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  1. #26
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bsdoig View Post
    @BBCFORD was your car an original LX car. I've currently got a 140 speedo cluster, and just recently picked up a LX gauge cluster. Wondering if you had any detailed info on the pinout (wiring) to make the LX tach work in a non-LX car?
    Was that you that won the ebay auction?
    '89 XR-7 5 Speed
    '95 SC 5 Speed
    '91 Crown Vic P72 351W
    '97 Thunderbird
    '85 Ford LTD Squire

  2. #27

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    Quote Originally Posted by KevinVarnes View Post
    Was that you that won the ebay auction?
    It was, I currently have a 140 speedo I’m looking to add a LX tach.

  3. #28

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bsdoig View Post
    @BBCFORD was your car an original LX car. I've currently got a 140 speedo cluster, and just recently picked up a LX gauge cluster. Wondering if you had any detailed info on the pinout (wiring) to make the LX tach work in a non-LX car?
    Unfortunately I don't have a pinout because I installed the tach and speedometer in a 1980 Thunderbird. Ford/Mercury reused many parts over the years so it was a direct swap physically. I do recall having to release a few of the plug harness wires and reassign their position. I bought a factory wiring/vacuum hose publication off fleabay. That simplified the process quite a bit. But instead of wiring the tach signal through the factory harness plug, I just ran a 14gauge wire directly off the tach terminal on my MSD 6a box. If I remember correctly the original plug lacked a pin and wire for a tach since the 80-82 Thunderbird/cougar never offered a tachometer as an option. Your cars harness may already have it there, but you will have to identify all the wires.

    Just a side note. Be very careful not to get the numbers wet if your tinkering with the speedometer...possibly the tach too. When I was working on mine a drip of sweat off my brow landed on the face and I soon realized that the numbers printed on the face are not permanent. They are VERY water soluble and the 120mph smeared off as I wiped the singe drip of sweat off with a tissue less than 10 seconds later. I couldn't believe it came off that easy. I managed to sort of fix it using a damp qtip... but it's still ruined, so be very careful in case the paint/ printing on the tachometer is just as poorly done.
    Last edited by BBCFORD; 10-05-2019 at 12:19 PM.

  4. #29

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    Quote Originally Posted by BBCFORD View Post
    Unfortunately I don't have a pinout because I installed the tach and speedometer in a 1980 Thunderbird. Ford/Mercury reused many parts over the years so it was a direct swap physically. I do recall having to release a few of the plug harness wires and reassign their position. I bought a factory wiring/vacuum hose publication off fleabay. That simplified the process quite a bit. But instead of wiring the tach signal through the factory harness plug, I just ran a 14gauge wire directly off the tach terminal on my MSD 6a box. If I remember correctly the original plug lacked a pin and wire for a tach since the 80-82 Thunderbird/cougar never offered a tachometer as an option. Your cars harness may already have it there, but you will have to identify all the wires.

    Just a side note. Be very careful not to get the numbers wet if your tinkering with the speedometer...possibly the tach too. When I was working on mine a drip of sweat off my brow landed on the face and I soon realized that the numbers printed on the face are not permanent. They are VERY water soluble and the 120mph smeared off as I wiped the singe drip of sweat off with a tissue less than 10 seconds later. I couldn't believe it came off that easy. I managed to sort of fix it using a damp qtip... but it's still ruined, so be very careful in case the paint/ printing on the tachometer is just as poorly done.
    Awesome info! I believe that I understand the pinout differences. I also know my year LTD does not have the tach harness wire. You mentioned you ran a wire directly from you MSD to the tach pinout on the connector. How did you install this wire into the harness connector and gauge cluster? I'm assuming it was just a blank hole in the harness connector, which needs a special connector terminal? Maybe I'm overthinking it?
    Last edited by Bsdoig; 10-05-2019 at 08:31 PM.

  5. #30
    FEP Super Member xctasy's Avatar
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    Right on Bsdoig.

    Ford had voice alert, optic lighting and power doors and electronic dash and access leads to allow Trip Minder wiring, which was able to be linked in to the stock wiring. Anything EFi had a raft of extra stuff, but the LX was firstky just a up optioned Fox LTD.

    As ever, if you check and read previous links, first page of OPs discussion.

    Refer to OX1's post links for tach.

    Specifics are covered

    See

    http://luxjo.supermotors.net/DADSLTD/LTD_TACH.jpg

    The Foxes used Duraspark II, III or Motorcraft TFi.

    The signal wire can be run off three sources. For S shelld (what the 83-87 is internally) , they could have 2.3/3.3/3.8/5.0 engines some years, and some of those didnt have a magnetic pickup in the distributor, so Ford had a test function wire to the Dealer Trouble Code 5/6 pin plug. The grey cap TFi and the rare 5.0 Duraspark III cars had another kind of Hall sensor either in the Distributor, or on the CFi 5.0 std performances Crank Position sensor ( Sterling built California spec two door XR7s and T birds till 1984 still used the Brown Box Engine Control Assembly with a CPS tang on the crank damper).

    Best option is a remote wire.

  6. #31

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    Thanks xctacy!

    My non-lx LTD has already been converted to EFI with a later model 5.0. The plan is to just remote from the negative side of the coil for tach signal. I’m more interested in the gauge cluster side of the harness. How to incorporate this tach signal wire into the gauge cluster connector?

  7. #32
    FEP Super Member xctasy's Avatar
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    Low battery wire, which is one of two color codes in OX1s wire diagram.

    You need to see if you can thread a "tach" line in thru an existing part without crossover.

    Data cables use silver lined insulated core. You may be able to "dual use" an existing wire with a new kind.

  8. #33

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    My hope is that once I get it all apart, I may be able to utilize this unused wire for the tach signal. I guess we’ll see....
    Last edited by Bsdoig; 10-06-2019 at 07:03 PM.

  9. #34

  10. #35

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bsdoig View Post
    Awesome info! I believe that I understand the pinout differences. I also know my year LTD does not have the tach harness wire. You mentioned you ran a wire directly from you MSD to the tach pinout on the connector. How did you install this wire into the harness connector and gauge cluster? I'm assuming it was just a blank hole in the harness connector, which needs a special connector terminal? Maybe I'm overthinking it?
    When I wired the tach into my Thunderbirds harness I didn't bother to run it through the Tbirds factory plug connector. I just attached the signal wire off my MSD box directly to the back of the tachometer itself using a crimp on loop connector of the correct size. If I remember correctly there are 2 nuts that secure the tach into the plastic cluster. Im now remembering that I took a full cluster out of an Ltd Lx because my Thunderbird was originally a digital display cluster and slightly different in design. Anyway...Under each of these nuts that holds the tach in place there is a portion of the mylar circuitry. Under each nut is a copper contact portion. One is negative and the other is positive. I just followed each and could clearly see where the ground side all came together. The other one was therefore the hot/tach signal side. I can't remember which one it is but it wont take more than a minute to follow the imbeded copper to determine which is negative. I just added the crimp on loop between the mylar circuitry and the sheet metal fabricated nut and was good to go. Its definitely easier than you think.

    Just be careful not to run any 12v source to the circuitry mylar that shouldn't be there. When I stupidly did that 15+ years ago I melted a portion of my mylar circuitry that controls the fuel gauge. That's another story but just be careful about doing anything like that. I had to get an electrician friend to cut a portion from the mylar circuitry and solder in jumper wires and a new ground and another( resistor i believe) to get my fuel gauge working again. Just a side note so nobody does what I did.

  11. #36

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    l’m sure l’m making this way more complicated than it needs no be, but a really don’t want to french fry this cluster.

    Does this above picture look correct? For the tach I’ll just need to unscrew the nut and add a ring terminal from my signal wire? No need to mess with the +12 or GRD assuming the connector pinout is correct?

    Im not comfortable messing with electrical stuff if everyone hasn’t noticed lol. Thanks for the help guys.
    Last edited by Bsdoig; 10-07-2019 at 07:50 PM.

  12. #37

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bsdoig View Post
    Name:  F327CD85-ACFE-42CC-A691-07D243CAE40D.jpeg
Views: 92
Size:  102.5 KB

    l’m sure l’m making this way more complicated than it needs no be, but a really don’t want to french fry this cluster.

    Does this above picture look correct? For the tach I’ll just need to unscrew the nut and add a ring terminal from my signal wire? No need to mess with the +12 or GRD assuming the connector pinout is correct?

    Im not comfortable messing with electrical stuff if everyone hasn’t noticed lol. Thanks for the help guys.
    To the best of my recollection that's all I had to do. I just attached a looped wire connector under the tach terminal nut and nothing else was necessary. Or add a connector pin to the harness in the position where you maked it in blue... either way it will allow the coils signal to reach the tachometer.
    Last edited by BBCFORD; 10-09-2019 at 10:06 AM.

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