I had cruise control installed on my 2004 ford ranger by a ford dealer and everything works fine except the indicator light in the dash does not come on when you set the speed. The truck was a year old and they had to replace the steering wheel to do it. I asked the dealer about it and he said it just does not turn on for the rangers. I was wondering if anyone else has had it installed and if they have had the same problem or if the dealer is just feeding me crap. I would think that it is just a computer programing issue. If anyone has any information I would appreciate it.

 

Welcome to FTE!!!

I've used the cruse about 3 times on my 2000 but I thought the light came on.

 

Hey pjw, how much was the cruise control kit for the parts themself without the labor, i've been wanting to install cruise in my truck for a while but i dont really trust the aftermarket kits.

 

I've got an 04 with cruise from the factory; I used it today. The dash light works fine. Your dealer is feeding you BS, unless somehow they installed some aftermarket cruise.

 

2002 Ranger w/ factory installed cruise control. Light on dash comes on when using cruise. Either your dealer is feeding you a line, or the dealer installed cruise doesn't contain the wire to the dash light.

 

My 99 factory CC dash light comes on when I set the CC.

I wonder which deactvation switch he used on yours, you know they've had problems with a internal kapton membrane rupturing in the switches & allowing brake fluid to contact the 12 volt power source & cause a flash fire. So some vehicles have been recalled & a new model switch installed.

So while your beating the dealer up about the cruise dash light, querry him about which model CC deactivation switch he installed on your brake master cylinder. You might ask if this is a OEM Ford CC or some aftermarket system. It should say on your work order.

 

I bought a '04 Ranger Edge brand new and had the dealer install cruise. First, the dealer didn't do it, they farmed it out. Second, they used a Ford aftermarket kit which has mostly the same parts but does NOT have a dash indicator light. It also has a cheezy deactivation switch on the brake pedal [which might work better considering Pawpaw's post] which clicks every time you press on the brake pedal. New steering wheel with cruise buttons, but no tilt as with factory unit.

So the dealer was feeding you some BS, there just isn't a light on the Ford aftermarket unit. I don't even see a place for a light on the dash display.

--Roger van Hoy, Washougal, WA

 

pjw & jimw - I installed the "Genuine Ford Cruise Control Aftermarket Kit" <hecho en mexico> in my 98 Ranger 2.5L. Some items of interest.

F87Z-9A818-AA for 98 & on* 2.5L Auto or Manual
F87Z-9A818-BA for 98 & on* 3.0L Auto or Manual
F87Z-9A818-CA for 98 & on* 4.0L & 4.0L EFI Explorer Auto or Manual
*= don't know how far "& on" goes, could be '99, could be '05

Bought the kit on Ebay for about $140. It was new, sealed and complete. Seems like the seller sold mostly Ford Cruise Control units.

Used the same steering wheel, but a new "cover/housing/shroud" that fits between the wheel and the turn signal arm/wiper arm, and is attached to the steering wheel.
This allows the new control button pods (on, off, set, coast, resume) to be attached to the old steering wheel.

The brake switch is the type that mounts inside the cab w/ a lever on the foot brake arm- there already was a tapped hole for the new mounting bolt down there. It clicks, but at least it dosen't ignite brake fluid!

Turning the cruise on dosen't light the bulb on the dash. Actually, there was no bulb for the cruise in the dash, as there was no cruise. - FORD SAVES $0.01, and that adds up! While the steering wheel was off, i removed the insturment pod, replaced all the bulbs, and put one in the cruise socket but it still doesn't light up.

I have read here that the control buttons sometimes light up as well, mine don't. I even hit the pods as recommended.

The instructions are "Copyright Ford 1997" and are "Universal" - almost no writing, just 59 cool drawings showing what needs to be done, and the wiring diagram.

Actually, the install was pretty straight foreword. The cruise works perfectly, and i had very few parts left over! Highly recommended.

Hope this helps, ofg49

 

that awesome, so basically you just have to plug in a few things that were left off from the factory? like theres already provissions in the steering wheel and other harnesses? thats good price, i'll have to watch for one to pop up.

 

I broke down and bought the cruise control kit for my truck on ebay. It is tottally factory, it included everything i needed including wiring, steering wheel switches that DO light up just like the gauges, new clock spring and everything else you need. The kit i bought was part number F87Z-9A818-AA. It was actually the wrong kit for my truck but the only problem was it came with the wrong throttle cable. My truck is a 3.0 and i was supposed to get the kit ending with BA. I was able to make the cable work just fine though. It took a total of 6 hours to install this kit which included a 20 minute test drive with my dash pulled apart and i had to spend extra time dealing with the cable. This kit ties ito the brake light and clutch switches and shuts off if you tap either one. It comes with and extra shut off switch that is addition to the brake switch but i couldn't get it to fit right and since it was 1 am when i was finishing this i just cut the plug off and butt connected the wires together.
I highly recomend the kit to anybody that needs cruise in thier truck. It was much easier to install then i thought but it should be considered pretty difficult if you've never pulled apart the steering column and dash of a vehicle before. I used to work at a ford dealer back in the day and i had all the right tools to do this job, i had just never done this particular type of kit before.

 

Thanks for the feedback, sounds like a satisfying project.

 

FWIW, the cruise control on my '94 Taurus doesn't have an indicator light on the dash, nor do the buttons light up. On my '98 Ranger there is a dash light and it does have lighted cruise buttons.

On the other hand, my '94 Taurus has lighted power window and lock buttons, as well as a light in the glove box, while my supposedly "loaded" Ranger does not.

So it doesn't appear that there is any real rhyme or reason with regard to which interior buttons get lit and which ones don't for any particular year or model Ford. Or so it seems that way to me.

 

On the cruise control on my '94 XLT 4.0L, no lights on the steering column, no indicator light either, which did kind of irritate me. My dad's truck, a '92 GMC Sierra, doesn't have an indicator either so it was pretty easy to transition into.

 

I just recently bought a 1998 F-150 and i am having the same problem...the cruise control light doesnt show up on the dash (i looked in the manual but i dont even see that there is an indicator light for the cruise and mine was also factory installed) any one know about that...but im also having a problem with the parking brake indicator..i have reason to believe the light is burned out..anyone know how to replace that bulb...

 

It probably doesn't have the cruise light bulb, i would drop a line in the f-150 forum and ask those guys if thier truck have them. As for the brake light bulb, i would check to make sure the wire is properly connected to the e-brake assembly and is grouding when the brake is applied. If the bulb is in fact burned out, you will have to endure the grewling task of pulling apart the dash and removing the gauge cluster to replace the bulb.