Sensor on front/top of T-5. What is it?

Jason 302

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#1

• Jun 16, 2004

• #1

On the top of my T-5 that I just pulled out last weekend there is a sensor or something. I took it off so I could get the top cover off and look at the condition of the gears. Well, apparently, underneath that sensor was a small pin and I've seemed to of lost it (of course). I need to know what that sensor is for and how important it is. I've seen pics of the 3550 and TKO have the same sensor except it's located on the left side of the tailshaft.Thanks.

 

cjman15

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#2

• Jun 16, 2004

• #2

probably the neutral safety switch sensor... not sure, but thats one of them

 

88stangmangt

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#3

• Jun 16, 2004

• #3

i believe that is the sensor that tells if the car is in neutral but im not 100% i know there has been a thread about this a while ago and almost everyone has em disconected.

 

Jason 302

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#4

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thanks for the quick responses guys. Why would the car need if a stick shift car is in neutral or not? what changes does it make? Doesn't make sense to me. so your saying it will be fine without the little pin in there?

 

Jason 302

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#5

• Jun 16, 2004

• #5

Jason 302 said:

thanks for the quick responses guys. Why would the car need to know if a stick shift car is in neutral or not? what changes does it make? Doesn't make sense to me. so your saying it will be fine without the little pin in there?

Click to expand...

 

88stangmangt

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#6

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it has something to do with the clutch and starting im not to sure but yes most people have em disconnected.

 

dastang2

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#7

• Jun 16, 2004

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since mine is carbed now and i have a different ignition, i did not bother to wire in that switch or the backup lights but i will soon. the safety switch is so that if the car it in gear, it won't lunge forward or backward while the started is engaged. i am not going to hook that one up.

 

Michael Yount

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#8

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Mine is not hooked up on my conversion; however, I can't run a key on-engine on dianostic test, and the folks at Ford Racing tell me it's because the neutral safety switch isn't connected to the ecu. So not hooking it back up or having it function correctly may cause other issues. Where did the pin go - into the tranny? Uh-oh....

 

cjman15

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#9

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it's just so tha computer knows you aren't starting tha car in gear... which would stall and wouldn't start

 

Mustang5L5

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#10

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It's for the cruise control. If the shifter pops out of gear while the CC is on, this switch will kill the cruise control so it doesn't rev the engine up trying to speed the car up.

That's the only real thing it does i beleive

 

HISSIN50

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#11

• Jun 17, 2004

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im with Mike on this one. the clutch safety switch is on the clutch pedal and ensures you have the clutch depressed when starting; the car could care less if the car is in gear or not while starting. it has nothing to do with anything on the trans. as i recall, there is a switch for the cruise on the clutch pedal as well, but since you can pop it out of gear w/o depressing the clutch pedal........
ergo (that paragraph is a mess): neutral switch does not involve starting. clutch safety switch does.

neutral safety switches on some slushboxes are different....but not the case with a T5.

Michael, that is kinda funky. i know i have run the test with it in gear or out of gear (whatever you are not supposed to have it be), and it just tossed a code for it. strange.
you are the brilliant Michael Yount, you dont need no stinkin' codes.

 

Michael Yount

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#12

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Hissin' -- how did you run the key on/ENGINE ON test with it in gear? Who ran along beside the car to record the codes?

I've posted several times asking what the pigtail that comes from the top of the T-5 is (mine's not connected); no one seems to know. Most cruise control modules sample the tach on the engine - they have circuitry which looks at how fast the revs are climbing. If you slip it into neutral while the cruise is on, and the revs shoot up, it's that circuitry that kills the cruise; I know that's how mine on the Volvo works. I don't know for sure if that's how the Stang cruise works, but I'd bet it does - largely because manufacturer's know how to save money. And I doubt they'd put a switch/wiring harness into every tranny just for cruise, when MANY vehicles the tranny was used in didn't come with cruise. But, that's all speculation on my part. Of course, I'd imagine, like most cruises, they sample the brake light circuit and the clutch in circuit so that if you press either of those pedals while the cruise is engaged, it disengages. But, as was pointed out above, the shifter can be nudged out of gear without depressing the clutch, so that has to be covered. If someone has a wiring diagram, I'd bet that the same wire that sends a signal to the tach, also goes to the cruise control module.

 

tmoss

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#13

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The EEC looks for that contact to be closed with the trans in nuetral to send codes - that's why you don't get em Mike. Without the actuator rod, the switch will not close - gotta have both. If you ever intend to pull codes you gotta use the switch and actuator rod. To see how this curcuit works, go to www.veryuseful.com/mustang/tech/engine and look at the 88-91 EEC pinout diagram.

 

Michael Yount

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#14

• Jun 17, 2004

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So it is a neutral indicator switch -- think I'll just run a circuit from the computer up under dash and put it on a toggle. I can simply flip the switch when I want to do a KOEO diagnostic.

 

tmoss

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#15

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I think it's closed in neutral Mike but you better check.

 

HISSIN50

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#16

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Michael Yount said:

Hissin' -- how did you run the key on/ENGINE ON test with it in gear? Who ran along beside the car to record the codes?

Click to expand...

actually the car was up on jack stands while i ran the test.
seriously, i missed that you were running KOER - i just saw "key on" when i read it (i only get about every 5th word when i read. LOL).
my bad.
i just know that i leave my car in gear when it is off, and i often dont pop it into neutral to run tests, and i get the code. that is what i thought you meant....i had no idea that the thing would not spit codes w/o it knowing it was it neutral. that is funky.

 

Michael Yount

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#17

• Jun 17, 2004

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Yup - jack stands would do it...

Thanks Tom - that was my assuption too; I'll investigate further before I hook it up.

 

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blk92stangg

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#18

• Jun 17, 2004

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Just on an aside, people who did the aod to T5 swap and retained the original computer need not worry about that switch, since the existing harness on the aod cars don't have a provision for that anyway.

 

Michael Yount

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#19

• Jun 18, 2004

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blk92 - are you able to run both KOEO and KOER dianostic tests?

 

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blk92stangg

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#20

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mike-

I haven't tried to pull codes since I got the car, so I don't know. I did a lot of research before the T5 conversion, especially on the decision to go with a T5 ECU or not. The consensus seemed to be that as long as the aod parking indicator switch is jumpered, then retaining the AOD computer would not affect code pulling. As a matter of fact, going to a T5 computer would involve running addition harness wires from the computer to the T5 neutral switch to facilitate diagnostics (or getting the whole T5 shebang). What puzzled me was that the T5 transmission harness I scounged up from Ebay had provisions for the reverse light switch, but the other 2 pins were jumpered (the aod parking switch used those 2 pins). I would be curious to know how that T5 switch in spliced into the T5 wiring harness.