4x4 Rodent Harness Repair

[Humper]

I posted a few days ago about a 4x4 problem that occurred on my OB and that it was now fixed, but didn't go into any detail of how I fixed it, apologies I didn't take any pics but hopefully this might help someone in the future.

A rodent got into the wiring and chewed through a few wires on the PTU harness, I took it to Ford and they were going to charge me nearly $1000 to fix it.

I found the harness on ebay for $32. The part number is LX6T13A840 xxx, there seems to be quite a few with this part number but the last 3 letter's are different, from what I can tell it's the same cable but the last 3 letters change depending on the year, the cable I got was from a 22 which fit exactly on my 24.

Repair:
Jack up both sides for easier access.
Remove bottom engine cover.
At the back of the engine cover there is another thin sheet steel metal cover, remove it.
Craw under and you should be able to see the PTU wire harness, there are 3 wires on the PTU.
The bottom wire I believe is the temp sensor, the next one above this is the shift sensor, the one above that goes to the shift motor, the bottom 2 sensors are easy to see and reach, the top wire is done by feel, it's a bit cramped but doable.
Once the sensors and motor wires are unclipped follow the harness and undo the harness retaining clips you can get to.
Remove a couple of screws on the underbody cover on the passenger side, the screws are located around where you removed the sheet steel cover, pull the underbody cover down and you will see where the pigtail harness plugs into the main harness, unclip the rest of the plastic harness clips and remove the pigtail harness from the main body harness, you should now be able to pull the harness through from the passenger side.
Install in reverse.

This took me around an hour laying on the garage floor, how Ford was going to charge pretty close to a thousand dollars for this repair is insane..

Hope this helps.

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[Mwittke5857]

I posted a few days ago about a 4x4 problem that occurred on my OB and that it was now fixed, but didn't go into any detail of how I fixed it, apologies I didn't take any pics but hopefully this might help someone in the future.

A rodent got into the wiring and chewed through a few wires on the PTU harness, I took it to Ford and they were going to charge me nearly $1000 to fix it.

I found the harness on ebay for $32. The part number is LX6T13A840 xxx, there seems to be quite a few with this part number but the last 3 letter's are different, from what I can tell it's the same cable but the last 3 letters change depending on the year, the cable I got was from a 22 which fit exactly on my 24.

Repair:
Jack up both sides for easier access.
Remove bottom engine cover.
At the back of the engine cover there is another thin sheet steel metal cover, remove it.
Craw under and you should be able to see the PTU wire harness, there are 3 wires on the PTU.
The bottom wire I believe is the temp sensor, the next one above this is the shift sensor, the one above that goes to the shift motor, the bottom 2 sensors are easy to see and reach, the top wire is done by feel, it's a bit cramped but doable.
Once the sensors and motor wires are unclipped follow the harness and undo the harness retaining clips you can get to.
Remove a couple of screws on the underbody cover on the passenger side, the screws are located around where you removed the sheet steel cover, pull the underbody cover down and you will see where the pigtail harness plugs into the main harness, unclip the rest of the plastic harness clips and remove the pigtail harness from the main body harness, you should now be able to pull the harness through from the passenger side.
Install in reverse.

This took me around an hour laying on the garage floor, how Ford was going to charge pretty close to a thousand dollars for this repair is insane..

Hope this helps.

Had a similar experience a few winters ago with my 16 Focus. For whatever reason, Ford decided to have 2 motors for the windshield wiper assy. The pass side stopped working, it was January and in the neg temps. The dealer quoted me (best I can recall) $275. I get a call a couple of hours later letting me know a chipmunk decided to make a home there. He/she ate a lot of the wiring and unfortunately for him/her, the line feeding the rear washer. A day or two longer, I'm sure I would have smelled what had occurred. It was $950 and change when all was said and done

 

[NMhunter]

I adopted (feed) a feral cat to help control rodents. Working well, except the cat has gotten so friendly, it wants to be a house cat. Ain't gonna happen.

 

[davidg4781]

/snip\

This took me around an hour laying on the garage floor, how Ford was going to charge pretty close to a thousand dollars for this repair is insane..

Hope this helps.

I've learned dealerships don't always go by book hours. It could be fore them two hours (about $400) then the part new from Ford could be several hundred. But yeah, what you did is a great way to save some cash.

 

[Humper]

I've learned dealerships don't always go by book hours. It could be fore them two hours (about $400) then the part new from Ford could be several hundred. But yeah, what you did is a great way to save some cash.

Have since found the part it’s around $115 from Ford, I’m sure for dealers it’s cheaper than that, I stand by nearly $1000 for that repair is insane, I mean it’s a short harness with 4 plugs.

 

[davidg4781]

Have since found the part it’s around $115 from Ford, I’m sure for dealers it’s cheaper than that, I stand by nearly $1000 for that repair is insane, I mean it’s a short harness with 4 plugs.

Yeah that is a ridiculous amount then. That's the main reason people stay away from dealerships.

 

[RSH]

In some instances repair shops can and will quote much higher pricing than what you may think something should cost, that is because they actually don't want the job and want you to go away.
This is especially true for electrical problems that are caused by people that attempted their own repairs or in this case rodent damage.
Botton line, they do not want to be held liable if something goes wrong because something was missed.

 

[bronco68halfcab]

Growing up in the Metro Detroit area, I never saw rodent wiring issues. But what I did see most winters was frozen cats on the engine issues. They were crawling up on the warm engine and the freezing when it would cool down. Not being a cat fan it never bothered me. Never saw a dog crawl up under a hood, so I was good. But I don't think a Shepard would fit under a hood.

 

[Bill G]

Growing up in the Metro Detroit area, I never saw rodent wiring issues. But what I did see most winters was frozen cats on the engine issues. They were crawling up on the warm engine and the freezing when it would cool down. Not being a cat fan it never bothered me. Never saw a dog crawl up under a hood, so I was good. But I don't think a Shepard would fit under a hood.

Yup, had that in, of all places, SoCal. Cat under hood of, of all things, a Rambler . . . don’t ask

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