A harness is a harnes is a harnes---Not So Fast Pal

[BroncRider]

My 2004 XLT Extended Cab is done. With 300300 miles the 3.0L has a blown head gasket and cylinder #5 has lost 1/2 its compression. I've spent the last 3 months searching for just the right replacement. I found a 2009 XLT Extended Cap with all the bells and whistles I wanted except for cruise control with just 69,000 miles on it. It is equipped with 4-wheel drive. I lived in Maine for the last 20 years but I’m in South Carolina now and the 4x4 is less important. However, cruise control is an absolute necessity. Before I bought the truck, I understood that Ford used the same wiring harness for each model they made. When an option was not chosen, they simply capped off that connector. Without any experience with vehicle wiring, I decided to buy the truck and tackle the job. I did a bit of research and made a plan on how to do it. If I were a better videographer, I would have taped it so others could do this too. No problem I’ll just find a servo that fits a 4.0L and swap out my steering wheel with its cruise control buttons. This is where the best laid plans go awry. It was a Fleet Ranger used at a small airport.

 

[Jim Oaks]

You may have dated yourself when you used the word 'taped'. LOL.

It would be interesting to see the cruise control wiring diagram for a 2004 and 2009 and see what's different.

On another note, a 3.0L that made it 300,300 miles sounds pretty cool, or maybe what I'd expect in a truck driven by the Cat in a Hat. The 3.0 is often called a 3.Slow, but they're actually a really reliable motor that will run a long time if taken care of.

 

[BroncRider]

You may have dated yourself when you used the word 'taped'. LOL.

It would be interesting to see the cruise control wiring diagram for a 2004 and 2009 and see what's different.

On another note, a 3.0L that made it 300,300 miles sounds pretty cool, or maybe what I'd expect in a truck driven by the Cat in a Hat. The 3.0 is often called a 3.Slow, but they're actually a really reliable motor that will run a long time if taken care of.

First on the list was to find a doner vehicle. This job required a 2009 to 2011 doner. A near impossibility within the 250 miles of my home near Charlotte, NC. As luck would have it, I picked up the new Ranger in New Haven, CT on the 23rd of September and on that very day a salvage yard 2 hours from my home posted a 2011werck. Got home on the 24th and in the salvage yard on the 25th. In those two days the engine, transmission, PCM, head and taillights, and mirrors were all gone. That tells you how much in demand the great Rangers are. I took the tilt steering column, clock spring, and steering wheel. I would use the Airbag from the 09. The AI I used to teach me how to do the wiring, “Factory” which I wanted, said “Not So Fast”. There were a multitude of compatibility issues. To resolve these issues, I decided to strip that entire 2011 wiring harness the following day. When I got back to the salvage yard the only thing left of the harness on the firewall was a 12-inch piece with the hundred wires in it cut. NO PROBLEM the cruise control wires run around the front. So, I was able to disconnect the C110 connector from the passenger side fuse box and disconnect every plug around the front of the truck and pulled the C144 connector behind the emergency brake including the engine bay main fuse box.

 

[BroncRider]

I mrant to add. After nearly 5 hours of search thete is no definative wiring schematic for this type of job. the color codes are a jumbled assortment from year block to year block. 2009 to 2011 has two versions.

 

[Ranger850]

I ran into a similar issue with my Nissan D21. A previous owner hacked and tapped so many wires, I figured a complete harness would do the trick. Found a donor truck, same year and same spec as mine. ( '87 D21-"E", Base model with A/C from the factory ) with only the stereo wires cut. Got the donor home and started disassembling the harness. At some point I realized the main junction on the donor has a square plug, the main junction on my truck is a round plug. So now I have to decide which plug I want to unpin just to re-pin into the other plug. For the most part, all wires seem to be of the same color code.