Just found something online with a guy having the same issue as I am and all it ended up being was the ground to the trans...oh man I really hope this it!

 

Hope that is all for you man!! You need to get that thing up and running!!

 

Yea, that should be a double nutted bolt. 13mm or 11mm, can't recall. Also, check that little 10mm nut. Make sure the stud didn't break off. If it did, you need a new starter. Those studs break way to easy.

I replaced my starter 4 times because of that DAMN stud breaking, Ford now has a tsb on it and if you end up needing a starter, get the OEM since replacement starters are FREE.

 

thanks for the heads up - that sucks about replacing all those starters! Luckily I do have a spare one as I kept the one from the 4.6 and they look identical so Im guessing they are the same. I just got home, Im gonna go out and see if I can figure out where that cable would run to on the trans and see if I can find it...I dont remember a cable hanging off the trans and its not on the starter so it is probably somewhere in the huge pile of wiring that was left over...

 

Don't forget, that ground double backs to the frame. Here -

 

that is the one going from the starter to the trans? I have the one up front inside the tire to the frame all connected, but this cable is going to go from the starter to the frame, and then to the trans?

 

You need all your grounds in order for the engine to run. You have a PCM ground on the firewall and a firewall to engine ground as well. All these need to be connected. But hell , that's a no brainer. Unless you have a bunch of wires/cables hanging from the harness , not connected ?? Yea, I didn't think so lol.

Important gounds -



The arrow points to the PCM ground, not pictured. All gounds inside the cab behind the kick panels need to be connected. Passenger side kick-panel is your fuel reset. Engine won't run at all without that one.

EDIT - Grounding is a little different w/composite intakes. But you still have to have a ground from the firewall, somewhere.

 

No, it goes to the trans bolt. That's actually your engine to frame ground. Then up to the battery. No grounds from the harness is connected directly to the solenoid that piggy backs the starter. The starter/solenoid is already grounded at the top stud (Yellow).

BTW- I'm calling that deal that piggy backs the starter a solenoid. Not referring to the one on the firewall.

 

jbrew thank you for helping me through this! So I just went and looked and on the harness I am using there is no cable to go the trans I dont remember seeing a separate cable going to the trans HOWEVER when we did the swap I used the starter wiring from the 4.6 because it looked a lot cleaner, however now that I am looking at them they are totally different, the starter harness / cables from the original 5.4 is more like you are telling me with the double nutted bolt that I am assuming goes to the tranny BUT it is much shorter and does not have the ground up in front of the front tire on the inside of the frame (no bracket and the cables are way too short). Im thinking about just swapping the whole starter harness (runs from battery to fusable link to starter relay on the firewall then directly down to the starter and has the three connections for the starter plus the cable to ground out on the trans)

 

also I have the dash pulled most of the way out but it should all still be plugged in...and I am pretty sure we have all the grounds connected to the firewall but who knows maybe we missed one. Im going to go double check the grounds and then I think Im going to swap the starter harnesses and see if that solves the whole issue.

 

Yea, that sounds like the thing to do. I've got better pics somewhere. I'll try to find them.

Found this one -

https://picasaweb.google.com/jbrew39...45455110075778

 

 

that is the end of the 5.4L starter cables...I am assuming the large red (hot) wire and the 2 other smaller wires run to the starter and then the larger ground with the double nutted bolt is used for the lower starter bolt?

 

Now I wish I could find my other picks. The top two are both Hot, unless I'm not seeing one, the top two connect to the solenoid, The others are trans bolt and frame ground.

 

That shorter wire furthest back is the ground that goes to the frame like jbrew showed. And the double wire is the ground that bolts through the starter bolt into the bell housing. The other 2 goto the starter/solenoid. I think the trans mount your talking about is one of the starter mounts that go through the bell housing. That's the bigger double wire.

Maybe this will help. Pic is blurry...