Question? from jtorrez22... working on 7.3 idi my volt meter on vehicle is jumping like a clock it ticks back and forth lick a ticking clock. I put my hand on the glow plug relay and it it clicking. I just replaced the glow plugs with motor craft three were not working and the system was clicking and stayed on. after installing turned on vehicle left running and went inside to get something to drink. came back the glow plug relay has super hot. went to remove the red wire that supply the 12 volts the whole bolt came out of the plug. replaced the the glow plug relay now it`s latching on and off I think. but its causing my voltage to move back and forth. like the thicking second hand on a clock. and I can fell it. any ideal on what I should check I have checked alternator and it showing 13.28 volts at idle check the batteries and they have twelve 13.28 volts but on my voltmer it bounces 12.38 - 13.28 volts im not sure what is causing the bounce im assuming its the glow plug relay. just replaced it.a day old. plugs replaced on the 6/29/15 any ideas

 

If by "whole bolt came out of the plug", you mean one of the terminal studs came out of the glow plug relay, then the relay is shot. Start it up, then disconnect ALL terminals from the relay, and tape off ring terminal on the hot contact circuit wire. See if the cycling stops. If so, then the GP relay / controller are your prime suspects.

What brand / type of relay did you use?

 

I would address this ASAP since if it is the glow plug controller you could damage the glow plugs and possibly the engine.

 

okay... Good Morning..... hope all had a great weekend celebrating the fourth of July! I think i have a bad glow plug relay! i bought a $19.99 dollar relay from Orielly Auto part store! I am not sure what brand it was. But as soon as it gets hot it will no longer start. and that ticking begins. The volt meter on the vehicle begins to tick and fuel gauge as well. Is the glow plug relay suppose to get hot?
once the vehicles starts it runs good but that relay gets to hot. and it will not start. do you think it`s the glow plug control module! Iv`e been reading and it state the the control module celdomely goes bad that it a low out put module. it states that the glow plug relay is what carrys the high out put and goes bad. what bran do you recommend for the glow plug relay and if you think the module is bad what brand should i look for?

 

As with any electrical item, the application of power will cause it to get warm or hot. I would think you have another issue because the power that is switched through your relay is intermittent when the engine is below a certain temperature. The relay handles all the load. Your relay, if mounted on the engine, should get about as hot as the engine. Typically, bad electrical connections/corrosion issues show up when hot. I would try bypassing the controller with a separate lead (I do not know if your model is a ground of hot connection) to eliminate the controller.

Is your relay on top of the engine or on the fender?

Glow plugs, 83 thru 86, old style
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...old-style.html

Glow plugs, 87 thru 94, new style system
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...le-system.html

I hope this helps.

 

relay sit on the back of the engine just before the transmission. Yeah I`m thinking electrical wiring. need to obtain a manual to trouble shoot the wiring. Iv`e found several wires connector broken perhaps I have a short to ground or visa versa. anybody know anything about a/c? I have gotten the ac compress working had a leak on the high pressure shredder valve replaced and it works. I have the blower motor working it cycles threw all the speeds but air not coming threw the vents. was looking for a cab air filter but could not find one. I removed the dash and ran into a condenser no cab filter. removed the battery on passenger side and removed cover to the condenser cleaned it up! nothing. I removed the blower motor and found a door I installed a piece of wood to keep it open and replaced the blower and tried it but it began to blow air threw the defroster vent at the top of the dash. cant make it blow air threw the ac vents. I also have the rear ac working I can feel the coming from the back but as I give the vehicle gas on a test drive I can feel the heat from the engine coming at me. I think im missing a latch on the dog house and it maybe allowing the heat to come into the cab.any suggestion will be very apriciated!

 

did you buy a glow plug relay, or a solenoid? there is a very big difference between the two.

 

^^^^^ The only "difference" is that there is no such thing as a glow plug solenoid. What some people think of as the glow plug solenoid is actually a relay.

 

never said glow plug solenoid. i said did you get a glow plug relay, or a solenoid. as in starter relay, which everyone calls a solenoid.
and there is a very large difference between the two. a glow plug relay uses the two small terminals to activate the relay, one as hot, the other as ground.
a solenoid uses one of the small terminals to activate the relay and the case as a ground.
you can not switch the two, they will not work in the other position.

 

That's also a relay, not a solenoid. The starter solenoid is on the starter; it's a solenoid because it moves something mechanically (namely, the bendix gear). But indeed, a starter relay will not work as a glow plug relay. Not just because of how it's grounded (that could be gotten around), but because it's not rated for anywhere near the current required to run the glow plugs. A starter relay would burn up quickly trying to run the glow plugs.

And no, not EVERYONE calls a starter relay a solenoid. Only those who like to confuse people (or perhaps are themselves confused) do.

 

whatever. just because it is really a starter relay does not mean that 99% of the people in the world do not call it a solenoid.

 

When my air stopped coming through the vents I could hear a leaf hitting the squirrel cage, though squirrels relay do not exercise on it, and the supply duct full of leaves and the indoor coil stopped up. Maybe squirrels were relay in there after all. Anyway, my vertical swinging damper hinge was broken so I modded it with a piece of vinyl siding. The vinyl siding hinge is stiff until it gets heated a little then it works great- works great in the summer time, just not when cold in the winter.

I thought the relay switched greater loads, generally- not always, from some other remote circuit. The starter solenoids I am aware of use electromagnetism to engage the starter drive or bendix. Cheers,

 

Red Green called; something about an award.....

Correct. The former is a description of the starter RELAY on the fender; the latter is a description of the starter SOLENOID on the starter itself.

(and Roebuck....)

 

Thanks, Madpogue!

You are funny! I should have thought about that Roebuck first, it would have been a great closing.