2018 f150 power running boards - waterproofing the motor wire harness

[HighUintas]

I've got a 2018 f150 with power running boards. The driver side had been stuck/getting stuck the last couple of years.

Now I'm finally digging into troubleshooting it, I find that it is best to make sure the pivot points are kept clean and greased or coated with an anti rust.

I think the major problem is that it's got some corrosion and the sensor thinks something is caught in there preventing it from operating correctly all the time.

I cleaned it up well and used some penetrating oil yesterday. Got it working, but it moves sluggishly. I found some troubleshooting videos that showed the electrical connections could be dirty. So I disconnected the motor wire harness and sprayed it out with some contact cleaner. Well ... I don't know if I ended up getting it in the rubber harness seal or if it just got caught when I put it back together, but the rubber seal is destroyed. There's no replacing the seal... The whole plug/harness would need to be replaced but I don't think I'll be doing that, at least not right now.

Because this wire harness is exposed on the underside to road spray and splashes, it needs to be waterproofed. I was thinking I'd cover it in dielectric grease. However, I'm not 100% sure on the correct usage of it for this application. Some say it should not be put directly on the connections (between contacts) and should only be put on after the connection is made, because it is a nonconductive grease. If the connection and computer is really sensitive to voltage drop, it could cause more issues. Then the people in the other camp say it should be put all over the connections (in the harness on the pins) inside and out.

So I'm wondering if there's any Ford techs here that would be able to say if packing the power running boards motor wire harness with dielectric grease is going to cause issues or not. Pack the harness with grease then connect, or just connect and then coat with grease?

 

[MacGyver]

The first thing i would do is take high quality pictures of everything before you do anything else.

Remove one wire at a time and inspect for corrosion, clean everything with a S.S. Brush. Cover all the connection with deictic grease.

Check to make sure nothing has change for the worst, if it did find and fix the problem.

Good luck

 

[wyosteve]

I've always greased it and then made the connection and never problem. But that has not been on Ford running boards. Your described problem is exactly what's kept me from buying the electric boards. I go with the old fashioned bolt on side steps.

 

[HighUintas]

The first thing i would do is take high quality pictures of everything before you do anything else.

Remove one wire at a time and inspect for corrosion, clean everything with a S.S. Brush. Cover all the connection with deictic grease.

Check to make sure nothing has change for the worst, if it did find and fix the problem.

Good luck

Unfortunately I haven't seen wire brushes small enough to fit between the brackets to brush the rust off the pivot connections. I did think of that though and I'll keep looking for something I can use to better get the rust off. I'm not sure how much good it would do though because the pivot pin seems like it might be sealed. I'll keep working on it and hopefully won't have to completely tear them apart.

The wire harness is definitely clean. There's no corrosion in it or on the harness pins. I should have just left that part alone. The only damage that's done is there's no longer a rubber seal on the harness so I need to waterproof it.

I'll get a few pictures put up sometime soon

I've always greased it and then made the connection and never problem. But that has not been on Ford running boards. Your described problem is exactly what's kept me from buying the electric boards. I go with the old fashioned bolt on side steps.

Exactly. It is actually my wife's truck that she bought in 2019. I was sort of against this particular one because of all the bells and whistles. I hate bells and whistles. At the time, I didn't know the power PRBs could be so problematic.

 

[wyosteve]

My pig hunting buddy has the power boards on his Ram and has similar problems! Brainless engineers!!

 

[wapitibob]

Dielectric grease will work fine if you can keep it in place, which sounds like it will be an issue with water/mud spray.