New Owner

[Scrogginaut]

Hi!

I have an '89 b190(They're all econoline 350 right?). I wanted to get some basics questions out of the way and then go into some trouble shooting I'm dealing with. If that's okay?

I'm 23. Illinois. I am not mechanically inclined at f***ing all. But I'm passionate and interested so here we are. I got the van in December of '23.

Ran fine until the day before my first trip. While trying to troubleshoot we jumped the cab battery and a fire started going from the positive terminal of the cab battery to the starter(I think? Idk where these wires go. If someone knows that'd be great)

This is the wire that burned up. I'm not sure where it goes or how exactly to read that tag(that was on the wire harness).

My grandfather has been helping me a lot. With his help we jumped it from the starter while shorting the starter solenoid and it tried to turn over but she didn't fire. While doing that we got a burning smell and smoke in the cab. So right now we have the dash pulled apart trying to figure out where the short is.


What tools/process do I follow for 'replacing the electric' I see people on youtube or online say this. I have a general idea of what they mean. What tools should I buy? A creeper. Jacks. Cheap harbor freight toolset. Multimeter.

How do I read that tag? Where does that wire go? Where do I find more information on the electrical side of things?(I want to add solar). es separated, and tapping them on the positive terminal: Yellow; nothing Red; Little spark Black/Orange; Big Spark

[skater]

First, welcome to the site.

They were all Econoline 350s, except for the two or so that were built on a Dodge chassis by special request.

The numbers on the tag are Ford parts numbers, likely for the wiring harness.

I have no idea what "replacing the electric" means, so I can't help you there.

You need the wiring diagrams. Go here and grab the manuals for your van (E-350, whichever engine - likely the 460). But you kind of have to know what you're looking at, and I'm not sure where you are in the van with that picture. The EEC Test makes me think you're in the engine bay, on the passenger side, where there's usually an EEC-IV test port (precursor to today's OBD-II ports that are under the dashboard in modern vehicles). Don't get too excited, getting trouble codes from the EEC-IV port hasn't proven all that useful in my experience.

For solar: Get it running correctly first. Since it was running recently it's likely a fairly straightforward issue.

Then, note that there are two (mostly separated) 12 volt systems in the van. The engine 12 volt system just like any vehicle, which runs the headlights, radio, fan, etc. Then there's a second coach 12 volt system that runs the lights, overhead ceiling fan, etc. - basically all the stuff that isn't in a regular vehicle. There's also a 120 volt coach system that runs the air conditioner, microwave, fridge, and a converter that charges your coach 12 volt system and battery. A solar setup would connect to the coach 12 volt system, not the engine 12 volt system - it's almost two separate things. (I keep saying almost because most vans have a relay that will charge the coach system while the engine is running, but that is the only connection.)