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I have a 1997 E Superduty shuttle bus that was also converted by StarTrans. Does anyone have the wiring diagrams? I have updated the whole interior and added a solar system (in process), I am want to tie in the solar batteries to power the main lights and door/upper lights. So trying to understand the DC panel. Also how the two batteries work. More so I can hook up the alternator to the new solar batteries so they charge while driving.
After many many emails I finally got them to send me a few schematics for a 1996 bus and i am not sure if its the same. if you want i could email them to you
Hi,
Sorry, I know this was years ago, but if you still have the manual, I’d love a copy. I just bought one myself.
Hi,
Sorry, I know this was years ago, but if you still have the manual, I’d love a copy. Would you be able to send it over? I just bought one myself.
Thanks so much,
Alex
I have to search my old backups for that file and figure how to post it here.
Anyway, I got tired of all electrical issues Startrans made and totally redid the coach electrical power. So original schematics are useless for me now.
I found this intresting the way Startrans ran the rear AC wires. They used almost 35ft of wiring to drive those big blowers in rear AC unit! After my rewire I used aprox 10ft of 4ga wire to a new rear fuse/relay box!! Talk about a BIG TIME improvement from those rear blowers on high speed!
My current project is now to figure out a 2nd 130A 3G alternator to run the coach side and loose the 2nd rear AC compressor that finally failed by teeing into chassis AC system. Not much space in engine dog house.....
I have to search my old backups for that file and figure how to post it here.
Anyway, I got tired of all electrical issues Startrans made and totally redid the coach electrical power. So original schematics are useless for me now.
I found this intresting the way Startrans ran the rear AC wires. They used almost 35ft of wiring to drive those big blowers in rear AC unit! After my rewire I used aprox 10ft of 4ga wire to a new rear fuse/relay box!! Talk about a BIG TIME improvement from those rear blowers on high speed!
My current project is now to figure out a 2nd 130A 3G alternator to run the coach side and loose the 2nd rear AC compressor that finally failed by teeing into chassis AC system. Not much space in engine dog house.....
That's so clever! I tore my AC out. My bed is right under there. I know how often I would hit my head on it vs how often I would use it to cool the cabin. I will attempt a mini-split install. That plus the insulation and window covers should keep me covered. Thanks for the quick reply. Let me know what you find. Any info helps!
Hello Eddiec1564, I can use a copy too. I bought a 05 Turtle Top. I wonder if they use the same schematic.
I ordered a 2005 Ford E-series factory wiring manual. Don't know if it has any info related to cutaways.
I looked on several backups from that time frame and could not find that wiring manual. I lost a bunch of files it looks like too.... still looking though.
update, found it: its attached PDF file on this thread I think..
AC is the same. Thanks. I appreciate your help very much.
I emailed Turtle Top this morning and they send me a 66 page wiring schematic of the 2006 version which also works with the one I have. What a service!
How difficult is it to redo the wiring?
My shuttle bus comes with a wheel chair lift that leaks oil. I don't need the lift any way. The rest of them are just fast idle control for the Penn Tex Px-5RD alternator, the AC and the interior lights.
AC is the same. Thanks. I appreciate your help very much.
How difficult is it to redo the wiring?
M
Thanks again.
Kin
For me, as I do fire alarm, burg alarm and access control systems its easy for me. It all depends on what you want to do and your capabilities. On my bus, it was a pain removing that rear AC harness as it was ran from passenger side front across top, down driver side B post behind driver seat through floor. Then it ran along the frame to back, then up and over back to passenger side! And then it went into rear AC unit. As I wanted to salvage that harness it had to pull it through all that and was not fun.
My setup is 4ga wire directly through a "MAXi" fuse from coach battery where I mounted it in the steps. Ran that to a rear fuse box/relay box, thats a run about 12ft max compared to almost 35ft!!! I got rid of the funky rear AC fan controls and found a factory rear AC control panel and ran those control wires(18ga 6 conductor) to relays in that fuse/relay box. Before I hardly felt air blowing at high speed, but now its very strong air blowing.
Also from that rear fuse box I run the power bed, water pump and lights and any other things I may install in future. I did run a 2ga ground wire from fuse/relay box area back to the door frame to get a solid ground as the battery is grounded to door frame and frame of truck. So that took care of power issues in the coach side. I now must figure a way to get a 2nd alternator mounted to charge/operate the coach side. Right now the 130amp 3G alternator will be maxed out with blowers running.
Right now I have repull the radiator and warranty it(hopefully) or resolder top tank back on if not warranty, dam crap parts now days... I'll have the front all apart to figure that out. Not much space with a 460
I did most of my car repairs except engine and transmission. I bought the Turtle Top to convert it into a stealth camper. The rear AC was wired and routed between the floor and the chassis so it will not be too much of a problem. Since the bus is only 150 sq. ft., I will relocate the battery tray from curb side to under the driver seat, put a split system where the rear AC fans were and the vent unit on the curb side in the middle of the cabin. Hopefully, I will be able to locate the battery isolator in the process. If not, I will replace the wiring starting from the point where the alternator wire connect to the battery and install a smart isolator. All the wires involved charging battery and grounding will be #1 or #0. Got a friend that owns a metal recycle yard so wiring supply should not be a problem.
I am also thinking about putting a 2nd alternator in place of the rear AC compressor. Some Jeep Grand Cherokee owners up north traded the AC for a 2nd alternator. Will have to stop by a local alternator rebuild shop to see if it can be done.
Turns out Turtle Top sent me a Chevy Transport schematics instead of Ford. The schematics look almost the same but the location of the wiring have yet to be checked out.
Wonder if anyone knows where the locator is on a 2005 Ford E450 Turtle Top.
Hello All! I havent been on this site in a while! Basically I have a project vehicle now and its almost paid off and I am getting to work!
Its a 1997 Ford E350 Shuttle Bus. Converted by StarTrans. It has 185,000 on it and runs and starts like a top. It has a high amp alt.
Basically it has a 2nd battery under the passenger side. Since I bought it, it has never held a charge. It is extremely hard to access so I don't think I could even get it out if I wanted to.
I have tried using a batt charger and it didnt ever do anything. Doesnt charge off the alt. One day I randomly fired it up and boom! I had interior lights, and my rear heater worked, and so did my rear AC. the first time any of that has worked. I ran it for a few minutes and as soon as I shut it off none of that stuff has worked again. It has a batt guage on it that only worked for those brief few minutes. Heres a few photos.
Heres the positive terminal on the main battery. The red wire running off of it goes to my amplifier.
And above the bus door is this big ol' box of fun.... dont even know where to start with this.......
And over on the drivers side of the engine compartment is this. Its just for the handicap ramp correct? (It has been removed). It had a blown 20amp fuse in it. What is it for? Should I get a new fuse for it?
So then there is the dash. Still not sure what all of these do. The switch on the very left I put in and isnt wired to anything.
And heres this. Not wired to anything and I dont see a plug. Is it tucked up under the dash or something maybe?
And last but not least. On the back these 3 lights I assume were hooked up to the hazard lights. But when I do brakes, turn signals, and hazards and none of these three light up. I really appreciate the help guys!
SAME problem. No running lights, no interior lights, no rear AC and no rear heat. I attached a jump pack to the battery leads in the coach battery compartment as there was no battery. Everything started working! Been working on those marker lights for a week. So, I had a deep cycle battery in the garage and installed it and everything came on again. I went to the front panel and turned the rear AC unit off, then turned the rear heater unit off. Thought I heard a small pop and everything is no longer working. From what I've read here, I'll check and see if the battery terminals in the coach battery compartment are showing voltage. Maybe not and the battery is not charging. I've never owned a shuttle or any vehicle with a separate battery. I can't get it licensed until its inspected and it'll not pass with no marker lights.
SAME problem. No running lights, no interior lights, no rear AC and no rear heat. I attached a jump pack to the battery leads in the coach battery compartment as there was no battery. Everything started working! Been working on those marker lights for a week...................I can't get it licensed until its inspected and it'll not pass with no marker lights.
Yea, Startrans sure did stupid things in the wiring of these vehicles. I finally gave up trying to fix their "design" and totally rewired my bus and corrected many flaws there.
What year is your bus as Ford did the aux battery hookup different between the years . On my bus I wound up using a 12V constance duty solenoid relay to charge up the aux battery. That worked fine till I went with dual alternator few years back.
Its been almost 2 years since I got tired of dealing with Startrans wiring issues and went with dual alternator setup on my bus. After much figuring, I got 2 alternators on my 460 engine. The smog pump locked up years ago so the coach alternator went in its place with custom bracket.
The top alternator is a factory 130A 3G which runs the chassis, bottom alternator is a 130A 3G from a Mercury Grand Marquis( or equ car) and runs the coach electrical system. I now can run rear AC blowers at full speed without any overload as with original setup below.
I also tee'd the rear AC system into the chassis AC system. It does work, but I have a leak that have not found yet which is driving me crazy trying to locate.
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