This may be a bit early but the fix seems to have done the trick, so I will still document this while I have some enthusiasm about it.
I recently bought a 2011 Econoline E-350 RB to replace my 2002 E-250 RB work van. Teh 2011 was a fleet vehicle that was pretty abused and not cared for very well although i think it has good bones (you look underneath it and it looks close to brand new).
Anyway, I have been compiling a list and purchasing parts for it, but I have noticed there are some wonky things with the cockpit. Some of it is just not being familiar with the newer Econolines (the 2002 is the newest pre 08 I have.
In the video below. You don't have to watch the whole thing; I did not edit it down.
It shows with headlights off, the dash lights flash On/OFF. When the headlamps go back on the flashing dash stops. In addition at various times, the parking lights stay on and I have to remove the ground cable from the battery.
Just moments before this video, everything was working fine when I changed the headlamp switch between OFF-PARK-ON. That is until I closed the door and Jared the dash, then the lights started to flash.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pjvfy...okqz0zflq&dl=0
So I did a Google search and found this video
It is not very good and leaves a lot of details out. The clue was that he was losing a ground in the switch (despite two dedicated ground wires) and that was failing to turn off the lights OFF.
As an FYI all the input signals from the light switch to the Smart Junction Box (under the dash) are ground signals. A floating input is not active; a ground applied to the signal will activate it (see wiring diagram P 13-49 Power Distribution/ SJB.
He considered the connector but chose to solder in a new ground wire to fix his problem.
Well I tried to retrace his steps using the Manual. It is pretty straightforward once you find out how to do it.
1.) Remove the kick panel below the steering wheel
2.) Reach behind the dash and find the clip to remove the connector
3.) some clips (Qty 3) can be depressed to allow the headlight switch to be pushed through from back to front. Even if you can't find all the clips by gently pushing from the back the switch will come out.
Once the switch is out you have to get the back off of it. This is a bit of a challenge because there are 5 clips that have to be held back all at once.
Unless you have 6 friends with you (I did not), I chose to just break the outer housing near the 5 clips (stock a screwdriver into where the clip is and twist the screwdriver; it pops a crack into the housing near the clips but still hold together when you press it back together.
In the last picture IMG_7442 you can see the reverse side where the connector pins have been pushed through the PCB. I was shocked to see that the factory that produced these PCB's did not solder the connectors in but just used fish hook pins to retain the connector.
I used some liquid flux and fine solder to flow some solder into the joints to get a more reliable contact.
I also sprayed some DeOxit into the connector housing and header.
Be careful not to wash all of the conductive greases out.
So the whole point of this thread is to make people aware that Ford produces electrical components where they use fishhooks to retain connectors, and in the case of the headlamp switch iyt produces crazy results.
I will update you if this does not solve the headlamp issue, as I suspect that some other things might arise in time so I can be real sure at this juncture.
PS: One other thing I just noticed. They left an additional LED off (1 of 3) the PCB along with its corresponding current limiting resistor. This would be the LED to indicate OFF
Linear Mode
