Everything from the donor was original...in 2000 ford used the 4r100 in CA trucks for some emissions reason...they are rare but they are out there.

As for swapping wiring...from all the research I've done as long as I use the donor harness, computer, cluster etc it should be happy. Basically I want my truck to think it is a 2000 with the 5.4 and 4r100 and as long as I use everything from the donor (which is what we did except the dash harness)

 

Then your probably fine. You just have to figure where your wiring is wrong on the ignition end of it. Whatever it is, it is interrupting the charge system every time you turn the key and it shorts out. Might be why the gauges are sweeping. Where was the smoke coming from? The battery? Relay? Starter?

 

I think the smoke came from down below so I'm thinking it was the starter that was smoking

 

Yeah, pics of the battery to relay, relay to starter area would be good. Make sure your starter is wired like this.. I tried to label it according to the harness that you showed.

 

Right on thanks for the help! I'll get some pics up tonight asap

 

Toyz that's exactly how I told him to wire it. Exactly.

 

that is exactly how my starter is wired, the longer black wire is the signal wire which goes to the smaller post with the 10mm that Jbrew was having issues breaking them off. My red hot wire is going to the outside terminal just like that and then the other wire (the one on the far right in my picture) is going to the other terminal closer to the starter and it looks like a smaller ground cable running to the double nutted ground on the starter/trans mount.

 

with PATS angry it will still crank the truck, but it will die immediately without fuel

 

Ya that's what I'm thinking too, I have something wired wrong or not connected I think. Once I can get some help and physically go over the entire harness and totally button it up I think it will be good to go.

I confirmed that the entire drivetrain was the original drivetrain and none of it was ever pulled or modified so I don't see why it would be totally functional in the other truck and then not happy in my truck...it shouldn't matter if everything from the donor was retained. The only thing really different should be ground connections, and fuel supply but those issues have already been dealt with

 

That is the frame ground. As shown in Jbrews pic here


If you have that wire on the the terminal nearest to the starter.. your going to get a firework show. Nothing on your harness should go to that big nut, its the connection from the bendix to the starter, whatever its called. If your talking about the shortest, bottom right black wire on the bottom in your pic... then that is the problem. And it would drain your battery. And probably fry the solenoid/bendix... Maybe even the relay.

 

yes your right, I didnt realize thats what it was looking at jbrew's photo I thought I had it the same way...wow I feel stupid, going to go change that right now and see what it does.

 

Yea that goes to the ground on that bottom starter to trans bolt.

 

INSTANTLY FIRED!!!!!!!!!

I feel so dumb! I thought that was the way it was wired in jbrew's photo and I assumed I needed to run a cable to each post on the starter....wow

 

read through this thread last night. sweet shop, and great work. Glad you got it all fired up!

 

Video...or its lies



























J/K, good to see its running. Hopefully that was the last of the big headaches and onto other details.