[FordCountry]

Hello, I’m new here. Just reading up and keeping up. I have had my truck for three months and have been working on brakes, tanks, mods, now im on to the body.

Question. I have a switch mounted to the driver side fender. it is coming off a harness that is coming out of the fuse box behind the air filter. The switch controls a ground ( straight to the fender) and goes to a Gray Harness plug. The plug is on the inner wheel well and has a total of like five wires from it. There is also a black one down there. What is it for? The wire looks like a purple with an orange strip. It goes.. Fuse box-> Harness plug-> Splice -> switch -> fender? http://community.webshots.com/photo/377535433/377537271CVuSgi
The blue connector are where it looks like the wire went factory. Any help will be appreciated.

Thank You - Jordan

 

[BigRed CC Dually]

jray3369,

Any more pictures available? It does not look like anything stock. Where in Ohio are you?, if near Dayton (Beavercreek) maybe a look at it could help. Renegade will be visiting today before he and I travel to Indy for the DHRA event there. Brian could figure it out if anyone could.

 

[FordCountry]

Ok, i put five more pics in my album. Could this have something to do with the two tanks. There was a gray connector like this on the rear tank i think? Thanks for your help,
- Jordan

 

[FordCountry]

Im up by Canton, thats a little bit of a drive/ But thanks for the offer.
-Jordan

 

[BigRed CC Dually]

Jordan,

That looks like an air horn pump under the brake booster, is it in any way connected to that? Does the air horn work? The switch could have been a way to bypass the air horn, open ground and the horn is off. Just a wild guess, I don't know why anyone would be splicing into wires except to install a non-stock item. The fuel tanks have a valve that switches between them and also makes connections for the fuel gage pick-ups to read the tank in use...all that was factory installed.

Sorry I can't be of more help, also before I forget my manners again...welcome to the forums.

 

[FordCountry]

Yeah that is an air horn. I put them in after i bough it. That is seperate from that harness. I have fliped the seitch and have not seen any typs of change. With the truck on and off. Thinking it may be a starter kill or a pump shut off. There was a snow plow on this truck as well and at first i thought it was a headlight switch. From the truck to the plow harness. But its not. I have searched to manuals and cant find it. If anyone comes accrost something just let me know thanks.
-Jordan

 

[RSP]

I dont have a clue what the switch is for but Im pretty sure the gray plug is for the trailer brake wireing.

 

[DBogo]

am i the only one thats not seeing a switch /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shrug.gif

 

[davidkovar]

No I don't see it either.

 

[KLH]

Just a thought, I've seen alot of posts about the fuel heater being a problem on these trucks...maybe instead of cuttng the wire to the heater someone put a switch on it.

I will say this for sure...It is not factory. Those splice plugs came out of a parts store or wal-mart. A factory splice like that would be at the very least soldered and then shrink tube and RTV put on it to insure water would not get into it.

If it is not causing any trouble I would not worry about it. But I will say this...With todays cars and trucks with the voltage dependant computerized systems on them...Splicing into the electrical system on the back side (computer side of the fuseblock) is a perilous endeavor...Best place to hook something aftermarket up is on the front side of the system which is direct off the battery with it's own inline fuses so it will not overload and interfere with the existing factory fuseblocks. (referring to your airhorn compressor)

Also makes it easier to troubleshoot later if a problem does arise because you know the original factory harness has not been tampered with.

Kris

[ QUOTE ]
Jordan,

That looks like an air horn pump under the brake booster, is it in any way connected to that? Does the air horn work? The switch could have been a way to bypass the air horn, open ground and the horn is off. Just a wild guess, I don't know why anyone would be splicing into wires except to install a non-stock item. The fuel tanks have a valve that switches between them and also makes connections for the fuel gage pick-ups to read the tank in use...all that was factory installed.

Sorry I can't be of more help, also before I forget my manners again...welcome to the forums.

[/ QUOTE ]

 

[KLH]

cycle the pics...there is a toggle switch installed on the drivers fender.

[ QUOTE ]
am i the only one thats not seeing a switch /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shrug.gif

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[FordCountry]

So what should i do. Not flip the switch or re wire it back to the harness? I really dont remember what way it was fliped when i got the truck. I had someone look at it and they just play with it so its up in the air now. Thats why i kinda wanted to know what it was. Its not aftermarket. It is into a factory harness so it cuts off a ground to a factory ???What ever??? I tryed to follow the wires but it went into a bigger harness and when every which way. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shrug.gif How would i know if it were a fuel heater. What if i unplug that whole harness something will have to cut out /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif Thank you for the welcome
-Jordan

 

[KLH]

Jordan, trust me on this one.

Those <font color="blue">blue</font> crimp plugs and toggle switch did not come factory on that truck...Radio shack or wal-mart is more like it. Hence my term aftermarket.

As for what to do with it we gotta figure out what and why it was put on there first.

I'm not sure what that gray pigtail is for. The fuel heater is just a guess. And it could be what the other guy said about the trailer hookup...

The only question in my mind is why would someone want to splice a ground into the trailer wiring under the hood? If a trailer pigtail has a bad ground wire it usually does not matter because a trailer will also get a ground off the ball hitch, 5th wheel, or goose neck ball. Worst case scenario on that deal would be to splice a ground wire on the ground pin immediately behind the trailer pigtail and put it on a chassis/bumper bolt. Does not make sense to me.

[ QUOTE ]
Its not aftermarket. It is into a factory harness so it cuts off a ground to a factory ???What ever??? -Jordan

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[TimMiller]

Its definately for a trailer. Need to look up wire colors to see whats goin on.

 

[FordCountry]

swtnlnly, No... I fully agree with you that it did not come factory. I was saying that what ever the switch goes too would have to be factory seeing how its in a factory harness. so i guess the switch would be considered after market. Ill check the trailer wires w/ a tester and flip it and see if anything goes out.

What is it for, for the trailer if any one knows lights or brakes? They were on the truck when i got it. It had a ball in the bed aswell. Was this like a factory option. A tow package?

Again, Thank you guys for your help! I'll be helping out if i know something. I'd hate to just give the wrong information. But with something like this any lead is welcome /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[KLH]

That ball in the bed of the truck is a "Goose neck ball" for a goose neck trailer (depending on brand rated at 25,000lbs to 30,000lbs towing capacity.) I've never bought a new truck so I can't say for sure if it is a factory option. I do know that some dealers install them at the customers request. However I do not think it is a factory option.

Some gooseneck trailers have hydraulic brakes that work through an electric over hydraulic pump...this may have been a switch for that pump...Also some of those trailers also have electric landing gear and/or dump beds (rollbacks)...If used only in the daytime it is possible that someone hooked one of those pumps or electric motors to the tail light circuit of the trailer and used the switch to turn it on or off (along with the lights to the trailer.) Ofcourse there would have to be another switch on the trailer motor to determine polarity to actuate it both ways.

Just a spiffball idea.

[ QUOTE ]
What is it for, for the trailer if any one knows lights or brakes? They were on the truck when i got it. It had a ball in the bed aswell. Was this like a factory option. A tow package?

Again, Thank you guys for your help! I'll be helping out if i know something. I'd hate to just give the wrong information. But with something like this any lead is welcome /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

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