Technical electrical question

[Hawker Driver]

This is going to be way outside the scope of a normal inquiry. My 2004 Ranger FX4 Off Road started having a brake system problem where the rear wheels would intermittently lock up on light braking. There was no ABS light on the dash. To make a long story short, I finally found a C1186 code deep in the ABS DTC. Following the Ford diagnostic procedure in the shop manual, I found that the problem was in the CM. Ford no longer produces the CM and the used one I purchased to replace it had a critical fault in it as well. With parts not being available to repair, I embarked on another option. In my local wrecking yard was a 2011 Ranger 4x4 Sport. I collected the entire ABS system including the complete rear axle assembly. I also collected the complete dash with wiring all the way to the back if the truck, steering column and seats. I did not get the ECM or the engine compartment wiring harness do to the condition of those parts. I have located a NOS engine compartment harness and I can get the 2011 ECM from Ford. The physical retrofit is not a problem for me. The problem is how do I get the components in the system to talk to each other. I understand that the first time I restore power to the vehicle, the will be no Vin in the PCM, everything in the engine, transmission and doors will display the 2004 Vin while the ABS HU/CM, the SRS system, stability drive system and the radio will all have the 2011 Vin. How do I get all of the proms in the system on the 2004 Vin so that they will all communicate?

 

[RonD]

The 2004 instrument cluster will also be an issue, it is "matched" to the 2004 PCM(prevented swapping in lower mile odometers)
They "handshake" with key on, so has odometer matching and PATS, not sure VIN is an issue here

2004 engine harness also has one connector PCM harness, in 2007 Rangers switched to 3 connector PCM harness

Yes, later years had stability control, in which ABS was a main part, not sure if there was a separate stability control module
Also extra sensors for yaw and pitch, people ran into issues with this system when they Lifted their Rangers

But I don't think the separate modules had handshake issues except for the cluster and PCM, could be but just haven't read about it
Haven't come across Radio swapping being an issue in later models, i.e. VIN issue for stolen radios

 

[Hawker Driver]

The 2004 instrument cluster will also be an issue, it is "matched" to the 2004 PCM(prevented swapping in lower mile odometers)
They "handshake" with key on, so has odometer matching and PATS, not sure VIN is an issue here

2004 engine harness also has one connector PCM harness, in 2007 Rangers switched to 3 connector PCM harness

Yes, later years had stability control, in which ABS was a main part, not sure if there was a separate stability control module
Also extra sensors for yaw and pitch, people ran into issues with this system when they Lifted their Rangers

But I don't think the separate modules had handshake issues except for the cluster and PCM, could be but just haven't read about it
Haven't come across Radio swapping being an issue in later models, i.e. VIN issue for stolen radios

Hi Ron,
The only things that will be off the 04 are any smart accessories in the doors and the actual components on the engine and transmission. I was able to obtain a full set of harnesses for the engine compartment so all harnesses are vintage 2011. I have a new ECM and it has been VIN coded to the 04 vin without removing any of the 11 software. There are more interface issues on the instrument cluster that just the odometer. The vehicle status light annunciator panel is also coded to the ECM and the 11 has more functions than the 04. I am beginning to think that I am going to have just put it all together, put power on it and then start chasing down conflicts.

 

[sgtsandman]

You may have an issue with ABS input signal. The 2010 & 2011 has sensors each end of the axle tubes that pick up signal off the tone rings on the axle shafts. I believe the 2004 picks up signal off a tone ring in the differential. I may be wrong on this but something to look out for. You are going further into the weeds than I ever did but I did notice my 2011 had tone rings behind the hub when I replaced the rear parking brake shoes.

 

[Hawker Driver]

You may have an issue with ABS input signal. The 2010 & 2011 has sensors each end of the axle tubes that pick up signal off the tone rings on the axle shafts. I believe the 2004 picks up signal off a tone ring in the differential. I may be wrong on this but something to look out for. You are going further into the weeds than I ever did but I did notice my 2011 had tone rings behind the hub when I replaced the rear parking brake shoes.

The DTC code revealed that a valve was sticking in the HU of the ABS pump assembly. I followed the ford diagnosis to verify that the problem was mechanical rather than electrical. Being the mechanic and frustrated engineer that I am, I tore into the HCU. Sure enough the design of the HU had a steel stem riding on an un-bushed aluminum housing and life got the better of the aluminum. Not repairable without a complete redesign of the HU. Now, I am just going to turn her into a 2011 soul living in an 2004 body.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

So, a little bit of a sidebar, but is there any way you could post up the diagnosis procedure? My ABS was dragging a rear wheel in rainy weather, I swapped it for another ABS and now I can’t get the valves to activate to bleed it. I’m getting a low voltage code now, don’t know if that was there before or not because I don’t remember if I checked it before things got tore apart. Just wondering if I have two bad ABS systems now. I’ll make my own thread if you don’t want to clutter up yours.

 

[Hawker Driver]

So, a little bit of a sidebar, but is there any way you could post up the diagnosis procedure? My ABS was dragging a rear wheel in rainy weather, I swapped it for another ABS and now I can’t get the valves to activate to bleed it. I’m getting a low voltage code now, don’t know if that was there before or not because I don’t remember if I checked it before things got tore apart. Just wondering if I have two bad ABS systems now. I’ll make my own thread if you don’t want to clutter up yours.

Sorry but I did not take a picture of any of the diagnostic efforts. For the record, my scanner is a THINKSCAN Plus S7 by Think car. Its real cost effective and works well. It does have an ABS bleed function that should take care of any air in your system.