, the ignition signal will tell it to let go of the blower circuit and return control of the HVAC system to the dash controls.
The BCM is more than just a relay to trigger the blower on and off. Here is some detail from the install sheet on what it does:
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I installed it right at the opening in the firewall where the clutch cover is located for automatic vehicles, a hole that I have used for most of the wires I have added to the truck. By installing it there (green square in the pic below), the 6” of wires coming off the module did not have to be extended. They ran out through the hole and I traced the required blower wires to the harness right above the hole.
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Here it is connected to the blower wires. The green arrow points to the wires coming out of the firewall coming from the BCM. The two blower wires get cut and the BCM gets connected in series.
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Normally the main power wire for the BCM would go to the batteries up front but I ran it back behind the back seat to connect to the AUX batteries.
Next up will be the in-cab thermostat. That yellow accessory signal wire on the BCM will be the key to getting the thermostat to work properly...
Now with the basic unit installed and running, it’s time to wire up the Blower Control Module (BCM).
It’s pretty straight forward, here is the diagram:
It uses its own power wires and leaves the OEM HVAC circuits alone other than going in series with the wires running to the blower motor. The yellow wire is hooked to the ignition circuit so if it is still running when you turn the key on, the ignition signal will tell it to let go of the blower circuit and return control of the HVAC system to the dash controls.
The BCM is more than just a relay to trigger the blower on and off. Here is some detail from the install sheet on what it does:
I installed it right at the opening in the firewall where the clutch cover is located for automatic vehicles, a hole that I have used for most of the wires I have added to the truck. By installing it there (green square in the pic below), the 6” of wires coming off the module did not have to be extended. They ran out through the hole and I traced the required blower wires to the harness right above the hole.
Here it is connected to the blower wires. The green arrow points to the wires coming out of the firewall coming from the BCM. The two blower wires get cut and the BCM gets connected in series.
Normally the main power wire for the BCM would go to the batteries up front but I ran it back behind the back seat to connect to the AUX batteries.
Next up will be the in-cab thermostat. That yellow accessory signal wire on the BCM will be the key to getting the thermostat to work properly...
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Cabin Temperature Control
As configured above, the BCM will allow the blower to run continuously regardless how hot it gets in the cab. So for extended periods in the truck, working, talking on the phone, sleeping, etc. , there would be constant feedback required from the operator to adjust the fan on and off or the temperature selector.
By adding a thermostat, it will function just as the t-stat in your house to turn the blower motor on and off at a set temperature.
I ordered an $10 el-cheapo T-stat from Ebay, they are generally used for refrigeration control, heat lamps, incubators etc. for livestock. Needing one that operates entirely on 12VDC greatly reduced the choices available as most are set up for 110/220v with the intention that they will be used in the above mentioned applications.
I ended up selecting this one:
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I located the sensor (wire with chrome tip in pic) at the overhead grab handle behind the driver’s seat.
I then went about playing with different wiring ideas on how to send a 12V signal to the yellow wire on the BCM when the T-stat reached the cutoff temp.
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I found a wire harness from an old remote start/alarm so I used that allowing for a quick disconnect behind the dash since I was mounting it in the dash bezel that gets removed from time to time.
The circuit I ended up using is not perfect, there is a toggle switch that has to get turned on before using the circuit and if I leave the toggle on by accident when I stop using the t-stat and switch on the truck, the truck’s acc. circuit back feeds the circuit and latches the relay. I will take another run at this circuit at some point. Right now I just have to remember to use the toggle switch.
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The T-stat has a built in relay but I had to add some of my own to get it to perform as needed.
Here is what I ended up with for relays:
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Here are both the timer/controller and the thermostat mounted in the dash.
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That’s it for temperature control in the cab.
The last phase will be an auxiliary power supply to run everything.
As configured above, the BCM will allow the blower to run continuously regardless how hot it gets in the cab. So for extended periods in the truck, working, talking on the phone, sleeping, etc. , there would be constant feedback required from the operator to adjust the fan on and off or the temperature selector.
By adding a thermostat, it will function just as the t-stat in your house to turn the blower motor on and off at a set temperature.
I ordered an $10 el-cheapo T-stat from Ebay, they are generally used for refrigeration control, heat lamps, incubators etc. for livestock. Needing one that operates entirely on 12VDC greatly reduced the choices available as most are set up for 110/220v with the intention that they will be used in the above mentioned applications.
I ended up selecting this one:
I located the sensor (wire with chrome tip in pic) at the overhead grab handle behind the driver’s seat.
I then went about playing with different wiring ideas on how to send a 12V signal to the yellow wire on the BCM when the T-stat reached the cutoff temp.
I found a wire harness from an old remote start/alarm so I used that allowing for a quick disconnect behind the dash since I was mounting it in the dash bezel that gets removed from time to time.
The circuit I ended up using is not perfect, there is a toggle switch that has to get turned on before using the circuit and if I leave the toggle on by accident when I stop using the t-stat and switch on the truck, the truck’s acc. circuit back feeds the circuit and latches the relay. I will take another run at this circuit at some point. Right now I just have to remember to use the toggle switch.
The T-stat has a built in relay but I had to add some of my own to get it to perform as needed.
Here is what I ended up with for relays:
Here are both the timer/controller and the thermostat mounted in the dash.
That’s it for temperature control in the cab.
The last phase will be an auxiliary power supply to run everything.
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Auxiliary Battery Setup
Alright, the last pieces of the puzzle, an auxiliary power supply. This stage took the most planning. There were calculations and decisions that had to be made:
How much power do I need?
Well, it took a calculation of what does the Espar heater itself draw, what will the BCM & T-stat draw, how many hours could it potentially be running before getting an opportunity to recharge. How low of DOD (depth of discharge) am I prepared to allow the batteries to get to before recharging, the lower I am willing to accept, the shorter the life of the batteries.
Where will I mount the batteries?
Outside the truck means a substantial loss basically doubling the amount of Ah’s required at 80 deg to account for the possibility of a -30 degree night. Mounting them in the cab means better temp control, more capacity available from the same size battery but the type of battery is now restricted and will result in a more costly battery(s).
I decided on in cab using SLE batteries (Sealed Lead Acid). The best option would have been AGM batteries like a couple of Trojan AGM’s but that would have doubled the cost of the batteries which were already plenty for the SLE’s.
I calculated that I could probably get away with about 110-125 hrs of reserve if I mounted them in the heated cab so I went with 2 of these:
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These are 55 Ah each wired in parallel giving me THEORETICAL capacity of 110Ah of capacity. I ball-parked it as the calculation to come up with the exact numbers is painful. Ambient temperature, rate of discharge, my determined allowable DOD, etc….suffice to say I am going to start with 2 of these and if need be, I have just enough room for one more if necessary.
Now by not going with AGM’s, even though they are sealed, there is a potential risk for gassing off with SLE’s but generally only if they are improperly charged. Whether I selected AGM’s, SLE’s, GEL's, anything but open lead acid like under the hood, the charging requirements will be different than what the alternator is delivering to the truck batteries.
Two other issues to consider is if you look at the manufacturers specs on the side of the battery in the pic above, they want to see a max initial charge rate of 16.5A, so with 2 batteries, that’s about 30Amps. So picture these batteries sitting at 50% DOD and using just an isolator or relay to separate them from the truck. When the circuit closes to charge them, they will instantly be in parallel with 1700 CCA of truck batteries… not the way I want to charge them.
So I went on the hunt for a product that would limit charge rate to about 30A, isolate them from the truck batteries and charge them properly according to SLE charging requirements.
Enter marine industry. I almost purchased a Blue Sea product (very good products) that is a very intelligent isolator but would not limit charge rate or take into account these are SLE batteries.
I then found a DC-DC charger from the UK made by Sterling Power. I bought the 30A model that limits charge rate to 30A. This product has some very key features like temperature compensation when charging, various charging profiles for different types of batteries, a maintenance program for the batteries. It really does it all.
It’s pretty cool to hook a battery charger to the truck, watch the voltage on the truck batteries climbing while the DC-DC charger is sitting dormant then all of a sudden when the truck hits 13.6V, it turns on and can deliver over 14V to the aux batteries while the truck is at 13.X volts. It then shuts back off when the truck drops to 13.3V. So regardless what voltage the truck is at, if it’s over the threshold, the charger will step up the voltage if necessary to charge the aux batteries properly.
It’s also a 4 stage charger so it will deliver a more complete charge to the batteries 5-20 times faster than the alternator can.
Here’s the unit:
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Here are the two batteries sitting next to each other, the yellow thing in the green square is the temp sensor for the charger.
I did end up cutting out some rear wall liner to make room for the batteries but the good news is the cab vent is now somewhat exposed right where the batteries are mounted...that can't hurt in case of any minor venting.
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I ended up moving all of the fuse blocks over more to the driver's side to make room but I managed to fit the charger and a volt meter/fuse block in:
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Here it is charging the batteries; there are LED’s lit indicating input and output voltage as well as LED’s across the top indicating which stage of the charging cycle it is on.
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One last thing I would like to add to this setup is the ability to turn it on from my Viper alarm remote… but that’s for a later chapter if I figure it out.
I would also like to give a shout out to Bill Darden from Car and Deep Cycle Battery FAQ, Battery Manufacturers and Brand Names List, and who helped talk me through some of the technical issues of selecting batteries, battery mounting location and charging issues. I sourced the batteries and charger on my own using the knowledge I gained from discussions with Bill.
Thank you Bill for all of your help!
If anyone wants me to post step by step detail with more pics, part #’s and source of supply in its own thread, let me know, I can probably get it done.
Alright, the last pieces of the puzzle, an auxiliary power supply. This stage took the most planning. There were calculations and decisions that had to be made:
How much power do I need?
Well, it took a calculation of what does the Espar heater itself draw, what will the BCM & T-stat draw, how many hours could it potentially be running before getting an opportunity to recharge. How low of DOD (depth of discharge) am I prepared to allow the batteries to get to before recharging, the lower I am willing to accept, the shorter the life of the batteries.
Where will I mount the batteries?
Outside the truck means a substantial loss basically doubling the amount of Ah’s required at 80 deg to account for the possibility of a -30 degree night. Mounting them in the cab means better temp control, more capacity available from the same size battery but the type of battery is now restricted and will result in a more costly battery(s).
I decided on in cab using SLE batteries (Sealed Lead Acid). The best option would have been AGM batteries like a couple of Trojan AGM’s but that would have doubled the cost of the batteries which were already plenty for the SLE’s.
I calculated that I could probably get away with about 110-125 hrs of reserve if I mounted them in the heated cab so I went with 2 of these:
These are 55 Ah each wired in parallel giving me THEORETICAL capacity of 110Ah of capacity. I ball-parked it as the calculation to come up with the exact numbers is painful. Ambient temperature, rate of discharge, my determined allowable DOD, etc….suffice to say I am going to start with 2 of these and if need be, I have just enough room for one more if necessary.
Now by not going with AGM’s, even though they are sealed, there is a potential risk for gassing off with SLE’s but generally only if they are improperly charged. Whether I selected AGM’s, SLE’s, GEL's, anything but open lead acid like under the hood, the charging requirements will be different than what the alternator is delivering to the truck batteries.
Two other issues to consider is if you look at the manufacturers specs on the side of the battery in the pic above, they want to see a max initial charge rate of 16.5A, so with 2 batteries, that’s about 30Amps. So picture these batteries sitting at 50% DOD and using just an isolator or relay to separate them from the truck. When the circuit closes to charge them, they will instantly be in parallel with 1700 CCA of truck batteries… not the way I want to charge them.
So I went on the hunt for a product that would limit charge rate to about 30A, isolate them from the truck batteries and charge them properly according to SLE charging requirements.
Enter marine industry. I almost purchased a Blue Sea product (very good products) that is a very intelligent isolator but would not limit charge rate or take into account these are SLE batteries.
I then found a DC-DC charger from the UK made by Sterling Power. I bought the 30A model that limits charge rate to 30A. This product has some very key features like temperature compensation when charging, various charging profiles for different types of batteries, a maintenance program for the batteries. It really does it all.
It’s pretty cool to hook a battery charger to the truck, watch the voltage on the truck batteries climbing while the DC-DC charger is sitting dormant then all of a sudden when the truck hits 13.6V, it turns on and can deliver over 14V to the aux batteries while the truck is at 13.X volts. It then shuts back off when the truck drops to 13.3V. So regardless what voltage the truck is at, if it’s over the threshold, the charger will step up the voltage if necessary to charge the aux batteries properly.
It’s also a 4 stage charger so it will deliver a more complete charge to the batteries 5-20 times faster than the alternator can.
Here’s the unit:
Here are the two batteries sitting next to each other, the yellow thing in the green square is the temp sensor for the charger.
I did end up cutting out some rear wall liner to make room for the batteries but the good news is the cab vent is now somewhat exposed right where the batteries are mounted...that can't hurt in case of any minor venting.
I ended up moving all of the fuse blocks over more to the driver's side to make room but I managed to fit the charger and a volt meter/fuse block in:
Here it is charging the batteries; there are LED’s lit indicating input and output voltage as well as LED’s across the top indicating which stage of the charging cycle it is on.
One last thing I would like to add to this setup is the ability to turn it on from my Viper alarm remote… but that’s for a later chapter if I figure it out.
I would also like to give a shout out to Bill Darden from Car and Deep Cycle Battery FAQ, Battery Manufacturers and Brand Names List, and who helped talk me through some of the technical issues of selecting batteries, battery mounting location and charging issues. I sourced the batteries and charger on my own using the knowledge I gained from discussions with Bill.
Thank you Bill for all of your help!
If anyone wants me to post step by step detail with more pics, part #’s and source of supply in its own thread, let me know, I can probably get it done.
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2,446 Posts
Here’s another overdue upgrade I just completed – Upgrading to a 220A alternator as well as 2/0 wiring.
This is what I did:
I had a local shop make me up some of 2/0 wires:
I ground down the lug on the wire going to the alternator stud so it would fit within the confines of the red insulator:
I then used some heater hose to make an insulator boot to protect the lug from shorting out:
Then connected it with the factory red wire:
I then attached one of the ground wires to the top of the frame on the PS on the same bolt that the factory ground is attached to. I switched it over to a nut and bolt, there was no way the factory threads in the frame were up to the task. Getting the nut on was a challenge inside the boxed frame but I did it. I ran that cable up to the Alternator:
I then ran another ground from the PS battery to the Alternator:
And here, both of those wires got attached to the alternator bracket:
I then ran the red POS cable that I attached to the back of the Alternator over to the PS battery as well as ran another wire from that battery over to the DS battery:
Here are all of the final connections on the PS battery.
Note that I drilled the NEG factory terminal and installed a stud to bolt to.
I also mounted the POS cables to a Blue Sea 250A fuse:
I ran the parallel cable from the 250A fuse on the PS to a Blue Sea 300A fuse on the DS. I also connected the 2/0 cable that was previously installed running back the to supply panel on the rear wall of the cab, to the 300A fused stud as well.
Those Blue Sea fuses are a very compact solution instead of using a traditional “fuse holder” mounted inside the fender wall. It also eliminates two connections to monitor corrosion on.
Pictures did not turn out for this but I ran a negative cable from the top of the DS frame factory mounting bolt to an empty bolt hole on the engine block behind the power steering pump.
This is what I did:
I had a local shop make me up some of 2/0 wires:
I ground down the lug on the wire going to the alternator stud so it would fit within the confines of the red insulator:
I then used some heater hose to make an insulator boot to protect the lug from shorting out:
Then connected it with the factory red wire:
I then attached one of the ground wires to the top of the frame on the PS on the same bolt that the factory ground is attached to. I switched it over to a nut and bolt, there was no way the factory threads in the frame were up to the task. Getting the nut on was a challenge inside the boxed frame but I did it. I ran that cable up to the Alternator:
I then ran another ground from the PS battery to the Alternator:
And here, both of those wires got attached to the alternator bracket:
I then ran the red POS cable that I attached to the back of the Alternator over to the PS battery as well as ran another wire from that battery over to the DS battery:
Here are all of the final connections on the PS battery.
Note that I drilled the NEG factory terminal and installed a stud to bolt to.
I also mounted the POS cables to a Blue Sea 250A fuse:
I ran the parallel cable from the 250A fuse on the PS to a Blue Sea 300A fuse on the DS. I also connected the 2/0 cable that was previously installed running back the to supply panel on the rear wall of the cab, to the 300A fused stud as well.
Those Blue Sea fuses are a very compact solution instead of using a traditional “fuse holder” mounted inside the fender wall. It also eliminates two connections to monitor corrosion on.
Pictures did not turn out for this but I ran a negative cable from the top of the DS frame factory mounting bolt to an empty bolt hole on the engine block behind the power steering pump.
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2,446 Posts
Here is the completed project with all wiring and 220A alternator.
The life this upgrade saves may be the FICM’s…… which is a shiny new premium lifetime warranty unit complete with ECO tune from Ed at ficmrepair.com
Ed is a great guy to deal, I drove through Iowa a few months back and met him and picked up the FICM at the same time. He has a lot of solutions to help make the 6.0L live on. I think I will be doing some more business in the future with Ed.
The life this upgrade saves may be the FICM’s…… which is a shiny new premium lifetime warranty unit complete with ECO tune from Ed at ficmrepair.com
Ed is a great guy to deal, I drove through Iowa a few months back and met him and picked up the FICM at the same time. He has a lot of solutions to help make the 6.0L live on. I think I will be doing some more business in the future with Ed.
Fantastic work Phil. Overwhelming to grasp all of the details it takes to bring the kind of functionality you have brought to fruition. And it is evident that more work went into what you did than you could even describe succinctly in a post. Very nice. The transport company tells me that they have just brought my truck into ONT... what's your address again? I'm sure you want to get to work right away on making my truck have all the creature comforts yours has. Hopefully you'll get mine done by Christmas? Yes? That's great, thank you. Looking forward to getting back my PhilG package. In fact, I might just replace the Lariat badge with "PhilG".
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2,446 Posts
Thanks NYB, I appreciate it...and really nice to hear from you! I haven't been reading many posts from you these days. I started wondering if all the cool guys that have also been around here for a while moved elsewhere and left me standing in the school yard wondering where everyone went.... public school all over again :lol:
No problem for your truck, get it in here, I'll get it done. Now, just so you know, when you get it back, it may have only single rear wheels and say F350 on it and sound like there's a 6.0L under the hood but that's all part of the upgrade experience, don't be concerned! It'' be great!
Oh and make sure you send the title with that 7.3 of yours.... I think I may have just solved any further 6.0L problems in my life.
Cheers!
No problem for your truck, get it in here, I'll get it done. Now, just so you know, when you get it back, it may have only single rear wheels and say F350 on it and sound like there's a 6.0L under the hood but that's all part of the upgrade experience, don't be concerned! It'' be great!
Oh and make sure you send the title with that 7.3 of yours.... I think I may have just solved any further 6.0L problems in my life.
Cheers!
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2,446 Posts
Here’s another project I just finished wrapping up. A fairly involved Edge Insight CTS2 install with multiple additional sensors.
We all know a 6.0L needs to be monitored like a dude that just got sprung with an ankle bracelet. The issue is several parameters that are high priority don’t have sensors from the factory to allow them to be monitored via OBD.
So this install will monitor all OBD parameters of course but with the addition of:
1. Fuel Pressure
2. Cooling System Pressure
3. Transmission Pressure
4. Fuel level in 100 Gallon AUX Fuel tank.
5. Outside air temp (since this truck is an XLT , not available from the factory)
First was to order the required components. Ordering right from Edge turned out to be the most efficient way to get the stuff quickly and they would ship the promotional free device at the same time with the order instead of having to fill out a form and wait 1-2 months for it to arrive. So I ordered:
1. 84130 CTS2 unit
2. 98617 Competition Kit (this worked out to be the cheapest way to get what I needed).
3. Additional EAS unit 98605 (plus I bought another one later from a local online seller).
4. 98610 Ambient Air sensor Kit.
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Each EAS device (98605) gives you two sensor inputs.
So the Competition kit gave me the EGT sensor on it’s own Dedicated EAS device plus a 98605 for 2 more devices. I then selected another 98605 as my free item so that gave me 2 more inputs plus the additional one I bought later gave me 2 more. So let me grab my calculator……….. that’s 6 additional inputs beyond the EGT dedicated input.
I had read online that Edge ships kits with a pressure sensor designed for dry locations only, like for boost pressure. I wanted one suitable for wet locations for fuel pressure, I told them this when I ordered and they assured me all kits ship with wet sensors now. It arrived… dry only. I called and they over-nighted me a wet sensor, nice save, great service!
So this is the additional sensor they sent me for fuel pressure:
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Then I headed off to the Navistar dealer as my 100 Gal AUX tank is from an international truck. I bought the correct fuel sender and wire harness:
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I then made up a long harness and loomed it then run it from the fuel tank up into the engine bay.
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I also loomed everything that came from Edge, EAS devices and all harnesses with the senor plugs on them.
We all know a 6.0L needs to be monitored like a dude that just got sprung with an ankle bracelet. The issue is several parameters that are high priority don’t have sensors from the factory to allow them to be monitored via OBD.
So this install will monitor all OBD parameters of course but with the addition of:
1. Fuel Pressure
2. Cooling System Pressure
3. Transmission Pressure
4. Fuel level in 100 Gallon AUX Fuel tank.
5. Outside air temp (since this truck is an XLT , not available from the factory)
First was to order the required components. Ordering right from Edge turned out to be the most efficient way to get the stuff quickly and they would ship the promotional free device at the same time with the order instead of having to fill out a form and wait 1-2 months for it to arrive. So I ordered:
1. 84130 CTS2 unit
2. 98617 Competition Kit (this worked out to be the cheapest way to get what I needed).
3. Additional EAS unit 98605 (plus I bought another one later from a local online seller).
4. 98610 Ambient Air sensor Kit.
Each EAS device (98605) gives you two sensor inputs.
So the Competition kit gave me the EGT sensor on it’s own Dedicated EAS device plus a 98605 for 2 more devices. I then selected another 98605 as my free item so that gave me 2 more inputs plus the additional one I bought later gave me 2 more. So let me grab my calculator……….. that’s 6 additional inputs beyond the EGT dedicated input.
I had read online that Edge ships kits with a pressure sensor designed for dry locations only, like for boost pressure. I wanted one suitable for wet locations for fuel pressure, I told them this when I ordered and they assured me all kits ship with wet sensors now. It arrived… dry only. I called and they over-nighted me a wet sensor, nice save, great service!
So this is the additional sensor they sent me for fuel pressure:
Then I headed off to the Navistar dealer as my 100 Gal AUX tank is from an international truck. I bought the correct fuel sender and wire harness:
I then made up a long harness and loomed it then run it from the fuel tank up into the engine bay.
I also loomed everything that came from Edge, EAS devices and all harnesses with the senor plugs on them.
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2,446 Posts
I decided where I wanted to mount the fuel pressure sender then looked through the junk drawer for ideas on how to do it. I found a piece from the guts of a toilet water tank, a soft rubber piece that slid perfectly over the sensor, had a tab for mounting and would offer some vibration dampening.
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I had read some have had issues with these sensors failing and felt that it likely was due to vibration and heat when mounted directly to the engine. So this remote mount hopefully will take care of both issues. I had the hose made at a Hydraulic shop with crimp connectors, I think it was about $25 but I don’t want leaks on this one and it fit perfectly.
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For the Degaus (cooling system) pressure and the transmission pressure, I ordered $10 senders from Ebay, one rated at 30 PSI for cooling and one at 500psi for Trans pressure. I soldered the Ebay plug/harness to the EAS device harness plug and loomed it:
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I used some of the hose from the Hydraulic shop, bought the T and barbs from Napa then connected to the cooling system.
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I then installed the 500psi sensor in the transmission test port and routed the harness up to the area where the EAS devices would be mounted.
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I mounted the Outside air temp probe in the front DS fender behind the headlight. At some point I would like to move it out to the mirror but that’s a ton of work for another day. In the meantime , it’s accurate when moving but sitting still it picks up a ton of engine bay heat.
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Then I connected the long harness run to the bed to the fuel sender for the AUX tank. I silicone’d over the connector for added weather proofing:
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I removed the probe from the pillar mounted EGT gauge and tried to install the new one. Due to thread and sizing issues, I ended up welding the adapter in, A horrible weld job but you try and weld under a truck that’s not jacked up and a welding helmet on! Based on the carbon I’m seeing in the pic, there are a couple of tiny holes that need to be touched up.
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I had read some have had issues with these sensors failing and felt that it likely was due to vibration and heat when mounted directly to the engine. So this remote mount hopefully will take care of both issues. I had the hose made at a Hydraulic shop with crimp connectors, I think it was about $25 but I don’t want leaks on this one and it fit perfectly.
For the Degaus (cooling system) pressure and the transmission pressure, I ordered $10 senders from Ebay, one rated at 30 PSI for cooling and one at 500psi for Trans pressure. I soldered the Ebay plug/harness to the EAS device harness plug and loomed it:
I used some of the hose from the Hydraulic shop, bought the T and barbs from Napa then connected to the cooling system.
I then installed the 500psi sensor in the transmission test port and routed the harness up to the area where the EAS devices would be mounted.
I mounted the Outside air temp probe in the front DS fender behind the headlight. At some point I would like to move it out to the mirror but that’s a ton of work for another day. In the meantime , it’s accurate when moving but sitting still it picks up a ton of engine bay heat.
Then I connected the long harness run to the bed to the fuel sender for the AUX tank. I silicone’d over the connector for added weather proofing:
I removed the probe from the pillar mounted EGT gauge and tried to install the new one. Due to thread and sizing issues, I ended up welding the adapter in, A horrible weld job but you try and weld under a truck that’s not jacked up and a welding helmet on! Based on the carbon I’m seeing in the pic, there are a couple of tiny holes that need to be touched up.
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2,446 Posts
Next was trying to figure out how to get the EAS to interpret the data coming from the fuel tank sender. The tank sender is a resister ranging from 33 ohms full to 240 ohms empty. Here is the circuit I ended up going with:
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I actually ended up with a resistor of about 150 ohms as I only had one 120 ohm and through all of the testing and bending, one of the legs broke off. I send this circuit off to edge for approval just to make sure my math was correct and I wasn’t going to exceed the current limit of the EAS device. They said the circuit would work great but if I wanted to use the 1Kohm pull-up resister built into the EAS, it would be slightly less accurate but easier to install as no resister required. I had already tried to the use the built in PUR but could not get it to work so I just went ahead and used my circuit.
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I actually ended up with a resistor of about 150 ohms as I only had one 120 ohm and through all of the testing and bending, one of the legs broke off. I send this circuit off to edge for approval just to make sure my math was correct and I wasn’t going to exceed the current limit of the EAS device. They said the circuit would work great but if I wanted to use the 1Kohm pull-up resister built into the EAS, it would be slightly less accurate but easier to install as no resister required. I had already tried to the use the built in PUR but could not get it to work so I just went ahead and used my circuit.
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I then installed the Insight on the dash, it’s a pretty clean install, only one wire running to the OBD and one running to the engine bay to connect up with the EAS devices:
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Each of the EAS devices just screw together with a terminator screwed on at the end of the line, super clean, really small and well-sealed, very impressive!
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I then plugged all of the sensor harnesses into the EAS device pack then tucked it away in the DS corner between the fuse box and the fender… very tidy install!
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Then power the unit on with the ignition key, select Ford and let it detect all of the EAS devices.
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Then turn the key off, slide the unit out of the cradle, unplug the one HMDI connector on the back and take it over to the PC for configuring.
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Install the “My Style” software on the PC, connect the unit via USB and open the software:
You will have 3 options; select “Customize EAS devices”
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Then a list of all of the EAS units you have attached with the serial number of each will be displayed:
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Select the one you want to configure, click on it and you will be presented with this screen:
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All of the available Edge sensors will be included in the “Mapping”drop down box, just pick the one you have attached to that input and it does the rest…. Too easy. You can also add names at this point that will label the sensors on the CTS screen
For my the Ebay senders, the 500psi sender was available on the list, done! The 30psi was not, so I had to select “Custom Voltage” then input the values at the bottom. All of the standard 5V pressure sensors on the market configure the same .5V= 0 pressure, 4.5V = max pressure of the sensor, in this case, 30PSI, DONE!
The Fuel tank sender was a bit more involved to make it accurate. I moved the float up and down the sender in several increments and measured the voltage being fed back in the circuit and recorded each one. I then changed the number of inputs to 9 and input all of the voltages and correlated them to 0 gallons, 12.5, 25,37.5, 50 etc all the way to 100 gallons. When I move the float by hand, it appears like it should be fairly accurate but until I fill the tank (empty right now) I won’t know for sure.
Each of the EAS devices just screw together with a terminator screwed on at the end of the line, super clean, really small and well-sealed, very impressive!
I then plugged all of the sensor harnesses into the EAS device pack then tucked it away in the DS corner between the fuse box and the fender… very tidy install!
Then power the unit on with the ignition key, select Ford and let it detect all of the EAS devices.
Then turn the key off, slide the unit out of the cradle, unplug the one HMDI connector on the back and take it over to the PC for configuring.
Install the “My Style” software on the PC, connect the unit via USB and open the software:
You will have 3 options; select “Customize EAS devices”
Then a list of all of the EAS units you have attached with the serial number of each will be displayed:
Select the one you want to configure, click on it and you will be presented with this screen:
All of the available Edge sensors will be included in the “Mapping”drop down box, just pick the one you have attached to that input and it does the rest…. Too easy. You can also add names at this point that will label the sensors on the CTS screen
For my the Ebay senders, the 500psi sender was available on the list, done! The 30psi was not, so I had to select “Custom Voltage” then input the values at the bottom. All of the standard 5V pressure sensors on the market configure the same .5V= 0 pressure, 4.5V = max pressure of the sensor, in this case, 30PSI, DONE!
The Fuel tank sender was a bit more involved to make it accurate. I moved the float up and down the sender in several increments and measured the voltage being fed back in the circuit and recorded each one. I then changed the number of inputs to 9 and input all of the voltages and correlated them to 0 gallons, 12.5, 25,37.5, 50 etc all the way to 100 gallons. When I move the float by hand, it appears like it should be fairly accurate but until I fill the tank (empty right now) I won’t know for sure.
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If you look back at the main screen of the “My Style” software, there is also an option to go in and retrieve your data logs if you have been data logging plus the ability to customize the screen. I uploaded the same background I run on the carpc running in the dash but I have had no luck getting it switch over to it. Not a big deal, maybe a formatting issue with the file I uploaded, I’ll look at it later.
So here it is with the key on, not running with most of the custom sensors selected on this screen.
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Of course it pulls and clears codes as well:
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....plus does a plethora of other goodies like a mileage coach, performance tracking, instant and average fuel economy, a maintenance and fuel tracker if you input your odometer reading plus.... on and on… pretty comprehensive.
This is by no means an inexpensive setup but it probably is the best out there at this time for our trucks. I probably could have got my carpc to do all of this but I really don’t have the kind of time required to dive into that.
I hate “boxes on the dash” so at some point I want to build the screen in somewhere but again, that’s for a later time.
So here it is with the key on, not running with most of the custom sensors selected on this screen.
Of course it pulls and clears codes as well:
....plus does a plethora of other goodies like a mileage coach, performance tracking, instant and average fuel economy, a maintenance and fuel tracker if you input your odometer reading plus.... on and on… pretty comprehensive.
This is by no means an inexpensive setup but it probably is the best out there at this time for our trucks. I probably could have got my carpc to do all of this but I really don’t have the kind of time required to dive into that.
I hate “boxes on the dash” so at some point I want to build the screen in somewhere but again, that’s for a later time.
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2,446 Posts
Thanks Ford06. I just can't seem to leave stuff alone. I have to say though, I'm enjoying this truck more than any of the prior ones that I was trading every 2-3 years. I had to be careful what I did to them so I could put them back when time to trade. That ship has sailed on this baby!
Right now I'm just pulling the pillar gauges out as they are redundant with the Edge. I have the original pillar/grab handle in storage that came out when the truck was weeks old so it's going back in. I'm going to miss the blind spot created from those gauges. I originally installed them in my '03 when it was new, moved them to my '04 then my '07 so they owe me nothing. They are a set from Western Diesel who's no longer in business.
The only one that I don't think the Edge duplicates well is the boost gauge. The Edge reacts too slow as a digital gauge and pulling from the OBD. When there are no issues, it will be great but that old mechanical boost gauge reacts so fast, I was able to easily identify when something was getting messed up with the turbo. I may try to find a home for just the boost gauge.
Right now I'm just pulling the pillar gauges out as they are redundant with the Edge. I have the original pillar/grab handle in storage that came out when the truck was weeks old so it's going back in. I'm going to miss the blind spot created from those gauges. I originally installed them in my '03 when it was new, moved them to my '04 then my '07 so they owe me nothing. They are a set from Western Diesel who's no longer in business.
The only one that I don't think the Edge duplicates well is the boost gauge. The Edge reacts too slow as a digital gauge and pulling from the OBD. When there are no issues, it will be great but that old mechanical boost gauge reacts so fast, I was able to easily identify when something was getting messed up with the turbo. I may try to find a home for just the boost gauge.
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2,446 Posts
Does anyone know how to repair broken links to photos? Quite a few of them are broken here. I thought there used to be an edit button years ago but it seems to be gone. If I can upload the pics right to this site, I would do that to eliminate future issues. I hate reading other peoples old threads and all the pics are missing.
I don't get a chance to get on this site very often any more, started a new job in Sept '18 and work 6 - 7 days a week. The truck has been parked since. I'm off for a few days over Christmas and wouldn't mind updating the links if its possible.
I don't get a chance to get on this site very often any more, started a new job in Sept '18 and work 6 - 7 days a week. The truck has been parked since. I'm off for a few days over Christmas and wouldn't mind updating the links if its possible.
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