adding cruise control

[mikejana]

I've used this on several Econoline's,
and similarly super duties;
Including my 97 E 350.

I even put a newer steering wheel with matching clock ring on a 2003 and got the extra buttons working

[posplayr]

Originally Posted by mikejana

I've used this on several Econoline's,
and similarly super duties;
Including my 97 E 350.

I even put a newer steering wheel with matching clock ring on a 2003 and got the extra buttons working

To be clear for others the 1997 E-350 has a servo motor and did not come with lighted buttons. I upgraded mine to lighted buttons but could never get mine to work again after they failed.

My CC was installed at the dealer when I bought it new. I'm not exactly sure what they had to add. The Brake CC cutout is typically a pressure switch on the Master cylinder and a mechanical cutoff under the dash. This varied apparently as mine only had two mechanical; cutoffs under the dash.

I got a factory recall notice about the master cylinder cutoffs that can start a fire (apparently TRW the supplier of the pressure switch did not read the 10 amp load specification from GM and provided underrated pressure switches. It did not apply to my E-350 but the dealer had to do a physical inspection to confirm.

All this goes away sometime around 2006 (not sure about the exact year) with "fly by wire" CC.

Something else to be aware of the third tail light can screw up the CC if you go to LED lights on the roof. Apparently, the servo unit uses brake light current to detect brake activation and low current draw from LED lights will not activate the cruise control. I'm not 100% sure of this but it seems to affect the troubleshooting procedure that is floating around.

The factory service manual instructions are a horror whereas the one-pager makes perfect sense. It also includes a flashing light sequence that will decode faults.

[Sztimo]

Hi,

Servo motor only on gas.

Let me tell you my experience.

Before you do anything download FORScan it’s a diagnostic tool and order a plug for a laptop. Follow the instruction at FORScan at what usb and plugs you need order from Amazon. $20

There are 2 types of button for the steering wheel. Each one of them come with a different ohm reading. Order your self a steering wheel and clocks speed. Also there are 2 kinds of different ones.

When you got this hook it all up. ( You maybe have to modify the plug at the clock spring but we get there when we ge there. ) Load forscan, add all cruise function to the main screen including the breaks and emergency breaks. Hit recorded. No you can see a live view of your van.

All breaks have to be off to enable cruise. If any of them are on you need to find out way. Sometime the emergency break sensor by the padel is defective our you have the master break sensor switch missing like I had. So cross the wires by the master cylinder.

Check again forScan, no that all breaks are off. With engine one. Hit the on button for cruise and all button. It will show you exactly what button you are pushing. If something is wrong you got the wrong buttons and have to order the other ones. Rockauto has both. That’s where I got mine from.

Hook up the new ones and you are ready to go.

[JWA]

Originally Posted by nervous24

Hello all,

I used this thread previously to add CC to my now dead 2006 and am back again to give my right leg a break on the 97 E250 I have now.

I have read the entire thread and most of it seems to address 98 and up. I just want to confirm what is required for my year to get things going? Do I just need a wheel, buttons and the appropriate clockspring to make things go, or am I in the camp that needs the essentially non-existent servo motor?

First you need to determine whether your chassis has the necessary wiring that forms the circuit between the servo, clock spring and steering wheel switches---without that already in place you're basically SOL.

There will be a flat 10 pin connector clipped to the driver's side inner fender under the degas bottle, it looks like this:



Two additional views of that connector:



http://

This connector must be present in order to install the factory VSC components. The electrical components are very year-dependent so keep that in mind.

I went through this re-fit on my own 2000 E-250 some 10-12 years ago. I was insanely lucky find a NIB complete package with every part needed to install and enable VSC. The original manufacturer and supplier to Ford and their dealers before closed down.

HTH

[posplayr]

This is a quick note to report my final success in resurrecting my broken cruise control (sort of). This applies primarily to 1997 thru 2004 Econoline Gasoline speed control(4.9,5.4,6.8L) on page 31-1 of the FS Wire Diagrams.

This diagram is not of an Econoline and it doesn't have the correct wire colors, but it does show the basic flow of signal between the steering wheel switches and the Speed Control Servo. I have seen nothing to indicate that the SCS connector pinout is NOT common to all these types of units. In other words they are all common.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/bbece...c2l8kjo4w&dl=0

Background, I bought a 1997 E-350 RB passenger van that had few options, but I had the dealer install cruise control as part of the purchase. So this is NOT a factory-optioned cruise control.

All the wiring was there to install the servo unit but the Speed control uses two brake disconnects to cut the CC when braking.

1. One is the voltage sense at the high-mount rear brake light and the
2. second is a pressure switch at the brake master cylinder.

Since my 1997 E-350 did not have this MC pressure switch, the dealer installed a second brake switch under the dash to act as the pressure switch would.

The general flow of the Brake deactivation signals is:

HOT-IN _RUN signal from the central Junction Box (Page 13-2) COLOR::LG/RD

This goes to two places in parallel :
BRAKE PEDAL POSITION (BPP) SWITCH:
IN::LG/RD
OUT::LG goes to SPEED CONTROL SERVO::PIN 4
(BRK=OFF<->PIN4=0V)
(BRK=ON <->PIN4=12V)

The second parallel path is to either a pressure switch at the brake master or a second brake switch under the dash at the brake pedal.

DEACTIVATOR SWITCH:
IN::LG/RD
OUT::RD/LG goes to SPEED CONTROL SERVO::PIN 9
(BRK=OFF<->PIN9=12V)
(BRK=ON <->PIN9=0V)

Please note that these two signals have the opposite polarity so you should use two separate switches. Also, it is best to not try and tie the two together using a solenoid to invert the BPP signal to apply to the Pin 9 of the speed control servo.

Here is a link to the Ford Technical Service Bulletin (TSB). As you can see it applies to many Ford products generally between the years 2000 thru 2005. This also implies that many of these products interchange.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/0t0b8...mjdsih3qj&dl=0

In order to install Cruise Control in a vehicle that never had it, you will need:

1. Steering wheel with switches (preferably with backlighting)
2. Cruise Control compatible Clock Spring for your year model
3. Speed Control Servo (SCS)
4. Actuator Cable from SCS to the throttle body (see attached link).

As a for instance, for the 1997 E-350 there are two clock springs listed:
CONTROL ASY. AIR BAG

F7UZ-14A664-EC
Cover And Contact Plate Assy
Less speed control

F7UZ-14A664-DC
Cover And Contact Plate Assy
w/speed control, BEFORE 05/13/98

Make sure to connect the cable under the cover on teh SCS !
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/5f0o0...7x310mwku&dl=0

https://www.fordpartsgiant.com/parts...tml?pnc=14A664

You also need the required electrical connections.
The primary one is the 10 pin connector JWA shows which plugs into the SCS.

You also need a 2 wire plug that is located near the brake master cylinder for the DEACTIVATOR Pressure Switch.

In the case of my 2002 NON Cruise Control E-250, both of these plugs were present and caped off. Because I did not have the pressure switch, I installed teh second brake switch that had a pair of LG/RD RD/LG wires from below the dash-> through the fire wall-> to 2 wire plug above near the Brake master cylinder. I did not have a matching plug for the two pins, so I cut off the end and installed a new automotive-style 2-pin connection.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You should use crimpers, but if you use a needle nose plyers to crimp, then solder the crimps to secure then (so the wire doesn't slip out).

I will mention that I did/do have LED lights installed in all the brake light fixtures (on the corners and the high mount). This includes having an adjustable Brake light flasher (to adjust the LED flashing period). I also have a brake light modulator but have not tried to install it back in again yet.


Finally, I will offer some of my observations as to what parts are likely to be interoperable.

According to the TSB, the functional test applies to a great many vehicles which all use the same steering wheel switches. The tests described are pretty thorough so it is best to get to a situation where everything is connected and the tests can be run .

In my case, I verified that the Brake signals on Pin's 4 and 9 were correct according to the functional polarities I described above.

If you don't have a CC dash light ( my 1997 did not, 2002 does)you will want to connect an LED to Pin 1 of the Speed Control Servo. This is a ground signal so tie a 12V LED high side to a 12V source and tie the other LED leg to the Pin 1 ground signal as shown in the first schematic diagram. An LED is preferable because the test goes pretty fast and the LED will react better than an incandescent bulb.

The test directions are a little confusing and it takes a little practice to go through the button sequence.

After you initiate the SERVE DEBUG Mode by turning the ignition key ON with the OFF button depressed, you go through the described button sequence.

It is difficult to determine the exact timing of the final button push, but if you get any number of flashes more than one you have a problem.

When it works you get one final flash as you do from all the switches depresses and then the light goes off, and you can hear a servo movement over the ignition key chime.

In my my case I can't tell if I got 3 or 4 flashes following the last key press which would have been either a brake input error or one from the VSS signal. Since my steering buttons are working, I have to assume that the first of the last sequence of flashes indicated the Set button works and the following 3 flashes indicating a bad break activation switch.

As it turned out the 1997 Speed Control Servo I had was bad, and I happened to have a 2000 Explorers SCS that passed the test with flying colors. What had confused me before was that the failure happened sometime after I had switched in LED lights but well before I had retested the cruise Control. So when the CC failed is actually is a mystery which led me to suspect any modification I had made that might have impacted the CC (see warning in the TSB)

This YouTube video also swapped in an Explorer SCS for a failed Econoline SCS. I changed the mount and opened the unit to clean contacts and add sparingly some grease to the servo gears.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUFfCwoXqZE

So to summarize my final configuration for the 2002 E-250 Base Model NON Cruise Contol van (5.4L),

1. I have a clock spring that is compatible with the 1997 E-350 installed into the 2002 E-250. I don't know if the original E-250 would work with the CC buttons. However, I would guess that any clock spring intended to work with Cruise Control would work with the same set of buttons and will work in any other relevant year Econoline.
   
2. As mentioned the second brake switch is a dealer-installed brake pedal mechanical switch connected to the 2 pin plug that would have connected to the master cylinder pressure switch.
   
3. The Speed Servo Controller is out of a 2000 Explorer.
   
4. The throttle body pull cable is out of the 1997 E-350.
   
5. The steering wheel with leather cover is out of the 1997 E-350.
   
6. The buttons are new cheap Chinese but despite what he add said without backlighting (my last set of buttons got blown up by my airbag activated totaling of the 1997 E-350). I just bought a set of used eBay OEM switches with backlighting for $40

[FCAshevlle]

Anyone know what kind of connector I look for in a 2012 E150? Gonna go have a peak now.

[posplayr]

Originally Posted by FCAshevlle

Anyone know what kind of connector I look for in a 2012 E150? Gonna go have a peak now.

After about 2006 they were fly-by-wire and did not use a standalone servo motor. It uses the same servo as the fly-by-wire throttle control.

Fly-by-wire means that when you push the throttle pedal you are sending a signal to a computer as opposed to the older way of pulling a cable attached to the throttle direct on the throttle.

For 2012 You probably have to install the correct clock spring, steering wheel and buttons (possibly another brake switch)then turn on cruise control using Forscan software with the OBDII interface.

See this thread

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...l#post21203581

Originally Posted by JWA

The ECM control of VSC was first added in about 2005 previous years using the servo and cable pulling on the throttle plate to maintain the desired set speed.

For model year 2009 would require the steering wheel and control switches along with the correct clockspring as well as the master cylinder defeat sending unit. Once those components are properly installed the dealership or someone with the FORScan program loaded and competent in its use changing ECM parameters can enable the vehicle for VSC.

Hope this helps!

​​​​​​​

[posplayr]

Just as an FYI, the typical Chinese eBay cruise control buttons you find can inexplicitly not have backlighting when they claim proudly that they do!

It doesn't seem worth the hassle and it is often only about $10 more to buy the best quality (albeit used) OEM cruise control buttons switches with backlighting.

This is an example of a vendor I'm dealing with at the moment. They are responsive and it is not resolved yet but I have better things to do. Besides these buttons feel a little cheap compared to OEM although as anything you will probably get used to them. If you check Rockauto which is usually the best deal around, their switchs are outrageous. over $150

https://www.ebay.com/itm/12577674974...&segname=11051

The condition of these was excellent although a little more. for used.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/116042622945