Rambunctious and all others hunting down the elusive wiring harness

The service part number you provided did pull up the wiring harness. So good gouge you gave! Now all I have to do is make the jump to order it and the Ford Overhead DVD systems (not an aftermarket). I have to say I'm a little reluctant as my parts guy said there is no guarantee it will work since they can not find any installation bulletins.

Anyone else have any luck with this. Rambunctious -- were you looking to install the same thing on your truck or did I miss something in the email thread earlier

Thanks
Scoutman

 

I have one in my truck already ( I have connections ) . In fact I helped design the system. I lead overhead product development for the supplier that developed the Rail System.

We have been trying to get Ford to release an aftermarket harness for the accessories available factory DVD . They made the baby step to offer the dvd in the catalog for those that optioned the "pre wire kit" but have not released a harness for those that do not already have the pre wire kit.

So i did a little homework to find the service harness number so that others could still get the DVD.

I understand your reservation completely as it is not an inexpensive venture.
My only last suggestion is that you get your truck, pull or have someone pull the rear left trim, and confirm the two connector harness is there. If you have audiophile i am positive it is there.

if so. you could then order the harness, and possibly let a dealer pre test with the harness and a DVD from a truck off the lot for a test. , if it works.... then order your own DVD.....
just my suggestion....


and maybe convince the dealer that if they help and this works, they will then know how to get factory dvd's for other customers....

FWIW, this is starting to sound more like self promotion, but please be aware that I do not gain monitarily from any dvd sale. ( except i suppose my 401k might benefit in the long run )

I am only trying to help other F150 owners and also gauge interest for future development of product for Ford..

Hope this helps

Ramb

 

Hey Ram, long time no hear. If I understand you correctly if you have a audiophile deck you at least have the connection for the dvd to the pilar. I have a 6 cd changer, is that audiophile? I called my local dealer and he said that he could get the wiring harness but I started looking around @ posts and it looked like the harness from my dealer is just the wiring to complete the connection to the rail from the pilar. Anyway I want to complete my instalation as I have had the overhead DVD unit itself for 4-6 months now. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

May I say that rambunctious has assisted me quite a bit in my DVD research ... and I'm definitely appreciative!

This is what I've learned:

1) If you can, order or buy the truck with the $30 (retail) "DVD Prep Pkg" option. It will make life much easier.

2) If you have a non-Audiophile truck, be VERY careful in pursuing the addition of a factory DVD. Without the harness that Ram has made mention of (not released as a service part # yet), it would be nearly impossible.

3) If you DO have an Audiophile optioned truck, check the rear left pillar for the open connection and get with your Ford Parts guy and order away. Note that the part number that was givin (5L3Z-14335-FA) is JUST the harness that completes the Audiophile system harness to the DVD ... NOT a full harness from the head unit to the DVD. Also, the Audiophile option is more than just the 6-disk in-dash CD ... it included the advanced sound system (sub-woofer, etc.)

I'll be picking up my '05 FX4 S-Crew this weekend ... unfortunately, the closest I could get was just having the Audiophile option as the dealers inventory is so low that finding one with the DVD Prep Pkg is nearly impossible.

I'll be ordering the parts immediately and installing the harness and DVD system per Ram's instructions. I'll take digi pictures of the whole process and write up a tech article for those that are interested.

 

Ironchef

when i tried to determine which vehicles had the partial harness to the pillar trim i could not get a simple answer, the hareness has other options imbedded in it too. So check and see behind your trim. if you have two open connectors (both needed to complete all wires to the dvd) then you are good to go to get the extension.

if the wiring is in the truck, then all radios above the base am/fm will support the dvd

and sorry if i did not reply earlier to you, I'm starting to forget who i talked to , and who i did not. as this seems to be of interest to quite a few of us on the board....

and 98surplusexpy, keep us posted !!!

Ramb

 

I have been really learning a lot reading about the installation of the DVD systems, could someone please tell me how to remove the DVD player in my 2003 Expedition, and what parts I need to be sure to remove for another application.
Thanks in Advance

 

I have the optional DVD wiring in my 05 SCREW. Went to the dealer to see about the DVD player. Said it would be $1400.00 and another $190.00 to install it. Needless to say I won't be purchasing that real soon. I think $1400 is a little steeeeeep! I guess I'll wait for an aftermarket model or possibly one from a totaled truck.

 

Hey guys, lots of great info on the DVD issues, I have a 2004 f150 am in the process of getting a dvd player. I located a connector on the left rear with a male and female connector. Just wondering if I could get a better description of the connector I'm looking for. I do have the 6 disc cd. Also called my local ford dealer with the part # for the wire harness and he cross referenced several different #s for the same part. Guess they may be making different #s for different year models. any ideas thanks

 

there were subtle changes to the harness from 04 into 05. Ford switched the radio supplier after 1 year ( looks the same on the out side, but different on the inside) anyway, there is a difference in a resisitor on the harnesses to the dvd.
so if you can get the harness for the 04 you should be all set.
what would be nice would be to the harness, and plug in the dvd to make sure everything is working before installing all the trim back in place.

the open conenctors should be approx square in shape with about 6 pins per connector.

hope that helps

Ramb

 

i've got 2 harnesses running up and hooked up, 1 has 4 wires and the other has 10. if I disconnect either of the harnesses the overhead lights turn out, hoping that the harness is already installed but dont want to remove headliner to verify

 

is there anyone who remembers the colors of the wires in the audiophile connectors?

 

found a har

 

sorry about that last reply lost my train of thought!

 

I finallly got a harness from AER and tried to install it. Video works fine, audio does not. I cannot hear anything. The harness I have is like a passthrough cable, the deck plugs into the harness and there the connector on the harness that plugs back into the deck. I am not sure if I am correct but the other connector is the canbuss plug. The only way the video works is with that one unplugged. I thought that I read somewhere that the DVD can be programmed two ways, one works with the canbuss the other with just the headphones. Anyway, I have had this DVD for over a year and I have to get it working, any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

the only way a dvd would work without CANBUSS communication is if it is a prototype that we reflashed our "stand alone" software that we use for customer demos etc. ( basically a security/theft feature in the production product)

your method is what i have in my personal truck. we built this (splice into the circuit) hareness like you describe in our shop and I have seen a few "ebay" sellers that have done it this way. not sure why your's is acting funny.

VERY FRUSTRATING I'M SURE..

pm me ironshef, we can check to make sure you have compatible radio and dvd revisions. maybe take some pics of what is connected to the radio. I would love to have a success story on this long discussed issues )

Ramb