1996 Club Wagon XLT: Electrical: Where to tap for tach "pulse" signal

If the engine has an ignition coil look for the 'tach' terminal....green wire from coil to module.

Dave S(Texas)

You may have to figure out some way to tap the coil for this signal. The factory tachs on EEC-IV & V systems with I am familiar have the tach sensed from the PCM. The pin seems to vary from one application to another. IIRC, there is a tach feed to the instrument cluster even if there is no tach. You will need a wiring diagram for the specific vehicle to determine which it is. You may be able to see a diagram at the Autozone site although I believe that is an Alldata subscription service.

Maybe someone will have a more complete answer.

Merry Christmas and Good luck

Lugnut

Here is a novel idea, get an induction pickup volt meter, set it to RPM's and hook it around the #1 plug wire??? Since the vehicle is OBDII then you can hook up a scan tool and get that info there as well.. Any other questions?? Unless you want me to tell you what wire on the cluster is for the tach, and you can pull the cluster to read your idle speed...

Ford Tech

On Sun, 07 Jan 2007 06:30:53 -0600, Ford Tech rearranged some electrons to form:

I think you should read the OPs' question again. He's not trying to troubleshoot his vehicle.

Sorry I am at 21hrs on my clock and counting.. So forgive me if I misread something.. While looking over the schematic some more of the 5.0L engine, I dont see a tach signal to the instrument cluster at all. I have gone over schematics for engine controls, ignition system, and any other system that might possibly be used as a tach reading.

Ford Tech

On Sun, 07 Jan 2007 08:32:37 -0600, Ford Tech rearranged some electrons to form:

Well, obviously there is one, since many vehicles with a 5.0 come with a tach.

Most aftermarket (and some OEM) tachs just count the pulses from the ignition coil primary.

From Autometer web site: "Tachometer Signal Wire Installation for 5.0L engine(s): Tan wire with a yellow stripe at ignition module."

The OBD-II idea is useless, since the OP is looking for a tachometer pulse train, not a data stream.

While that is all well and good for a tach. That wire will put off a signal during crank as well as idle and any other time. The problem is that the auto start might interpret the signal during crank as the engine running. See what I mean? I dont know, I dont know the start system he is talking about, and it might have enough logic in it, that it will ignore the signal below a certain number of pulses/min.

Ford Tech

That would be a crappy system then. A half way decent remote start will have a learn function for the tach signal at idle.

The OP merely needs to run a wire to the/an ignition coil. Matters not whether it's a lone coil, DIS or COP, all the remote start needs is a signal from coil negative.