'89 tripminder to '85 car installation

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found the topic about installation the tripminder with old harness to '89 car, but not find a topic about '89 tripminder to old car. is anybody did this procedure?
and can you write me step-by-step tripminder installation to '85 grand marquis?

[86VickyLX]

The tripminder itself is the same. The wiring harness is what's different.

Did you find the plug with the VSS and fuel flow wiring mang? If it's there, it should be under the dash to the left of the steering column. It's a gray rectangular connector with at least a green wire and a black wire. You might be lucky and it may have the blue with purple stripe for the fuel flow wiring. Verify you have that, and we'll continue to the next step.

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ok. thanks

[Tiggie]

I hardwired the thing. Easiest thing to do if you don't have the correct harness. You'll need some wire taps.

I installed an '89 trip in my '88. I cut the harness at the tripminder (so it was just the pigtail). I then tapped the wires from the original digital clock plug. All the colors matched but one - the dimmer (original clock brown wire needs to be connected to the light blue/red). This took care of all of the wires but two. Speed sensor (Dark Green/White) and fuel flow (light blue/purple), which you should be able to pick up at the connectors near the parking brake assembly.

I know when you use a CFI tripminder on an SEFI car, you need to add a ground loop from terminal 7 to 9. But I don't think it matters whether you have it or not using an SEFI tripminder harness on a CFI car. If your fuel flow is off, maybe we can reconsider.

Tripminder harnesses are more specific than I first thought. 1982 was unique (carb'd), as was the 1982 tripminder unit. 1983-1989 tripminder units are the same, but wiring is 1983-85,1986-87,1988, and 1989 specific. The 1983-1988 harness looks similar until you really look at them.

[86VickyLX]

The added ground wire is a revision. I think it also applies to CFI cars.

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last day i tried to find tripminder connectors in my car. first of all i found a gray connector with black and green/white wires. that wires comes from under the hood and i see than them are connected to tranny.


but there is one thing - this connector is not free, it is connected to silicon-covered male connector



the harness, where this male connector wired, comes to the cruise control (?) module with 6-pin connector





and there is no more connectors with green/white and black wires. as i think, the harness goes to tranny and there are correct wires or i made a mistake? but first of all i can't understand how to connect tripminder wires to this harness.

the next step was to find a fuel flow wire. i found only one free connector with light blue/purple wire. it's located under the cluster near the autolight sensor



is this wire really for fuel flow or not? any thoughts?

[86VickyLX]

Alright. You found the correct connector. The '89 has a one year weird tripminder harness. which also includes only one plug for the vss and fuel flow wiring. Here's what you need to do. You need to splice the tripminder wiring into the wiring that you found.

The fuel flow wire isn't under the dash in your car, since that pin isn't there on the gray connector. The one wire you're showing is the dimming wire for the tripminder it's blue with a red stripe not purple. It should plug into your harness as well I believe (older ones did). It has a brown connector, and you should have a brown connector on your harness.

Now for the fuel flow wire. Go under the hood, and check by the computer. There may be a lone wire with a black pigtail (I think) the wire should be the same color as the fuel flow wire on your tripminder harness. This is the fuel flow wire. Run it into the passenger compartment and connect it to your tripminder.

If there is no pigtail, remove the plug from the ecm with a 10mm socket and find pin number 35. Add a wire to pin 35. That's the pin for fuel flow. Run that new wire into the tripminder harness and you now should have a functional tripminder in your car.

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thank you. but i'm not sure how to connect the fuel flow wire if there is no FF-wire in my harness. where is the start of this wire should be?
and can anyone give me a photo of stock fuel flow wire with connector under the hood?

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If there is no pigtail, remove the plug from the ecm with a 10mm socket and find pin number 35. Add a wire to pin 35.

chiton's repair manual told abiut pin #34 for fuel flow

[86VickyLX]

chiton's repair manual told abiut pin #34 for fuel flow

Whoops. I'm glad you caught that. Pin 34. Sorry.


The wire should be (if it's there) behind the cruise control servo, that's on the drivers side fender close to the firewall. It's round and it has vacuum lines and electric plug on it. (you will have to move it out of the way (10mm nuts) to see the computer and harness. Behind that, is the computer. The harness is right there. There should be a one wire black pigtail connector that's by itself. It will be blue with purple stripe wire. That's the fuel flow wire. If there is no pigtail, you will have to add the wire to pin 34.

To do this, you will need an extra ecm pin with a wire attached to it. You will need to disassemble the harnes so you can access pin 34. (that includes removing cover on the bolt side, and removing the red thing on the other side. You will need to drill out the plastic that's in the way of the pin (in position 34). Then add your wire. After that, reassemble the harness, reattach it to the computer, put back everything you took apart and run the new wire to the wire in the tripminder harness.

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ok. thank you. i understand

[86VickyLX]

I tried to take pictures with my phone, but for some reason it doesn't want to send pictures today.

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it makes no sense to be in a hurry

[86VickyLX]

Yeah that's true. But I tend to forget to do stuff, unless I do it right away...

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it's bad, but i think i understood the wire location under the hood