Great looking truck and I know it's special since it was left to you. First thing to check for the electrical problems are the ground packs. There's one on each inside front fender. On the passenger side, it's behind the breather box and the passenger side has one by the ABS system. A 10 mm bolt holds the thing in place, and it had a tendency to work loose. It attaches a little black box with about a dozen ground wires in each one. Check inside the box for corrosion and scratch up the paint a little bit and bolt the thing down really tight. These two items are often the reason for all sorts of lighting issues and other electrical problems. For the ABS light on, open the back doors and pull out the rubber boot between the cab and the rear door and you'll probably find some broken wires that go to the seat belt retractor. Often, there are speaker wires broken also.
We're here to help and I look forward to helping you make that a source of pride!

 

Very nice of you OldGuy, I really appreciate the advice!

 

Welcome

 

:welcome2:

Just to add to the info, there is no seal around the rear window, The adhesive that holds it in place is also the seal.

 

Awesome, many thanks for the info!

 

:salute:

Welcome to the Nation . . .

 

Thanks!!!

 

Welcome to 355Nation. Since it is a northern truck a good close-up inspection of the frame might be worth the effort. Hopefully the area on top the fuel tank where the pump mounts is okay too. It will be a labor of respect and honor for your late Father-In-Law.

 

Thank you! Yeah, I'm getting myself familiar with this truck, and I'm going to take one step at a time and go over it all and make improvements. Already learning a lot, and got some new parts on order.

 

Welcome to the 355 Nation. Wishing you many, many happy miles in your new truck. Your Grandfather would be proud. OldGuy is correct, that the two ground packs can create many different electrical problems. Good luck.

 

Thanks! My Father in law let some people borrow the truck, and someone did some type of splice job for wiring up a trailer. Maybe some of the issues I am having with the turn signals are tied into this mess. I'll take my time and disconnect the birdsnest this weekend. pics attached

 

Another vote for what OldGuy said about the ground packs. Go to this thread: https://www.355nation.net/forum/how-lighting-electrical/6401-how-hvac-fan-motor-resistor-connector-replacement.html
Scroll until you see : Ground Reconditioning & Repair sections and there will be 3 methods to fix the grounds. I used method 1. It took all of about 15 minutes and it instantly and permanently evicted the electrical gremlins from my truck. This was over 5 years and close to 100,000 miles ago.

 

I'm going to read up on this now...much appreciated Brotha.

 

If you can get it back down to the stock wiring, there is a very basic and easy repair or initial install of trailer wiring. I ordered mine online. Basically to the drivers side of the spare tire is a big plug where the main tail light wiring attaches. There's a trailer wiring harness that can be installed. You basically unplug the wiring there and the trailer wiring harness fits between the male and female plug. It's solid and sound and has wiring to go back to the rear bumper for the trailer lights. No splicing and works great. It's actually a stock item at some auto parts stores:
https://www.autozone.com/electrical...arness-and-connector/hopkins-trailer-wire-harness-and-connector/784838_977815_0

 

Thanks...I really just want to get back to the stock wiring, and I will get rid of the rusty ball that is on there...might have to cut it off.
My plan of going after it last weekend changed, was tied up other home projects and sold the old 1998 Ford Ranger...that was a sitcom of stories to get to a final sale on that yesterday.

 

Finally got around to removing the birds nest of wires...my turn signals are working correctly now! still other issues, check engine light and abs lights are on, and fuel gauge not working, but learning as I go and will keep chipping away at it.

 

Finally got around to removing the birds nest of wires...my turn signals are working correctly now!

Excellent start!!

 

Extended cab trucks have a bad problem with the wiring harness that goes to the back door having wires break. If ABS light is on that could be the cause. On your stereo, turn the fade to the back speakers and then adjust the balance to see if both back speakers are working. Those wires break too. Also, does the overhead light come on when you open a door? When you open the back doors, there's a rubber boot where wires go through to the electrical items in the back door. If you pull that boot out of the door, you will usually find broken wires right there. Two of the wires go to the seatbelt retractor and if broken, they will make the ABS light come on. There are 6 wires. 2 for the speaker in the back door, 2 for the little button that makes contact when you close the front door and 2 for the seat belt retractor.
Go to any auto parts store and they will scan your truck for the check engine light code. Be sure to write down the code and let us know what it is. Someone here will have great ideas on how to resolve the issue.
I'd recommend starting a new thread asking for help with the gas gauge.
Good luck and keep us up to date!

 

Go to any auto parts store and they will scan your truck for the check engine light code. Be sure to write down the code and let us know what it is. Someone here will have great ideas on how to resolve the issue.
I'd recommend starting a new thread asking for help with the gas gauge.
Good luck and keep us up to date!

Hopefully someone hasn't wired the ABS system through the rear doors. As OldGuy said, get the truck scanned by someone and let us know what the codes are. If you are going to be a DIYer you should consider getting some kind of OBD tool to be able to read the DTCs that cause the "check engine" light to come on. .

Thanks Guys...I'll get to starting another thread on topic, but for now I will say the ABS fuse is missing. I'll have to see if it was pulled for a reason. All other tests with the stereo, lights, all working as it should.
My Gas gauge is not working, stuck on empty... so I disconnected the battery for about 15 min., and when I restarted the truck the needle moved up all the way to full for about 10 seconds, and then went back to showing empty.
Thanks for advice on check engine light. I went to Auto Zone after work today, and they did the scan..... the error code came up as P0463 - Fuel Level Sensor A Circuit High Input.
Armrest repair kit comes in tomorrow...that's a fix I feel like I can handle. lol

 

Hopefully someone hasn't wired the ABS system through the rear doors. As OldGuy said, get the truck scanned by someone and let us know what the codes are. If you are going to be a DIYer you should consider getting some kind of OBD tool to be able to read the DTCs that cause the "check engine" light to come on. Even a $20 bluetooth adapter with a cell phone app is better than nothing.

 

If the info in your profile is correct and the truck has had an engine swap to a 5.7 liter, that may be the reason for some of the electrical issues. Just for info; look on the inside of the glove box door and it should have a decal with some three digit codes.
Look for either "LK5" (2.8) or "L52" (3.5). Those were the only two engines available in 2005. Another thing to keep in mind is that if the truck sat outside for more than about a week there could be some rodent damage to the wiring. For some reason rodents love chewing on wires.

I would suggest installing a fuse for the ABS and see if it blows and/or the ABS light comes on. If the ABS light comes on a scan at AutoZone should give a clue as to the problem. Might just be a defective wheel speed sensor.

The fuel quantity problem could be a result of incorrect wiring during the engine swap, rodent damage as mentioned, or a defective sending unit. The gauge defaults to zero when a problem is detected.

 

If the info in your profile is correct and the truck has had an engine swap to a 5.7 liter, that may be the reason for some of the electrical issues.

Thank you for the reply Cart, but I must have made a drop down menu mistake when joined this forum. The Engine I have is the I5 3.5 liter, and I just updated my profile info.
Thanks for the other advice...it was not garage kept, outdoor on a driveway near Lansing Michigan.
It's garage kept now, really like this truck!

 

Thanks for the correction. It is always easier to solve problems when the truck is stock.