2000 Expedition woes (vacuum & "Vehicle Security System")
 

Hello everyone, been reading this forum for about a week now, lots of good info here.

I am working on a 2000 Expedition 2WD w/4.6L. I was chasing down a hesitation/miss off idle and under load. I think I've got that solved, now chasing down something even moooore fun. :-roll

One of the things I did early on was compression test the engine (it was thought to have a "dead hole", was a bad injector and fouled plug) and when I was cycling the ignition repeatedly for the test the door lock actuators started freaking out and cycling repeatedly. At first it was the rear hatch lock and then the driver's door lock. I found the remains of a Ford "Vehicle Security System" under the lower dash strapped to the column support. I say remains because part of it is unplugged and another part bypassed...I am trying to restore the underdash wiring to it's original UNSPLICED configuration, but I'm having trouble. There are 4 wires that run over behind the driver's side kick panel from the 18-pin connector (security system box) and they're crimped onto 4 vehicle wires that have been cut. What do I need to repair there? I found the heavy gauge ignition wire that's been cut, will fix it; the other connections were taps/splices that I am just going to wrap with tape.

Next problem, vacuum line. There is a checkvalve w/Tee right behind the battery next to the firewall. One line runs down to the vacuum reservoir (I assume) the other goes into the firewall...the one that goes into the firewall is broken off/chewed off. I am trying to trace it down on the inside, but this dash is a freaking nightmare. Does anyone know where the vacuum line leads that passes through the firewall?

Thank's in advance for any assistance. I put my questions in bold just so they were easier to pick out from the rest of my rambling. :o

You should go to a U-Pull It type yard in your area, Photograph and study the wires on a truck there and the cut a large portion of the harness out to use in your truck. I had to do that for my Expedition to repair the damage done by the installer of an A/M sound system and an alarm. Pure butchery was done to my Expi, I did hours of spliclng, soldering and shrink wrapping.
While you are getting the wires you need you can look for the mystery vacuum line

I t*h*i*n*k it goes to the HVAC controls.

Might this alarm wire guide help?

Those Ford System 3/4/5/6 security alarms are still for sale too.

Wooo! Got the dash out and got several things sorted out. I've gotten the vacuum line replaced, little more to do on the wiring. Also found the spring clip behind the cupholder has broken off, need to figure out something to do there.

Funny you should mention that...:-X04 I work at just such a wrecking yard. The vehicle in question is one we got in on trade. It is really straight and has a clean title so it was worth the time to look into fixing up. :-jammin We just don't have any other similar vehicles for me to reference as far as wiring goes.

It didn't quite reach the controls, the line I needed to replace ran from behind the airbox around the top/front of a portion of the duct.

AWESOME! Yes, that is a huge help. Hopefully I can finish that portion up tomorrow.

Thank you all very much, will let you know how it goes.

The cup holder spring repair is in this thread.
You're working fast!

Thanks Boat Tug, sounds good. I was going to use pop-rivets, but I've got screws around here somewhere.

Sounds kinda like this thing might have an exhaust leak, is there a common failure point in the exhaust?

Pop rivets, screws - whatever works... ;)

I've not had that problem but from what I've read exhaust leaks are not uncommon.
Do a Forum search for 'exhaust leaks' and you will see some of the various issues.
Pulling off the front wheels and the inner fender liner helps gain access to the manifolds.

Oh goody, more to read. ;) I must say...changing out the starter (oh yeah, forgot to mention that I did that too) is a vile and frustrating task. Also pulled the alternator to retrieve a bolt that I dropped in the valley...how many LBS is that spring on the tensioner? Holy crap! I had to adjust the belt on an '88 F350 w/460 and I could just grab that tensioner and move it by hand...not the one on the 4.6L that thing took an 18" breaker bar and a mean cussing.