When I had my heads replaced, the mechanic informed me that my cruise control cable was broken. News to me. It worked fine before. He said he couldn't find a replacement. I went to my local Ford parts dept. and they told me it was a discontinued item.

So I went online and ordered one from Direct Ford Parts and it did not match. The part number was FMC-F49Z9A825JA. In the parts catalog it says it fits 92-97. Not even close. The one I have has a screw off top and the one sent has a bolt on housing.

Can anyone give me some good places to find a new or recycled cruise control cable for a 1997 Ford Aerostar 4.0 where I can talk to the person and confirm it is the right part?

I am going to take a long trip and really need my cruise control.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

junke emporium yard of Aero parts
take your old one....

or try FTE sponsor Discount Ford Parts click
under Fuel System
call or email them to confirm part

different part for 3L and 4L

you may have aftermarket dealer installed cruise?
there is one listed on ebay

the 825JA is the cable called for in Ford Service manual for 4L vacuum cruise Aero

 

The cruise control is factory installed. The 825JA cable is not correct. I have one in the original bag from a Ford Dealer. The cable for the 1997 4.0 OBD II engine is different. The cable end has a screw on cap to the servo. It might have come from the Ranger or Explorer line. A lot of parts did.

I sent out a request into the recyled parts black hole and will track it down later.

 

The 1997 Aero has a completely different speed control (cruise control) servo than the '86-96 vacuum units. More info & pics about this are here.

On my '89, the cable snapped during a trip to LA about ten years ago, during Christmastime. I visited a JY in Monrovia (ISTR) and got one on Christmas eve. It's pretty easy to replace on the vacuum versions.

Mine on my '97 snapped an hour ago during my commute home.

The '97 speed control cable is ridiculously easy to replace. I removed the old one using no tools at all.

Unfortunately, if Ford doesn't sell it, I'm going to be visiting a JY tomorrow and looking at Rangers & Explorers.

Back in my motorcycle shop days in the '70s, we used to make our own cables using bulk wire and ferrules. If I can't find a reasonable crossover from a donor rig, I may contact a couple of motorcycle shops and see if this kind of thing is still done.

 

The cable from the speed control actuator to the throttle body.

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At the JY, what I found is that the CC cable from both a 1999 & 2000 Explorer with the same 4.0l OHV engine, use the same type of cable (same actuator cable mounting, same throttle housing attachment). It's identical, except that it's 9" shorter.

Some cursory Googling leads me to think that the Explorer's cable is F87Z-9A825-LA and may fit 1998 - 2001 Explorer and 1998 - 2003 Ranger with 4.0L OHV engine.

Other Fords I checked, whose cruise control cables definitely are different on the throttle body end:
1996 & 2000 F150
199x Thunderbird
1999 or 2000 Explorer with the 5.0l V8 and/or the 4.0l SOHC engines.

They all use a ball-stud mount.

Various Tauruses: much too short.

I bought one from the '99 Explorer and installed in in two minutes in the JY's parking lot. On a warm day, the pieces just snap into place.

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While the bend radius over the intake manifold is smaller than I'd like, it does work and doesn't quite seem too short.

As a bonus, the Explorer cable (the inner wire) is larger diameter than the Aero's was. It's not much larger, but it's noticeable.

Tip: When removing the cable from the actuator end, the plastic housing is easily removed -- just press in on the tab, and rotate the whole housing CCW slightly, then lift.

However, the metal inner wire's ball end does not just come out of its slot like a motorcycle's would. There is a small spring wire that must be pushed away from the ball end, before you can slip the wire out of the spool. Have a small screwdriver handy for that.