does anyone have pictures of the starter relay hooked up to their truck, just need to confirm black and red cable go on bottom terminal and the relay out put "straight edge" is on top

 

On mine the "straight" part of the Y molded piece was on the bottom and the divergent part was on the top, like this:

` __o
_/__o

I'll try to take a picture during lunch, but it is possible this is a difference in our model years. They even changed the color coding of some wires along the way. The most definite way to make sure it's wired correctly is to check that the wires from each post go to the correct components. I can't seem to find this information easily on the internet, but I'll try to figure it out when I take the picture.

 

A general picture of the area. Note that I have aftermarket accessories (alarm, e-fans, etc.) linked into the relay for power. My solenoid/relay is gray and has the extra post on the left side because it's the Duralast Gold aftermarket part.


A close-up of the solenoid/relay and attachments.

I couldn't determine exactly which wire was going where without breaking open all the looming, but I could see that the "fatter" wire was going to the bottom post; I would assume this is the terminal receiving a wire from the battery +, since it's where the accessories are tied in for power.

Good luck!

 

BTW, I found this post with pictures of jbrew's setup. I'm pretty sure he has extra mods there, but his '98 truck seems to have the "fatter" wire in the "split" part of the Y piece, and the "thinner" wire in the "straight" part. Your '99 may be like this.

 

When it won't start, just jump the two large posts with a screwdriver. If it cranks, you know that is the problem.


To rephrase that. You may find it not to be your problem, but if the key is on, you can start your truck that way

 

I apoligize for getting back so late, 12 hours shifts since last report. i removed and replace the starter relay twice with after market parts and no joy on the truck. i finally went to FORD and bought a relay (OUCH) but it worked like a champ. Thank you all who responded, no telling what a repair shop would have charged. Thanks again

 

At least it's working.

There's a dealer nearby that would sell the Motorcraft relay for $28, but they would have had to order it. Another had it in stock, but they wanted $40. Guess I'll just run the $20 Duralast Gold piece 'til it gives me problems.