Installing "Factory" Cruise Control on a 1996 Ranger 2.3 MT5

[flybeech]

I use my '96 Ranger 2.3 MT5 a lot and have no desire to replace it. It serves me just fine, except without cruise control, my leg really hurts after driving all day. It was get cruise on there, or replace the truck. Ford has a habit of making very specific wiring harnesses for each vehicle. If the content ain't installed at the factory, you ain't getting the wiring. In the old-days, accessory harnesses were often separate and one could easily field-install accessories. I wanted a clean install, that I could service for years to come, with genuine Ford parts and procedures and not some after-market unit with no support.

Examination of the wiring revealed that the main IP harness is actually pre-wired, but the under hood harness is not. At the salvage, I found a 2008 2.5 MT5 Ranger that I took both the IP and under hood harnesses, the cruise servo w.cable, and the complete tilt column. From a 96 3.0 automatic, I took the brake master cylinder and also the cruise servo, because the cable was closer to the correct 2.3 Ranger cable, which is not available and rare as hen's teeth.

At the shop, I dissected the the 98 2.5 harness and removed complete pin to pin any wires related to the cruise and wrapped them in their own sleeving to rout along the original, over to the bulkhead connector, where each was inserted into the desired cavity of the bulkhead connectors, and the others were soldered to existing wires, nice and tidy. Once the whole thing was installed, of course it didn't work, right off the bat. I rang-out all the wires from pin to pin and found that three of the five buttons didn't work, as the resisters inside the control switches had opened. Some Chinese-clone for $23 off of eBay got it working fine.

If I had to do it over again, I wouldn't have gotten the IP harness, since the original is pre-wired, and I would have not been as concerned about finding only a Ranger with a 4 cylinder, since in my case, only a 1995 through 1997 2.3L MT5, with cruise control will work unmodified. Pretty rare harness. I would have just grabbed the first 95-97 Explorer under hood harness I found, since I only ended up using just the cruise wiring stripped from the main harness. It's easiest I think to get the whole steering column you want, because you may get working clock spring and possible switches. In my case, a tilt-wheel floor shift column from a Ranger was just what the doctor ordered.

The cruise actuator cable for a 95-97 2.3L is rare and discontinued since 2004. The 3.0 Ranger cruise is the right length, but the center cable is too short. It can be adjusted, but the latching pin needs to me moved. it's goofy, but works, until I can turn up a correct cable.

Next stop is the Ford dealer, to see if they'll do the cruise safety switch recall on a Ranger with "Ford accessory" cruise control. If not, I'll just get the recall kit off eBay. As my ol' body wears out, no cruise was about to become a deal breaker. Nice to have it, after all these years.

 

[Mark_88]

Interesting...and thanks for posting this.

I had a 96 and rewired everything including the dash and steering column into my 88 cab and found the wiring better suited than the older style for upgrades.

I was thinking of doing cruise if/when I found an automatic transmission but that never panned out. If you have pics and want to make this into a potential tech bulletin I'm sure there are other "old dogs" that might be interested in this.

After I sold my Ranger I ended up with a 2007 Dodge Caravan with cruise and power everything and the CC comes in real handy on long drives. I never actually dreamed I would appreciate a feature like that but as the body ages so does the desire to rest it whenever possible...

anyway...there is a format you can follow...it is a bit of work but for anyone taking on a project like that it sure helps to see what someone else has done and the problems/fixes they ran into or came up with.

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=147332

 

[flybeech]

52 pictures unsorted pictures of the cruise.

I hope this works....


http://s167.photobucket.com/user/flybeech/slideshow/Ford Ranger Cruise?sort=3

On the bulkhead connectors, I dismantled them all on both sides, to verify wiring. I had saved each cruise harness wire all the way to the male pin. Once there for the install, I found the 4 or 5 vacant cavities available and three already had wires in them. The vacant cavities required drilling a hole in the weather cap, which allows the pins to just click in, with the red lock removed. The 3 or so, remaining wires that were already occupied, I just soldered them in along the wire, back out of sight. After the fact, I believe that several wires are actually in the underhood lighting harness and could be spliced where they terminate, or just exchange the existing pin in the bulkhead connector for the "accessory" cruise harness. Since I was going for the lazy way of just adding the external cruise harness, I didn't cut my original harness apart. Maybe someday, I'll have another harness to refine the exact way to integrate it, by a complete dissection. At least the instrument panel harness is fully ready. All mods are under the hood.

The tilt column was from a '98 2.5 MT5 and when it came time to connect to my '96 harness, I discovered the air bag connector from the clock spring was different from my '96. In this case, I robbed the IP harness connector hard-shell from the salvage '98 and made my '96 harness fit the '98 clock spring. Could have done it a number of ways. I thought availability might be better for the '98-up clock springs.

Since '95 -'97 2.3L cruise actuator cables are just not out there, I used one from a 1996 3.0L. You can see how I "adjusted" the cable, by moving the serrated part way out there, towards the throttle body lever, then cramming the horseshoe over the whole mess, in the wrong spot. Maybe someday, I'll find the right cable, but for now, it works fine like this.

From the salvage 1996 3.0L A/T, I also got the brake master cylinder, It was filthy inside the tank and I started getting an ABS warning light. Pulled the reservoir to clean and found a piece of brake fluid can foil flapping around the inlet port of the MC. No more ABS light and the used MC is leak free, for now.

 

[flybeech]

Troubleshooting Notes

The pin-outs on the hardshell connector to the servo are:

Pin 1: Cruise lamp, switches to ground. I wanted the indicator, but all I had was an unused OD-off light available in the cluster. That lamp and related WHT/LTGRN wiring exists in the harnesses, but doesn't actually terminate into the PCM, so I spliced and soldered the cruise harness pin 1 wire adjacent to the tan bulkhead connector, giving me an indicator on the dash. In retrospect, I would have pulled the WHT/LTGRN pin from the tan (middle) connector and substituted the male pin from the cruise harness in the hardshell connector.

Pin 2: Vacant

Pin 3: VSS signal. GRY/BLK. The other wire I opted to T-splice, near the grey (lower) bulkhead connector. This pin should show about 230 ohms to ground. The complete VSS circuit can be checked for continuity, by fabricating a jumper for the VSS and checking continuity from pin-10 (ground) to pin-3 VSS signal.

Pin 4: Brake/clutch safety switch. TAN/LTBLU. Insert this pin into the correct vacant cavity of the grey, engine-side bulkhead connector. Take apart both sides of the firewall connectors to verify locations. To test, connect pin-10 (ground) to pin 4. You want to see some resistance with key-off, key-on and headlamps on, battery voltage with the brake applied and open-circuit (infinity) with the clutch depressed. I had previously installed all-LED lighting and found a small back-feed, that prevented engagement with park lamps on. I had to go back to the incandescent 3157 bulbs to correct this. If you experience no engagement ever, or no engagement with park/headlights on, check for LED stop-lamps. This was a real lunch-eater for me.

Pin 5: Control Buttons: LTBLU/BLK Measure voltage between pin-5 and pin-10 GND. This should show about 9.5v (150 ohm resistor in the switch for ON) when the ON-button is depressed. In the grey firewall connector, insert this into the vacant cavity that corresponds with the LTBLU/BLK wire from the IP harness. Holes will need to be drilled in the plastic dust cover of the hardshell connector for the new wires being inserted.

Pin 6: Control Buttons: DKGRN/ORG. Measure resistance between pin-5 and pin-6 as follows; "OFF" - less than 5 ohms. "COAST" appx. 128 ohms, "SET" appx.690 ohms, "RESUME" appx. 2100 ohms. 1998-up servos can self-test these by depressing the OFF button, then turn the key on. Note a flash of the indicator. Within 5 seconds, depress in this order, ON > RES > COAST > SET, noting one blink for each button, more than one blink after the SET button is depressed indicates a code to troubleshoot.

Pin 7: Battery voltage with key on. Fuse 10, GRY/YEL. Test between pin 10 GND and pin-7. Insert the male pin from the cruise harness into the grey bulkhead connector corresponding pin.

Pin 8: Vacant.

Pin 9.Brake-pressure switch. BLK/YEL, fuse-10. In the cruise harness, near the firewall connectors, join the GRN/R wire from the brake-pressure switch to the firewall, to the GRY/YEL wire going to the firewall. Test pin 9 to pin 10 for battery voltage and open-circuit with the brake pedal depressed.

Pin 10: Ground. ORG/PNK. Pin 10 GND will go from the cruise unit, to a grounding point near the servo, with an eye bolted to the fender.

Due to my OCD about Ford parts, I ended up replacing the previously installed China control switches with a repaired Ford control. (replaced open resistor $0.06) I did use the China switch covers, which look and feel very nice. The factory switches are very reliable and well-made. If there were just a China source for the vinyl covers...

If I had to do it all over again, I would have gotten the under-hood stuff from a 1995 through 1997 Explorer or Ranger only. The '98-up servos don't interchange, the master cylinders won't fit and the pins of the under hood wiring is slightly different. Inside the truck, the hard-shells of the airbag circuit are different, but an easy fix. Also, there is no shortage of salvage Explorers of all years. Once all the parts are gathered, tested and prepared for installation, the entire job should be accomplished in about 3.5 man-hours. (Add many more hours if you forgot you installed LED stop lamps and/or tried using a '98 servo on a '96 truck.) With the exception of a separate harness under the hood, it is exactly factory and all factory procedures apply. Someday, on the bucket list, I want to salvage a 1995 - 1997 2.3L MT5, 2WD, AC under hood harness and a 1995 - 1997 Explorer/Ranger harness complete, then combine the two, exactly like the factory. That is unless I find an actual 1995 - 1997 Ranger 2.3L MT5, with cruise harness.
I hope this helps.