I've been trying to troubleshoot the cruise in my service truck. I tried running the self test today I realized that there is no indicator light on the dash. I pulled the cluster and found no provision for a bulb for the cruise control. This is a high mileage vehicle. The clock shows 570,000 miles and I got a mileage waiver form when I got the van so now I'm thinking someone installed a non-cruise control cluster in my truck and that is what is keeping it from functioning. I've already tested all the circuits from the buttons on the steering wheel to the servo. Thanks in advance.

 

Not being too snarky but what kind of mobile tech service are you running exactly?

IF your CC has steering wheel mounted switches that part should be OEM not aftermarket---you may already know that though. There isn't a dash or cluster mounted indicator light showing when CC is engaged etc. The only lighting feature might be illumination tied to the park/dash lights.

If by "self tests" you mean the pin point diagnosis from the factory manual that's a start but I'd check for a ground connection at the servo itself. It sounds to me like the servo has failed.

If CC is something you use and want to remain reliable I'd suggest buying a whole new OEM kit. Go to eBay Motors and search for a seller called DealsFromOverStock---they are the OEM manufactuers for Ford's CC systems. I bought a brand new, in Ford packaging system for my '00 E250 shipped for like $125. Servo alone would cost about $400 from the stealership.

 

After 20 years or so of specializing in VW's, engine building and general auto and light truck repairs I am ASE certified and a State Licensed inspector. But even I once in awhile come across something that I haven't seen before. Everyone does. I can't count how many times Alldata has provided me with mis-information or no information and shoddy wiring diagrams that look like thy were drawn in crayon by a kindergartner. After I went into Michell and got a look at some decent diagrams I was able to make more sense of this system and saw that the switches were supposed to be illuminated and that there was no dash light. I was reading posts and talking to people including the service manager at Ford with F250's which it seems have a small green indicator light on the dash for the CC. My bad for assuming the two vehicles would be similar. The only thing I've ever had to change on these CC systems was the wheel mounted switches. I've tested out every circuit on my van but I'm still not convinced its the servo since I already substituded a known good one to no avail. I'm going to retrace my steps and confirm that maybe I don't have a worn clock spring or something intermittent. I do appreciate the lead on the EBay kit. I'll look into it but for as much as I use the CC I would much rather replace the part that's bad instead of throwing an entirely new system at it.

 

Naturally you're free to pursue the problem in any way you see fit HOWEVER sharing my experience was meant to help you shortcut the process you seem hell bent on following......

Substituting a known good servo that is NOT of the same year AND model of your vehicle very well might still not solve this issue. There are difference in the wiring of Ford's various vehicles which is greatly affected by the model, year etc. I tried installing an OEM new CC system intended for a 1997 E250 onto my 2000 E250--complete failure even though the switch functions could be verified on the flat 10 pin under hood servo connector. Purchased the correct kit (servo only: $450 MSRP, new kit: $115 shippe) and everything worked first time out.

The point is swapping parts thought to be of a generic type to the brand doesn't always work----I've literally been there, done that and learned the hard way. If my vehicle is a 2000 E250 I order parts for it specifically--it simply doesn't work any other way in many many cases especially wiring related.

Best of luck!!

 

That's where having friends in the Downs Ford parts department that are trustworthy and willing to cross reference supersecedures in part numbers saves me time and money. I don't believe in the shade tree throw parts at it and hope it works shortcut approach. I test out every circuit under every circumstance considering heat soak, wet conditions, wiggle tests, etc. That's what seperates the techs from the installers. I could spend $125 for a kit on EBay and find out that the main harness has been gnawed on by squirrels. Which actually happens more than you can imagine. $125 down the drain. Ford is honoring the safety bulletin and replacing the cutout switch on my 11 year old van tomorrow. I doubt it will fix the problem because I already checked the resistance across the switch terminals. I'm confident my in with the techs there will save me the trip over to my buddies shop to use his Modis and they will let me know where the true problem lies using factory scan tools. Although it did take them 4 days to isolate the ignition coil that was leaking spark inside the spark plug hole on #8 on an 01 F250 shorting the ECM. Damn thing never did set a misfire code. Shorted so fast it erased the ECM's memory we suspect. So is the life of a Ford tech.

 

So anyway even the Modis couldnt access the BCM so when I finally got some time to go back over the system again I pulled the servo and seperated it from the control module and found the servo motor to be seized up. I took an older servo motor that I pirated from an older van and bolted up my module to it, connected my cable and it worked perfect. For the most part the motors seem to all be the same but Ford is very specific when it comes to modules. I even made use of the older style bracket into my 2000 since the holes were already there in the inner fender.
Total cost: Free

I will probably just bypass the cutout switch that is so prone to brake fluid leak provoked engine fires or update it myself with the newer switch that comes with a fusible link incorporated into the harness.

 

Similar problem with my custom van... I built this van using my original '75 frame, which has a '90 body, and used a '99 donor ambulance with 7.3 TSD for everything else. All electronics and mechanics (except the front end which is '87 1 ton) are '99. Even the dash and all controls/harnesses are from the '99 donor vehicle. I replaced the steering wheel and all clockspring/switches with new parts when I put in the steering column. I've had it computer tested at dealers and they tell me it passes all cruise control tests, but it still does not work. The test is suppose to check that all switches and sensors are working. On thing I did not carry over to this van is the ABS since the front brakes do not have them and with dually rear I saw no need for it, not to mention I had no room under the hood for all the ABS related hardware. I have upgraded the brake pressure switch under the hood to bring it current related to the recall.

 

Brief story on my first attempt to add OEM CC to an E250......

Orginally purchased NOS OEM kit from a dealer intended for my then-current '97 van but it didn't have the necessary chassis wiring so I abandoned that idea. Later found my current '00 that already had in place all necessary wiring for CC so the new unused kit was installed exactly as described in the included instructions------nothing.

Found a highly qualified mobile tech in my area (not this OP BTW) who was referred by several dealerships since they'd farm this sort of installation/repair/diagnosis to him. Every self-diagnosis said all components were working perfectly yet still no CC. His eventual conclusion was since the vehicle years didn't match without extensive rewiring of the chassis there was no way to make the mismatched parts function properly.

Finally found another brand new CC kit from Ford for my specific year---it worked perfectly the first time, still is nearly two years later. Ford made subtle changes in the wiring from year to year so this has to be kept in mind---swapping used parts around tends to NOT work as demonstrated earlier in this thread.

An alternative would be knowing exactly what year CC kit you have then obtaining the correct EVTM and wiring the CC system as shown in the schematic. Its not impossible but it does seem it would be rather complex and time consuming. IMO it'd be well worth the effort---I love my CC!

 

If you've pulled the cluster, look for a date code, and compare it to the build date on the window sticker, or the door decal, and if it is prior to that date, it IS original.