I don't see the mega fuse, but will take your word for it. But, if it has one it should work well for your needs.

 

I didn't see one either once the other photos loaded up the first photo made it appear that there was a mounting point for a mega fuse. The search how ever continues.


~Update~


I keep coming across theses. In the second photo you can see there is a mega fuse mounting location. It also has the right number of relays but way more fuses than I really need. I could probably rewire the whole truck and use this as my main fuse panel.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/1996-Ford-F150-4-9-Under-Hood-Fuse-and-Relay-Power-Distribution-Box-w-Lid-/291543847465?hash=item43e15e1229&vxp=mtr

But I am not going to pay $61 for this, I am sure I could find one in a local junkyard for a few bucks. Especially if it did not come with the fuses. I really don't need the fuses as I will be doing a complete rewire on what ever I get and the amperage will be different than oem.

 

If it's anything like other Ford power distribution boxes I've seen the megafuse is under the slide up cover where the power lead enters.

 

So basically what ever Ford Power Distribution box I get odds are it will have a mega fuse mounting somewhere on it then.


I just wonder what makes the '90s model boxes so much more sought after on ebay. They are $50+ and I found a '01 box for $24 on ebay but it has thoses small micro relays which is useless for me.

 

I can't say for 'all' Ford power boxes.

Just typical for the Taurus and CV'S I've had to work on.

 

Ah ok, I been looking mainly at F150 boxes, I found some nice compact Tbird power boxes but no one has pictures so far of the inside to show what kind of relay arrangement the have.


If I can get a good idea I will stop at the junkyard on the way home from work during lunch and pick some stuff up if they have it.


So far I know for this I am looking at a 91-92 Taurus 3G alternator or one from a 93-95 with a 3.8L as these are the 8.25" ear spacing verify it has two large holes to indicate its a large case high amp alternator over the small case, get the power cable and mega fuse from the same vehicle and then the power box. I should then be set if I can get all this stuff, I can work on gutting the power box at work when it is slow and wire it up to make it plug and play.


~Update~
Just a question I thought of, what is generally a fair price at the junkyard for theses boxes? I hate to jump on one for say $15 to $20 and they generally go for way less than that used.

 

Well I think I will end up going with a Ford Escape distribution box. It has 7 fullsize five terminal relay mounts it also has two diode mounts which will work for me as I will need one diode to prevent back feeding for my On-Off-On switch for my Aux lights.


Only thing I am not too crazy about is it uses the mini fuses and the stupid square box fuses. I hate the box fuses as they are hard to get out. The mini fuses are not too big of a problem in that sense but I can not recall what amperage they go up to if they go up to at least 40 amp then this will be fine.


I also found a guy online selling one of these boxes with fuses $6.50 but down side I s&h is $13.50.

 

$20 to your door sounds like a deal to me

 

Really? I was thinking $20 might be too much. I don't do much junkyard shopping here as they don't have parts for my vehicles so I am out of the loop on pricing. If $20 is a fair price I found a couple different ones I can buy at that price just incase the one I found just wont work right.


Also I just noticed the lid on the inside it says the main fuse for this box is a 120A fuse. I am now wondering if going with a fuse around 160A would be a problem. I would be rewiring the whole box from scratch but just something I noticed.


Well I purchased the box should be here by Thursday. Nice thing is it comes with seven full size Ford relays I hope they are five terminal that would save me a lot of cash there. It comes with a 120A main fuse, and it come with a bunch of the other fuses both square and mini fuses along with two diodes. It is not a bad price when I think of it now considering it only cost me $20 and some change.


The Ford 175A mega fuse which is what I will probably end up using in place of the 120A fuse might be a little over kill considering the alternator I am looking at was a 140A 3G but I guess if I get a 140A large case cheap enough I can have it tested out and if its good have it boosted u to 160A by the guy that I was going to use to build my '56s starter.

 

Update


I haven't called any local junkyards yet, lunch break is short for me today and got a lot going on at work. But I did just now do a quick search on ebay for "1993 Ford Taurus 3.8L Alternator" and I found some hits.


I wanted to ask if $30 without the charge wire or mega fuse is a decent price for one of theses large case alternators? I don't know how easy it would be to locate one here as we are talking about an alternator for a vehicle 20+ years old and might be hard to locate.


I did order the power box and have that coming should be here on Thursday, I am thinking about the mounting I think I might get some square stock and weld up a self supporting bracket to mount the box on. The box I choosed is linked below it is a side mount box that bolts on the side instead of from the bottom. If it is not too heavy I might could use flat stock and make a bracket to mount it. I like the idea of a free floating mount off the side of the fender vs off the fender apron.


00 06 Mazda Tribute Ford Escape Fuse Box | eBay

 

$30 isn't bad for the alternator w/o the wire, but you will need that so may still have to hit the local salvage yards. And, here that alternator and charge wire are everywhere.

And side-mounting the box should work well.

 

That is what I am hoping. I will try to call some local junkyards for my needs but around here hat makes it horrible is the cost the city puts on junkyards through fees and taxes, when it gets slow they send their oldest cars to the scrap yard. I feel it might be a losing battle to find a 20+ yo Taurus alternator but I sure will give it a try.


I also think I will just stick with a stock 140A large case and not even have it beefed up. Saw some posts stating a single drive belt especially a V belt will slip at higher amp loads from the alternator.

 

There was a guy, Ryan, a few years ago that had a dynamite site, with fantastic info. And, he had all the parts we wanted. Unfortunately, he went bust and his site was lost. But, one thing he had on it was that a single belt can only support 95 amps.

So, unless you go to dual belts or a serpentine belt to the alternator there's no reason to have your 140A 3G made even stronger. Just get one with a warranty, and most salvages will give you another in exchange, and change out the brushes for good measure.

 

Really just 95 Amps?


Wonder if its even worth getting the large case 140A with this in mind.


Something to really contemplate. This is a very bare bones truck only has dealer AC a AM/FM/Cassette radio, and the upgraded H4 headlights the only circuits I am adding is just theses Aux lights and maybe a CB radio down the road. Doubt that all would pull much over 60A.

 

It won't cost anything more to run the bigger alternator, so why not? That way you have plenty of reserve.