Have had intermittent problems with the steps since early 2009
Original post May 2009
Did all kinds of trouble shooting - eliminated everything that could cause the problem... except the operator!
June 2010 in the driveway, ready to head to Alaska, the steps would not retract!
, undeterred, I just removed the linkage pin, wired them up and took a step stool, and drove away!
That night, in Mesquite, NV, I un-wired them, replaced the pin and... everything worked!
For the next 10,000 miles and four months, they worked... at least 3 out of 4 times.
Fast forward, March, 2011, steps refused to work again. This time I removed the motor assembly from the steps and direct wired to battery... no joy! Started removing parts and testing every step of the way. Nothing worked until I got down to just the motor, and it worked! Lubed everything and started putting things back together, testing along the way, and it kept working! Great, just needed a good lube!
Wrong!
Everything worked... Until last week. Same thing all over again. Would work two out of three times! So, started researching the motor, gear assembly, narrowed down to a 1980 something to a 1990 something Ford Tarsus.
This morning I drove to Auto Zone (with motor in hand). The photo for the Taurus motor did not match! Parts guy said "we'll look at others, stick with Ford" and came up with AZ part number Part Number: 742-251, Alternate Part Number: WL43001, Dorman Window Lift. Listed for a '90 Ford F-150. $53.99.
Lots of Plastic on the new one, but it fits, and had to reengineer the wiring to match my controller but it is looking good so far!
This afternoon I attached the assembly to the step and controller, tested, and it worked, so I put the pin in the linkage and tested again. Everything worked.
One of the four carriage bolts holding the assembly to the step was broken, and no way to get in there to replace. Watching the working step, it looked like it really needed the forth bolt, so looking everything over, I figured I could cut a 1.25 inch hole in the fiberglass, under the rubber threshold to gain access. It worked, so I got all four bolts holding the gear assembly onto the step assembly.
Every thing is working now, but, I have said that before! Wish me luck!
Harold