$235 for 93 ford ranger's positive battery cable
#1
03-10-2006, 10:32 PM
$235 for 93 ford ranger's positive battery cable
<TABLE class=tborder id=post3490437 cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=4 width="100%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=thead> #6 
Today, 08:13 PM
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</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=alt1>Hi there,
I (and many others in these forums) are having the exact same problem with the 93 and 94 rangers (corroded battery cables causing the famous "click" sound in the fender-mounted relay with no power to starter). I have done all of the suggest diagnoses and have isolated it to the positive battery cable (verus relay, starter, battery, etc).
Well, a simple replacement isn't as easy and cheap as it may sound. The problem is, in at least the 93 ranger with a fender mounted relay, the positive battery cable is a complete unit that isn't available in after market parts stores (at least not in my area). I called the ford dealer, and they wanted $235 for the assembly (the person in the parts department was as shocked as I was).
Problem is, Ford fused/combined the cables at both the battery terminal and at the relay (to form a complete harness). Specifically, there are two red cables coming from the lead terminal, one thicker cable leading directly to the starter, and one thinner cable leading to the relay. At the relay, there is a U shaped plastic connector containing the battery-to-relay cable (with that end bolted to one terminal of the relay) and also in the U-shaped connector there is the cable that leads from the other post of the relay to the starter (both cables are fused in this U-connector). Point being.. you can't just replace on link (for example, the battery-to-relay cable.
I obviously am not going to pay $235 for a replacement harness. I am going to buy 3 new cables (if available) (one from relay to starter, one from battery to relay, and one from the battery to the starter).
My question is (answer may be obvious, but I am stuck not close to auto parts store to look, etc), is it possible to buy an aftermarket batter cable that will accept two fairly thick gauged cables. I am thinking something like a clamp where I can feed the bare wires into and tighten.
Also, does anyone know off hand the correct guage and length of each cable segment?
Also, if anybody else has had this issue (not wanting to spend the money for Fords assembly) and if they have found an easy solution, I would appreciate it.
Any feedback is highly appreciated!
Thanks!
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Today, 08:13 PM </TD></TR><TR><TD class=alt2 style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px"><TABLE cellSpacing=4 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD noWrap>warranty1
******** type=text/javascript> vbmenu_register("postmenu_3490437", true); </SCRIPT> New User
</TD><TD width="100%"> </TD><TD vAlign=top noWrap>Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 1
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=alt1>Hi there,
I (and many others in these forums) are having the exact same problem with the 93 and 94 rangers (corroded battery cables causing the famous "click" sound in the fender-mounted relay with no power to starter). I have done all of the suggest diagnoses and have isolated it to the positive battery cable (verus relay, starter, battery, etc).
Well, a simple replacement isn't as easy and cheap as it may sound. The problem is, in at least the 93 ranger with a fender mounted relay, the positive battery cable is a complete unit that isn't available in after market parts stores (at least not in my area). I called the ford dealer, and they wanted $235 for the assembly (the person in the parts department was as shocked as I was).
Problem is, Ford fused/combined the cables at both the battery terminal and at the relay (to form a complete harness). Specifically, there are two red cables coming from the lead terminal, one thicker cable leading directly to the starter, and one thinner cable leading to the relay. At the relay, there is a U shaped plastic connector containing the battery-to-relay cable (with that end bolted to one terminal of the relay) and also in the U-shaped connector there is the cable that leads from the other post of the relay to the starter (both cables are fused in this U-connector). Point being.. you can't just replace on link (for example, the battery-to-relay cable.
I obviously am not going to pay $235 for a replacement harness. I am going to buy 3 new cables (if available) (one from relay to starter, one from battery to relay, and one from the battery to the starter).
My question is (answer may be obvious, but I am stuck not close to auto parts store to look, etc), is it possible to buy an aftermarket batter cable that will accept two fairly thick gauged cables. I am thinking something like a clamp where I can feed the bare wires into and tighten.
Also, does anyone know off hand the correct guage and length of each cable segment?
Also, if anybody else has had this issue (not wanting to spend the money for Fords assembly) and if they have found an easy solution, I would appreciate it.
Any feedback is highly appreciated!
Thanks!
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
#3
03-10-2006, 11:02 PM
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Why don't you just make your own cables? That's what I did on my 85 F250 diesel. I used 00 marine cable and crimped on the connectors and used 3/8" posts. You can make your own cable for a lot cheaper and you can up the size of the wire to reduce voltage drop. I would use 0 wire for the gas engine which should be more than enough.
Here are some photos of my set-up: Link
Here are some photos of my set-up: Link
#4
03-11-2006, 01:47 AM
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An idea would be to use some 0 gauge amplifier wire. This will be around $4-$5 per foot, BUT, it will give you much better performance over your stock wiring. You could more than likely find this at any Car Audio shop, but an idea would be to look on ebay where you can get a 20' roll of it for $20. That's a steal if you ask me!! The only problem you might run into is getting a big enough connector for it. I'm ab to make that upgrade myself!!
#5
03-11-2006, 08:34 AM
Instead of buying a new cabe for the whole rig, you might first consider a test to isolate the problem, cable/wire/connector.
You can use a good quality battery jumper cable, to help isolate the problem, by fastening/jumpering, the test "jumper cable" in "parallel", one at a time, with all the suspect wires to see which one when jumpered, clears the problem up.
Once you've found which cable/wire is the problem, you could look to it's connectors on both ends, for the problem, as the wire/cable itself is rarely bad
Most times these problems are caused by corrosion hidden inside the connector/wire interface, or from a loose crimp, as many times these connectors are just crimped on, not soldered on, so corrosion can build up & corrupt the electrical connection or they just loosen up from engine heat & vibration.
Once you locate the problem connector, you could try opening it up, cleaning it out & recrimping, then soldering it, so prevent furure problems.
There are shrink wrap or brush on plastic coatings that'll seal your repair.
If you don't want to go to all the trouble of keeping it "origional" you could just cut the offending connector off & replace it, or just disconnect the bad wire on both ends & parallel a new one of the proper gauge & "cable tie" or tape it in place.
Just a couple more thoughts for consideration.
You can use a good quality battery jumper cable, to help isolate the problem, by fastening/jumpering, the test "jumper cable" in "parallel", one at a time, with all the suspect wires to see which one when jumpered, clears the problem up.
Once you've found which cable/wire is the problem, you could look to it's connectors on both ends, for the problem, as the wire/cable itself is rarely bad
Most times these problems are caused by corrosion hidden inside the connector/wire interface, or from a loose crimp, as many times these connectors are just crimped on, not soldered on, so corrosion can build up & corrupt the electrical connection or they just loosen up from engine heat & vibration.
Once you locate the problem connector, you could try opening it up, cleaning it out & recrimping, then soldering it, so prevent furure problems.
There are shrink wrap or brush on plastic coatings that'll seal your repair.
If you don't want to go to all the trouble of keeping it "origional" you could just cut the offending connector off & replace it, or just disconnect the bad wire on both ends & parallel a new one of the proper gauge & "cable tie" or tape it in place.
Just a couple more thoughts for consideration.
#6
03-11-2006, 08:51 AM
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#7
03-11-2006, 09:06 AM
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#8
03-11-2006, 10:06 AM
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F.Y.I. Ford is not the only one to do this. I had a 92 Jeep Wrangler, the positive cable was corroded near the terminal. No aftermarket replacement, just Jeep wiring harness for over $200.00. I bought a new screw on terminal and cut the corroded piece off, less than $5.00 back on the road.
#9
03-11-2006, 04:23 PM
Hello all,
Thanks for all the helpful replies. I finally isolated the exact problem (after spending 2 days (mostly in the rain). I took the starter into Autozone, tested good (should have, it only had 1000 miles on it). When I was removing the starter, I noticed it was not snug! Turns out that the mechanic who replaced it stripped the top bolt (couldn't nug up the starter). The vibration must have worked the smaller wire/connector coming from the relay loose. Put a washer on the bolt, tightened the starter, snipped that bad connector off, put a new one one.. and bingo.
Weirdest thing. When I pulled the starter off, there was quite a bit of nesting material (I assume from a mouse). Appears when the truck was parked for a few months, a mouse snuck into the flywheel/clutch area. I have no clue where it entered (perhaps the 1/2 inch opening (looks like some sort of opening to allow for clutch dust exit..but not sure). Anyhow, I hope that doesn't prematurely wear my 150K clutch!
thanks again.
Thanks for all the helpful replies. I finally isolated the exact problem (after spending 2 days (mostly in the rain). I took the starter into Autozone, tested good (should have, it only had 1000 miles on it). When I was removing the starter, I noticed it was not snug! Turns out that the mechanic who replaced it stripped the top bolt (couldn't nug up the starter). The vibration must have worked the smaller wire/connector coming from the relay loose. Put a washer on the bolt, tightened the starter, snipped that bad connector off, put a new one one.. and bingo.
Weirdest thing. When I pulled the starter off, there was quite a bit of nesting material (I assume from a mouse). Appears when the truck was parked for a few months, a mouse snuck into the flywheel/clutch area. I have no clue where it entered (perhaps the 1/2 inch opening (looks like some sort of opening to allow for clutch dust exit..but not sure). Anyhow, I hope that doesn't prematurely wear my 150K clutch!
thanks again.
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03-12-2006, 12:01 AM
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03-12-2006, 01:03 AM
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