TKO

I was driving on the highway and enough is enough. Im tired of not having cruise control when my van is supposed to have it. The needle bounces around and around. Not alot unless over 70 or 80. I have the speedometer in tons of pieces as of now. I head the solder joints go bad. I am a 2 year electronics major and do not see any "bad" joints. Considering they were all machine made. There are 4 ports, if you will, that the speedometer dial plugs into on the board. I was going to resolder these. considering this is the only thing really controlling the dial for speed. Since i have it apart. Is there any way to change the colors around? lets say i want red for everything, can i change that somehow? or yellow? just wondering since i have it apart. all of the lights on the board look a standard clear bulb.

R.S.LOGAN

Checked the VSS(vehicle speed sensor) and wiring for speedo fault if this applies to your vehicle ?

TKO

I took off the old solder from the board for all 4 guages, gas, tach, speed, temp, and used my own solder. Today after class i drove it around,..... and i used cruise control. It works fine. The solder ford uses is cheap. But thats why they use it im sure.

R.S.LOGAN

Good you got it fixed , thanks for info / update .

TKO

Now it seems off yet again. It speeds up correctly, but after i slow down is when it bounces around. You said something about a VSS correct? 25$ from autozone. It is on top of the transmission am i right? what else is sending information to the speedometer that i can test/ replace?

R.S.LOGAN

On some cars it's simple to replace but yours is a bit more involved , This might help you and explains what how to go about it from someone who has done the job on similar vehicle ,

Locating Windstar VSS - Replacing Windstar VSS - Car Forums and Automotive Chat

P.s
Check the wiring .

TKO

Well.......................................................That looks absolutley horrible. I just did all 3 mounts on my van, that was a PITA. Even with a lift. If all of this work for a 25$ sensor that may not change this, then ill just drive without cruise control. Unless something serious will happen if i dont. What should i do?

jartsihart

That procedure is for old gear driven speedo....

READ THIS LINK ALSO

Urgent vss sensor not the same?? Windstar - Car Questions, Answers, and Discussion

I changed mine and it was 2 hour job .... Bolts are tricky but it is not
impossible... When i changed VSS it cleared my anti-lock brake
warning and transmission started to change better....