Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Possible Wiring Harness Issue

Well I thought I may have had a fuel pump issue but now I think I might have a wire harness issue.

-With KOEO my fuel pump will not come on
-With KOEO my PATS light will fast blink for awhile and then throw a 1-6 code
-While wiring to the distribution block near the underhood fuse box (for battery relocation), I noticed alot of brittle wire sheathing that crumbled off of the wires. In fact, there's a rainbow of sheathing crumbs on my garage floor. This from the harness that comes out the bottom of the fuse box.

I found an old post from The Mark that described an almost exact situation (1-6 PATS code) that was fixed with a new harness. The tag on my door shows a date of 6/97 and I have 84k miles. I should be qualified for the harness recall shouldn't I?

Do all these symptoms seem related enough to make a plausible case?

Thanks,
Randy

There is a ford recall website, where you type in your VIN number and it'll pull up the recalls it has for that specific car, I can't remember what it was I forgot to put it in my favorites, maybe someone will show up and say what it was, or you can go to the ford dealer and they'll pull it up. Yeah your car should be applicable for it it's less then 10 years old and has under 100K miles on it. Good luck.

The wiring harness recall affects only model year 1995 through 1997 vehicles. More info here:

http://www.contour.org/FAQ/FAQ.php?s=probs&displayid=24

Here's the "My Ford" site mentioned above:

http://www.ford.com/en/vehicles/owners/myVehicle.htm

Well,

Just got off the phone with my local dealer. He says I don't qualify. Mine's a model year '98 (which doesn't qualify) but shows a build date of 6/97. I hoped this would sneak me in.

Wow....took apart the little harness that goes from the Battery Junction Box to the positive side of the battery. Four red wires were either partially or (in some spots) completely bare of insulation. Two of these red wires ran to a "tree" that attached fuses # 1,2,and 3 together. I called Bill and he's got a new harness coming pronto.

The old post I saw from The Mark indicated a new harness solved his very similar problem, however I see where those fuses are for (1)-power supply to main fuse box, (2)-radiator electric fans,and (3)-ABS....nothing to do with the PATS circuit. And, these fuses are still intact. Could this be the cause of the PATS/fuel pump/no start issue?

Randy,

With mine I had the wiring harness recall performed. I had bare wiring on the injector harness as well as around the power distribution box. I would check the remaining harness wiring to be sure it isn't as bad. The wiring harness is I believe sold in 3 or 4 part numbers. Also check wiring leading in to the PCM at firewall on passenger side side. Is the insulation brittle and falling off? It sounds like that when you pulled the engine and relocated the battery that was enough to have the remaining insulation deteriorate. If you purchased the wiring harness that leads to the power distribution box, I believe you should receive a new box with it....

As they say Ford Tough - Quality No. 1

Oh yes, with such a massive failure of the insulation it is very tough to determine what circuits are affected...

Some items are starting to make sense. You mentioned your fuse was blown when you checked it, which kind of tells me you have a major short due to the insulation issues.....

One of my major peeves with Ford is using such cheap inferior wiring....... You would think they have learned not to use such cheap wiring.....but, about 9 months ago I read where Ford was recalling the Ford Focus for the engine catching on fire due to inferior wiring.....seems they haven't learned or probably they really don't care....As the Soup Nazi on Seinfeld always said "No soup for you" well for me No more Fords.....

Bob

Bob,

The harness leading from the PCM was replaced late last year. The harness to the electric fans sounds, well, "creaky" but all exposed wiring is in good shape right now. The harness in need of immediate attention (fuse box to battery)was snowing insulation all over my garage floor.

I really, I mean REALLY hope this thing fires up after I get the harness installed. If not, you'll probably see the fireball and hear the expolsion from your house!

Randy

New harness didn't solve a damned thing. I pulled the PCM relay and checked voltage to where it plugs in and came up with 12v. How do you test for a bad relay? Any other ideas?

Randy

If I remember correctly, some of the relays are exactly the same. If this is the case, switch em around to test.

Bob