# Wiring harness failures

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/wiring-harness-failures/13425>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Created:** [April 29, 2008, 7:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/wiring-harness-failures/13425 "2008-04-29T19:07:24Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![quadguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/8baadc/32.png) [@quadguy](https://community.cartalk.com/u/quadguy)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 7:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/wiring-harness-failures/13425/1 "2008-04-29T19:07:24Z")

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So has anybody heard about wiring harness failures in Lincoln Town Cars or other Ford products? They’re usually characterized by bizarre electrical malfunctions like radio failures, no lights in the trunk, funny stuff with door locks and starter failures and FIRES. Other than that, no problems.

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**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 7:48pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/wiring-harness-failures/13425/2 "2008-04-29T19:48:42Z")

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I have now. Tell us your story.

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**Author:** ![SteveF](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/stevef/32/2_2.png) [@SteveF](https://community.cartalk.com/u/SteveF)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 7:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/wiring-harness-failures/13425/3 "2008-04-29T19:55:43Z")

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Doubtful that any such problems are caused by “wiring harness failure.” Probably some flaky solid-state control module is the real culprit. And some equally flaky know-it-all is trying to blame the wiring harness.

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**Author:** ![Skipper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@Skipper](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Skipper)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 9:52pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/wiring-harness-failures/13425/4 "2008-04-29T21:52:13Z")

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Yes.

Ford has never been known to put any extra effort toward producing quality switches, wiring, or very many other things electrical. On every Ford I ever owned, after about 5 or 6 years I had to start playing with the wiring to make things work and it only got worse the older the vehicle got.

Things like the plug for the AC compressor, headlight switch, key switch, injector harnesses, whatever dingaling built a wiring harness into the valvecover gaskets on those 7.3 diesels, there was the cruise control switch that got recalled and a lot of people drove around with their cruise unhooked for the better part of a year waiting on a switch replacement.

Nothing would surprise me from Ford, and if it’s over 12,000 miles old, it’s your problem not theirs.

Skip

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**Author:** ![Beadsandbeads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c57346/32.png) [@Beadsandbeads](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Beadsandbeads)\
**Post date:** [April 30, 2008, 2:46am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/wiring-harness-failures/13425/5 "2008-04-30T02:46:38Z")

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Ask at [www.crownvic.net](http://www.crownvic.net)

I would say no more or less than other brands based on what I have seen on the boards. There is that cruise control issue that Skipper mentioned. That was/is a HUGE recall.