My poor truck. again. lol

So I sold my plow frame off of my truck and the guy offered me extra money for the wiring...which now I know was a mistake...but anyway...

After the wiring was taken out the battery light came on. And two of my 3 after market guages don't work (not as big of a concern for me right now)...
The guy fed me a line about the battery being disconnected and it'll prob go out. I didn't buy it. I looked under the hood for anything obvious and you can see where he cut a wire going to the altenator.

Does anyone know where I can find some sort of info about what that wire was for and where it went? Not sure if it's an easy fix or not, but I do know the altenator is def NOT working properly. It only started 4 times after this and now has typical dead battery syndrome. Each start seemed to take longer than the one before and at the time my optomistic attitude convinced me it was cause it was colder out. lol

Thanks guys! (fyi- it has a dual battery set up, and on each battery I only see the positive and negative wires...I don't see anything that would be coming from the altenator...but I'm not sure how it was set up to begin with...)

 

theres the charge wire, and a 2 wire pigtail

 

Pictures gurl. Snap some photos. Be sure to stand far enough back we can see other things to get an idea of the general location, but close enough we can see what you're trying to show us. Once we figure out what area he cut in, we can then look up the diagrams or just go look at our own trucks and start tracing things down.

In the mean time, grab some electrical tape and tape up the ends of the wires he cut, then check your fuses. This could all just be the result of the "hot" wire he cut shorting out against the metal and blowing a fuse.

Do you have a multi meter? You can also try checking your battery voltage. Stick the black lead on the negative and the red on the positive of each battery and see what voltage (DC voltage) it reads with the key off for each battery. Then check each battery again when the engine is running. That or just go to walmart and buy you one of those digital gauges that plugs into the cigarette lighter that gives you the same info with a lot less headache for around $15

Here's mine.

 

OK! Here are pics... sorry it took me forever...

At this point the truck will start if jumped, but without any assistance the batteries (dual battery setup) are too weak to start it.

But here are two pics - I circled the end of the wire that was cut. It is an orange wire coming out of the altenator, and then there's the blue clip and an orange and black wire coming out.... the black one was the one that was cut... I tried looking online and found a bunch of wiring diagrams, but couldn't find one that looked like this...

Thanks guys! - oh and fyi- both photos were taken from the drivers side while I was standing on the tire...lol...only way I can see up there!



This pic shows the top and is a good view of the wiring set up on the altenator itself...

 

First, just pry open the blue tap on the ORN/LT BLU wire and remove it. Be careful not to short anything, as that wire may be "hot". Use some good (Scotch 33+) electrical tape afterward.

It appears that the cut wire was just a "tap", and that whould have nothing to do with the operation.

Make sure that Fuse #6 (10-amp, red) in the under-hood fuse box is good. Also check that Fuse #29 in the under-dash box.

See:
http://www.e-toolbox.com/ads/wiring/va131432.pdf

Also, not sure, but it looks a little like you may have a "pushed pin" on the other (GRN/RD) wire. That means that the connection may be backing out of the connector.

Those connectors are kinda flakey, and replacements are available to splice in place if necessary.

But check those fuses first.

Pop

 

I agree with Pop about how your alternator plug looks and checking the fuses. You can open that blue connector like a book, pry the plastic piece off the wires, then there will be a metal E shaped piece that hold those 2 wires together. Pull off the cut wire, pull the E shaped piece and tape up the wire, or just put electrical tape over that exposed cut wire and replace your pigtail connector on that harness.

Here's what the connector looks like before it's crimped on the wires



You can order a replacement connector here and just splice it into your wiring. Ford Alternator Pigtail 1996+ Gray Housing - The Repair Connector Store

I had to order this part for my truck. For your peace of mind, the way that wire was cut will not harm your truck any unless that exposed copper wire you circled touches something metal.

 

Thanks to both of you!

I will definitely check both when I get home. =) ...and I hope it does work, but would that explain why the battery light suddenly went on when the wire was cut? any why it "seemed" to stop charging at the same time? ...I don't mean to sound difficult, but I'm a bit of a pessimist that it will be that easy! lol Sorry guys! I will try it and see...

My other concern/question is that right now it is turning over too slow to actually start the truck, so it has to be jumped... How do I know that it's actually charging the batteries so I can count on not being stuck... I don't have any kind of voltage meter right now but can buy one if I need one....

...So am I correct in understanding that this truck would not have had that blue clip from stock? That was added to splice wiring to go to the plow in some way? And that if I got that gray housing pigtail thingy it would just undo that alteration and put it back to where it was originally? lol... so many questions!


Thanks again! I'll let you know when I check everything out.

 

You are correct the blue thing was added to splice the wiring.

Most auto parts stores will test your alternator and your batteries for free. If you have a bad battery, replace both of them at the same time, regardless of what the guy at the parts store tells you.

 

If the doofuss cut that wire off and shorted it to ground while doing so, it woulda' blown the fuse to the regulator, thus preventing any field current, resulting in no alternator output.

Pop

 

The big wire that goes from the ALT to the battery is attached correctly behind the alt.
One of those two wires is the indicator wire to the dash BATTERY light. The other wire is the FIELD EFFECT that will "engage" alternator. Get the alt tested along with LOAD testing batteries at any AUTOZONE or auto parts store. IF YOU NEED BATTERIES, BUY TWO at same time, as other have said. Consider Walmart's EverStart MAXX 65 N

 

Do I need to disconnect the battery before I check the under the hood fuses? I looked at an owners manual online (don't have my original) and it stressed that I do... But at the same time it seems like disconnecting the two batteries and 'resetting' the idle afterwards seems like ALOT just to check some fuses.

Also- I'm uploading more pictures of the two batteries- I thought it was odd that there is nothing going to the driver's side battery from the altenator? But I don't know much about the 2 battery set up, but how does it get charged?

I'm hoping to have time to put into this tomorrow- and I do have the altenator pigtail on order- I'm hoping it comes tomorrow.

Thanks again guys.

This is the passenger side battery- it's hard to see cause I pulled back the positive terminal guard, but there is a decent size cable coming in the back of that huge post on the positive terminal.



This is the drivers side battery- notice there isn't anything but a positive and negative cable... I'm not sure if it was always this way, or is it possible the guy who took the wiring off removed something?


ok thanks guys.

 

Your batteries connections are correct. On the passenger battery positive cable, that large cable is tying into the driver's side battery. Your batteries are wired in parallel to maintain the same volts but increase the amps output.

The alternator is hooked to your batteries (the large wire on the back of the alt) but through a harness.

 

ok cool. Thanks! I wasn't sure....

Any thoughts on whether to disconnect the battery before checking the under hood fuses? ...I had never heard of this, but I've never checked fuses on this big of a vehicle before...

 

No you don't need to disconnect your batts to check the fuses

 

Not sure what you mean about "resetting the idle" when the batteries are disconnected.