Vehicle Speed Sensor 96 Ford Escort Manual
Sep 17, 2017 - Hello, The speed sensor is located at the lower rear portion of the transaxle. 96 ford contour gl 2.0L engine 5 speed manual transmission. I need to replace the 5 speed manual transmission in my 94 ford escort. Have a lead on a 98 escort trans in a distant city but need to know before making the trip if.
It's really difficult from what I've read from other posts on this board. The speed sensor just slips into a hole on the top side of the transmission, but over the years, it gets rusted into place and there's next to nothing to grab onto to remove it.
But before you consider replacing the speed sensor, check 2 things: 1. In the engine fuse box, check that the 10A OBD-II fuse is good.
It powers the speedometer. Locate the small black box attached to the negative battery terminal and make sure that it's securely attached to the battery clamp and that there's no corrosion on the metal contact points. Use sandpaper or steel wool to clean the surfaces.
Make sure the black box isn't falling apart. The ground wires going to that black box provide the ground point for the speedometer and other instrument panel meters. Ditto to the above post, and Welcome to the forums.
Vehicle Speed Sensor 96 Ford Escort Manual
There is a connector on the top of the Vehicle Speed Sensor - and if it comes loose - your speedo wont work, and I think the car will stay in Low, because the computer wont know you are moving. So check that connector. I have worked on several Escorts, and on many of them, that connector had been damaged, with its retaining clips broken off. The connector itself can be bought I believe. Last summer I bought an Escort, a 94LX wagon, whose owner was selling it because she couldnt afford the price quoted to fix its 'stuck' vehicle speed sensor.
(On the 2nd gen Escort with the 5-speed transmission taking the VSS out is the only direct way to check the level of fluid in the transmission). I took the engine and transmission out, to be able to fight the VSS out. One other thing to check is the grounding clip at or around the negative battery terminal.
I'm just assuming it will be the same on a '98 as a '97. It gets bolted to the negative battery terminal in one way or another. I had a situation once where that wouldn't stay tight. The main symptom when it got loose?
1996 Ford Escort Manual
Loss of signal to speedo. It did it once on the highway (over a bump) at about 70 - and yeah, the transmission downshifted - hard. It was not cool.
I'm just mentioning it because it's a 5 second thing to jiggle it and see if it's loose. I would not say it rules out a wiring problem. While it could be a damaged or corroded wire, it could also easily be a bad vehicle speed sensor. The PCM are pretty reliable, but they have been known to give problems, if the heater core above them develops a leak. I dont know any good way to check a VSS, other than by replacing it with a new or know good one. I know those VSS's can be hard to remove.
Even when I didnt need to remove them on the Escorts I fixed up, I still made a point of getting them out, and filing away any corrosion before putting them back in, well slathered with anti-seize compound. But I did it when the transmission was out of the car - which made it 'easier' though not necessarily easy. Click to expand.I've got a 2002 Escort SE. Replacing the VSS was a true nightmare for me!!!!!!!! Our local Ford Dealer broke it off while trying to remove it, and it ended up costing me somewhere between $5oo, and $6oo to get it out and replace it. The Ford dealer didn't pay a penny, I paid the full amount.
When it quit, it stopped the speedometer from working, and also the gas gauge, if I remember correctly. A mechanic removed the transmission and then took it to a machine shop, which removed the damn VSS. Since the Ford Dealership didn't pay a penny toward the repair, I wouldn't ever again have anything to do with buying another Ford! And that's the truth!!!!!!!! I've got a 2002 Escort SE.
Replacing the VSS was a true nightmare for me!!!!!!!! Our local Ford Dealer broke it off while trying to remove it, and it ended up costing me somewhere between $5oo, and $6oo to get it out and replace it.
The Ford dealer didn't pay a penny, I paid the full amount. When it quit, it stopped the speedometer from working, and also the gas gauge, if I remember correctly. A mechanic removed the transmission and then took it to a machine shop, which removed the damn VSS. Since the Ford Dealership didn't pay a penny toward the repair, I wouldn't ever again have anything to do with buying another Ford! And that's the truth!!!!!!!!
Im wondering what brand of car does not have some horror stories associated with it? I agree with avoiding dealerships however.
Among the reasons I like Escorts is because they are fairly easy to work on (with some exceptions), and thanks to these forums a little searching will let someone know what the 'hard jobs' are. When someone gives up on their Escort, I can swoop in and buy it for the scrap price, and spend my leisure time fixing another one up. My next one would be my ninth Escort project; and I expect it will have a stuck VSS. I get them out when the transmission is sitting on my workbench. Click to expand.I just did mine on my '97 5-speed wagon.
Ford Speed Sensor Location
It took 3 days of spraying and wiggling. I have two sets of ramps, a newer plastic set that's longer and lower and an older metal set that's much higher with a much steeper angle. I parked the car on a slight incline in my yard and put the higher ramp on the drivers side and really got the drivers side up as high as I could. I chocked everything and then used jackstands as well. I took the battery and tray out to make room from the top to apply spray (and bash with a prybar and BFH), and then crawled underneath from the front and got curved jaw locking pliers and wiggled the VSS back and forth - for 3 days.
My friend suggested Freeze-Off spray on the third day when I was about to go insane out of frustration so I bought a can and sprayed it for 20 seconds straight per the instructions. I cannot tell you the elation when I heard 'poof' and it finally broke free. The new one was installed and the car put all back together within 30 minutes after that.