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1990 XLT Lariat 5.0 4EOD. Had previous issues getting it rolling, sorted that out with new TPS. Pulled the ECM and sent it off for repairs, reinstalled today. There is intermittent loss of power at the ignition switch, sometimes there is power there and sometimes not. Couldn’t get it to start, put the battery on a charge as it sounded like the solenoid would click but that’s it. After a few hours of charging switched the charger to start mode and got it to fire up and idle nicely. Then it died as soon as I put it in reverse. Hasn’t started since, same intermittent power issue at the key. The only things I did while the ECM was out was swapped in new headlight assemblies, new wiper motor, new stereo, and welded in new floor / inner cab panels. I will start checking things out with the meter tomorrow, just thought I’d ask in case anybody else had already beat their heads against the wall over something like this.
Not second guessing you, but how do you know you’re losing power at the ignition switch? On the starter solenoid battery terminal, make sure those are secure. Since you changed headlight housings, did you unhook any wires? Like a ground? Battery terminals themselves are very tight and in good order?
Last edited by 90project5.0; Jun 20, 2026 at 05:00 PM.
I’m happy to be second guessed, the only wiring I touched doing the headlights and wiper motor were the harnesses to those items. I will go back over the areas to make sure I didn’t knock anything loose. I’m not sure yet whether power is making it to the ignition switch, at this point all I know is the when I turn the key either to accessory power or ignition nothing happens. Until it does lol. I can cycle the key many times when it isn’t working with no results, then I can walk away for a while and come back and get power but no ignition. Battery clamps are nice and tight, I don’t a load tester but the meter shows me 13.4 volts so at least I know there is enough potential to at least get the solenoid moving.
I would test for voltage in and out of the switch in the different positions. Could very well be a bad ignition switch. It doesn’t sound to me like it’s out of alignment being intermittent.
these year trucks are known for the ignition switches separating between the Aluminum and plastic pieces.
i have replaced at least 100 of them over the past 40 years.
Thank you for all the tips, I dropped the steering column and pulled the switch. It was good but there was no power. Traced the wiring back and found a corroded crimped end at the solenoid. Crimped on new terminal and problem solved. Guess there had been just enough meat left on it to start previously but once I started screwing around in there I must have shook it loose. Successfully got the truck moved away from the side of the garage to start welding in new floor / rocker patches on that side now. I like a project but haven’t worked on old stuff for a while, forgot how they start throwing hissy fits when you mess around and starting changing stuff.
Started with this mess. Complete with a mouse nest. Brought the cat over to give him new purpose. Found enough solid steel to weld in this patch panel to match up with the dogleg curve Formed up a patch for the dogleg, took me more time on that little patch with all the curves than I was expecting. Ordered a floor panel and just cut out what I needed. Also cut out smaller sections to patch in where the kickplate screws into the floor, those penetrations were drastically eaten away. When it comes time to reinstall I am going to mark the hole and drill in some rivnuts and then undercoat the whole thing. Should be solid for as long as I own the rig.
I have several welding tickets in different processes but not a ton of experience with small gauge steel. I felt like I was tacking my life away.
Looks good to me!! I have zero experience with any welding, but I really want to have a cowl hood and not spend $1k for a mural ready hood or pin on… soo smart thing to do was buy a cheap welder on amazon and practice before I start. I learned the first welder I bought couldn’t go low enough voltage and ate anything thinner than 16ga in half a second! Bought the next step up, but haven’t been able to mess with it yet. I’ll get it! It’s been a learning curve for me and my son when he visits. This fall, we will be building it one way or another! I’m sure I’ll Be buying plenty of bondo..
Looks good to me!! I have zero experience with any welding, but I really want to have a cowl hood and not spend $1k for a mural ready hood or pin on… soo smart thing to do was buy a cheap welder on amazon and practice before I start. I learned the first welder I bought couldn’t go low enough voltage and ate anything thinner than 16ga in half a second! Bought the next step up, but haven’t been able to mess with it yet. I’ll get it! It’s been a learning curve for me and my son when he visits. This fall, we will be building it one way or another! I’m sure I’ll Be buying plenty of bondo..
Without knowing what kind of welder you’re using there is a huge difference between a flux core machine and a gas mig machine. Flux core runs electrode negative which puts all the heat on the work piece, gas is electrode positive so it’s easier to control the heat. I tried using a flux core machine to start but was making a mess so I pulled the pin and bought a 180 amp 110/220 gas machine. I’d been wanting one for a while but never pulled the pin because I didn’t have a use case for it. The last old truck I had was a 1990 Tacoma that was a rolling advert for bondo lol, it gets the job done. This Ford doesn’t need to be on the road every day so I decided to take my time and do it this way so that either I or the next owner wouldn’t have to worry about it.
It’s a flux cored mig. I know gas is a lot better, but by the time I bought the machine, the gas and stuff I still needed, that blew my budget! That gas ain’t cheap.. I do not ever plan to be a pro, I just need to fix my broken equipment and tinker with the truck haha!
This is the new one, haven’t messed with it yet. I’m using .030 flux wire.
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