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The ballast resistor and the 2 duraspark plugs aren't there anymore. I hooked up a white wire and a red wire up but I had to disconnect them right away because the starter started to slowly turn when I attached the battery cable. I bought a resistor at radio shack to install tomorrow. I forgot to ask yesterday if I'm supposed to leave the EEC relay and ECM connected. Does anyone out there know what colors the wires are coming out of the firewall on an 86 F150?
No, it should all still be there. Like ArdWrknTrk said, the ballast resistor is a fat red wire inside your truck's main wire harness.
The reason why this swap is so simple is because Ford used the same connectors for both the Duraspark ignition and the EEC-IV/TFI ignition. This was done so that Ford could simply plug in the Duraspark wire harness into the trucks main harness if you have a conventional carbureted system, or Ford could simply plug in the TFI ignition wire harness if your truck had the EEC-IV engine computer and a feedback carburetor or electronic fuel injection. If you have the former, the resistor wire is activated with the Duraspark ignition. If you have the latter, the resistor wire is simply bypassed, but it is still there.
Read the thread below. It has lots of pictures to help you identify the stock resistor wire and the plugs:
My firewall wiring was hacked up by the PO of my truck. I'm trying to hook up the duraspark ignition in place of the EEC setup.The ballast resistor is not there. I tried to hook up the wires and now the starter tries to turn when I hook up the battery cable.There's a red wire with a brown wire hooked together by something that looks like a fusible link. Is this the ballast resistor that goes to the coil?
My firewall wiring was hacked up by the PO of my truck. I'm trying to hook up the duraspark ignition in place of the EEC setup.The ballast resistor is not there. I tried to hook up the wires and now the starter tries to turn when I hook up the battery cable.There's a red wire with a brown wire hooked together by something that looks like a fusible link. Is this the ballast resistor that goes to the coil?
Leave the battery disconnected.
Test for continuity (ohms) across the two large posts of the relay.
It ccould be welded shut from previous attempts at starting.
It should be wired with the starter cable -by itself- to one post.
A small red wire with a right angle push on end attached to the 's' terminal.
And the battery cable along with all the other fusible links connected to the other large post.
My firewall wiring was hacked up by the PO of my truck. I'm trying to hook up the duraspark ignition in place of the EEC setup.The ballast resistor is not there. I tried to hook up the wires and now the starter tries to turn when I hook up the battery cable.There's a red wire with a brown wire hooked together by something that looks like a fusible link. Is this the ballast resistor that goes to the coil?
What "wires" did you try to hook up?
Did you read the thread I posted? LOOK at the pictures, and see if you recognize anything on your truck. Or better yet, post a picture of your truck where the main harness wires come from the firewall on the driver's side.
The previous owner may or may not have hacked up the ignition wires. Does your truck still have the TFi ignition/EEC-IV computer connected? Does your truck start normally? If so, there is a good chance your ignition wires were not hacked up. If they were, the truck probably wouldn't start, unless another ignition system was put in it's place.
The resistor wire runs from the ignition switch on the column and through a hole in the firewall near the steering column and brake booster, it's bundled a whole bunch of other wires... IIRC it's pink and fairly thick and has wording all over it explaining what it is - RESISTOR WIRE DO NOT CUT OR SPLICE
Thank you for your help.The truck didn't start when I got it. It sat for a few years before it was given to me and was missing some parts. My cousin gave me an intake and carb setup and I purchased a duraspark assembly but the connectors were corroded on the module so I bought a new module. The 2 wire plug on the donor harness was broken off and the wires are faded and discolored on the harness and on my truck also. I really do appreciate all the advice. I guess I'll carefully pull back the fuse box and see what the wires look like. I wish I knew about FTE when I first got the truck you guys are excellent. I'll keep you posted on my progress.
Can I use the square coil with the duraspark setup? The reason I ask is because someone gave me a new one because they lost the receipt.
And no the EEC assembly was not there when I got it. The truck never started,that's what poses the problem.
Well...you physically can use it, but it will burn up your ignition module.
Do you already have the Duraspark wire harness? If not, they are getting hard to find. You may want to consider using one those aftermarket HEI ignition systems with the one-wire hookup. With those, the ignition module and coil are all contained inside the distributor. I am not a big fan of how those look (GM design), but they do work well, and without the extra wiring required with the stock Duraspark ignition.
Yes I do have the harness,distributor,New ignition module and used coil. I thought about one of those HEI units but I bought the duraspark stuff locally for about $100 already
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