Hello all,
I bought a ranger a few weeks ago and the truck is nice and clean but has some small electrical hiccups, so far here's what i know. the dome light/ map lights do not come on at all and ive never been able to get good voltage up at the light assy. (my dad and I ran our own circuit to the light for now so i have lights in the cab) Also the 4x4 selector doesn't light up at all on startup, along with the headlight selector not having any backlights as well. The dash dimmer switch does work with the instrument lights but will not turn on the dome light. Another weird thing is that the door chime will come on when you have the driver side door open but not the passenger. I understand these issues can be difficult to chase down and could be dealing with multiple issues, but, So far those are the only issues with the truck. I really need to focus on why the 4x4 isn't engaging with winter around the corner so any help/ suggestions would be great.

 

Welcome to the forum

Door chime should only sound with drivers door open and only if Keys are in ignition or head lights are on
There would be no reason for passenger door open chime

There is a "Door Ajar" light on the dash, it should come on when either door is open

Wiring diagram below for 1999 interior lights

There is an Interior Light relay in Relay Box 1, its above gas pedal area, has a cover and there are several relays in this box, it faces out toward Parking Brake pedal
Example of layout here: https://fuseandrelay.com/wp-content/.../Relay-box.jpg
But there are different layouts for different options

The most common failing for dome light issues was the door switch, it would stick closed so light would stay on all the time and people would pull fuses and relay to turn it off instead of fixing the switch, lol
So you may be chasing someone else's "FIX"

Does the Cargo light on the back of the cab come on when dimmer wheel is turned all the way up?

Does 4WD work?
4High and 4Low
If so then could just be burned out 4WD bulbs

 

thanks for your reply Ron, negative on the cargo lights. But the 4x4 switch seems completely dead I haven't tested with a multimeter but the switch doesn't light up and nothing happens when you turn the dial... no "thunk" or anything. I attached a picture of the relay box you explained and I find it odd one of the slots is unusable or has no terminals on the inside. I've poked around both fuse boxes, in and out, and don't see any suspects there either.


this is the relay setup next to my pedals. with 1 of the relay slots empty. there's nothing to plug into in the empty slot you can fit a relay in there but it falls right back out

 

I do have a diagram for that lay out, see below

It shows the relay pins/slots, and yes that one relay position is not used

In this relay box Ford is using Micro Relays, like this: http://www.gtsparkplugs.com/images/m...lay-wiring.jpg

Ford numbers pins differently
85 = 1
86 = 2
These are reversible, no polarity, these activate the relay, as long as one is 12v and the other a ground relay will close

30 = 3
87 = 5
These are the Load contacts, one is 12v and the other is connected to the device the relay powers, they are also reversible

4= 87A, usually not used, it would connect with 3(30) when relay is OFF

 

hello again,
winter is here and i've put off fixing my 4x4 for long enough i guess... but i left out some important info i believe that might help diagnose the problem. When you turn the key on my 99 ranger none of the 4x4 lights blink on the dash at all. I read somewhere that this points to the 4x4 shifting module? Or transfer case shifting module? seems like a pricey part so I was hoping for a second opinion. Also, the dash lights came on for a blink or two in traffic the other day when i was shifting out of third.

 

When you turn on the key most dash lights should come on for 2 seconds, its a BULB TEST, nothing more

In 1999
When you shift 4x4 position 4WD lights will flash IF the the shift motor is not turning
This could be a blown fuse in engine bay fuse box, fuse #3, 20amp
OR
Shift motor is not working
OR
Dual relay box is not working

Get under the vehicle and tap on the shift motor with a hammer
Try shifting again
It it works, shift motor needs to be rebuilt or replaced


1995 thru 2000 used the GEM Module as the 4x4 controller, these usually didn't fail, the 2001 and up are the ones that failed
Dual relay box is behind the GEM which is behind the radio, dual relay box was also reliable, can break just wasn't at all common

Shift motors often failed but from UNDER USE, not over use, they would sit unused for 11 months at a time, so brushes and contacts just get corroded
Best thing you can do is to sit in the drive way and shift from 2WD to 4high to 4low and then back to 2WD, once a month, don't have to drive it just shift it

Yes, if 4WD lights don't work, could be burnt out bulbs, or GEM
Pull out the radio
Unplug the 4 GEM connectors
Plug connectors back in, this cleans all the contacts
Try shifting

If still no shifting then break out the multi-meter you have some wires to test

The 4WD switch on the dash NEVER breaks, ever

 

back again,

so i took the GEM out yesterday and quickly checked it over for any sort of damage but the thing looks brand new so i reinstalled it. when i went to go fire up the truck again the 4x4 high and low dummy lights flashed on unlike before where i never knew they existed lol. When i actually turned the engine over the 4x4 high and low lights were flashing, never having seen this before i wanted to test the 4x4, so i drove to an empty lot and drove in circles for a bit. After about 5 mins of driving i turned the truck off and back on again and the 4x4 lights haven't been back since.

todays adventure was going after the transfer case motor. Even with no results coming from the hammer tap test (truck running, starting in 2wd, tapping few times pretty damn hard, then trying to shift) i figured since the thing was in pretty bad visible shape i'd replace the motor anyways. Me and my dad put that part on today and still no sound from the xcase or 4x4 lights on the dash. That's really as far as our testing went because it seems like we should get audible response from the xcase or a light on the dash.

we did however find a popped fuse in the #26 slot which i know was good when i checked in the past back when i was diagnosing the interior light, i know its related to the GEM don't know if it's related to the 4x4 lol.

also curious if it's possible that the 4x4 is working we just aren't seeing the lights on the dash respond for some reason? we haven't been testing with the tires off the ground.

just as added info there's no lights at the selector switch itself, i feel like the 2wd would at least illuminate?

... if i am breaking out the multimeter... which circuits would you suggest starting with? pretty new to automotive electric but i looked up a wiring diagram and i think i could get it done.

 

No 2WD light, only light on the switch is when dash lights are on, a back light

GEM is the 4WD controller, its connected to dash switch and then to the shift motor, it controls the 4WD, 1995 thru 2000

Flashing 4WD lights means GEM could not determine the position of the shift motor with key on

Shift motor has 7 wires
2 wires are for the electric motor, works like a power window motor, 1 wire is 12v and the other a ground and motor turns clockwise(window up), if you reverse the polarity on the wires then motor turns counter-clockwise(window down)

Other 5 wires are Position contacts
With key on the GEM looks to see which contacts are open and which are closed, that tells it if shift motor/transfer case is in 2WD, 4high or 4 low
Then it checks the dash switch position, 2wd, 4h or 4l
If they don't match then GEM will move the shift motor to Dash switches selection
If it can't move the shift motor, i.e. contacts are not changing when it sends 12v and ground to motor it will flash the 4WD lights on dash
OR
If GEM can't tell what position shift motor is in with key on it will flash the 4WD lights

As said check fuse in engine bay fuse box, it powers the shift motor