F150 Trouble

[F150_Baby]

:wacko: My 87 F150,351W, 5.8L has been giving me a lot of problems.The guy that had it before me was an ass who knew less about trucks than he thought. The last time I drove it (Oct. 31, 04) my battery died and my starter wouldn't engage. When I tried to use a voltmeter to narrow down where it was drawing resistance and I found that the fuse for the turn signals was the only thing drawing resistance. This made sense to me because I had trouble with the turn signals when I drove it. The switch would pop up but the signals would not come on and I had to keep pushing it back down. Does anyone have the skematic for the steering colum?I have already re-wired the wires under my tailgate and I have yet to replace the altenator and the starter(both are 20+ yrs. old.)

My truck has a brand new battery as of a few months ago and it drains while it sits,off, and I don't know where else to go. I love my Ford but it is hard to keep level headed about it. Any help will be GREATLY welcomed. Thank you>

 

[Seabronc]

If your battery is draining when your key is off, it has to be caused either by a high resistance short in one of the wire that hook up directly to the battery, (usually via fusable links), or one of the circuits that are always hot. I don't have an 87 diagram to work from but I will atach one for an 83 that will give you some idea what to look at.

Some things that are hot at all times is the lights, power door locks, Tail gate window rear switch, power mirrors, Rear window defroster (direct via fusable link), light switch and instrument lights. The head lights are fused via a fusable link hooked directly to the positive terminal of the battery. The others are fused via the fuse block.

I would try to narrow down to the exact circuit that is draining the battery down. I know that may take a little patience unless you have an ammeter that you can insert into the circuits one at a time. If you suspect the directional signal circuit, pull the fuse and see if the battery still drains or pull all the fuses that feed always hot circuits. While waiting to see if the battery is still draining, check the wiring harness in the engine compartment very carefully for a wsorn spot where it might be rubbing against metal. Remove and insert fuses untill you find the actual circuit at fault.

Good luck,

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[Seabronc]

Other 1/2 of diagram.

 

[Jackrh]

Not quite clear on when your problem occurs, what I would do to diag and repair this elect. problem is first Do a visual check on the batt cables the solonoid and engine and body grounds any wire harness's in and around the battery tighen all connections and ground bolts. correct any green or rusty connections you find,2 test the bat. but you said its new, 3 test the charging system with a volt meter it should be between 13 to 15 volts if not you need isolate and correct the problem. If the batt. goes dead while not in use, does it happen over night? or over a few days? would help in finding the sourse of the draw. A few problems I have found with fords is wires pinched or rubbed under the battery blown fusable links at the solinoid (pull on them if they stretch they are blown look close for the insulation bumps or splits) ford trucks also have a problem with the ignition switch, look close for melted connection there if you find black or melting or discolored terminals replace the switch and the connector. hope this will help . i'll check back in a day or so to see how you made out

 

[Seabronc]

Oh yah, didn't note you have truck not a Bronco, so the hot all the time stuff naturally does not include the rear window circuit. Jackrh's suggestions are good for general problems, but the connections have nothing to do with the battery draining when the key is off, though it wouldn't hurt to check them out to prevent othe types of electrical problems in the future.

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[Seabronc]

PS you can get a new steering column switch either at LMC truck or Jeff's Bronco Graveyard.

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