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Center Console for Ford Explorer Police Interceptor

Hey guys went through the 8 pages. You guys are awesome with the help. I will be posting more information as I work on my 2016 PIU. Installed a center console off a 16 xlt. Looks amazing. Just looking for help to figure out how to wire the rear hvac. The vehicle has functioning rear hvac located in the front dash. I also got a aux cable from fordpimods and plan on wiring that up with pics if anyone interested. I would appreciate help with the rear hvac wiring. Thank you
 



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I think the rear AC compressor is in one of the panels in the rear.
 






I appreciate the response not the actual compressor. I installed a center console into my PIU and I wanted to wire the rear hcav control for the second row. It's located on the front center console and the center console that I installed off a 16 exlt. I just can't figure out how to wire the rear to work. The rear hvac works perfectly fine with the front dash center console.
 






You will need pins because it gets wired direct to the HVAC module behind the radio. I did my 15 piu also will have to make changes with forscan to allow adjustments to be made from the console
 






Do u have any direction which pins get attached to which wire?
 






I'm not sure if the 16 is the same connectors and wire colors, I can look at the diagram book when I get home for the 11-15 give you a better idea
 






Hello '16PIU, I'm in admin and basically drive back and forth to the office so I don't have a computer mount. Siren / light switches and radio / repeater are all hidden so I really didn't need the free space the column shifter affords you between the seats. (And I'm a professional coffee drinker and I haven't found an aftermarket police console yet whose cup holders will beat OEM!)

I ordered it with the interior upgrade package so the factory console is there, just with a different top plate. I miss the column shifter arc of the Crown Vic's, so natural. The PIU feels good, kind of rolls towards you. I remember we tried some Charger Pursuits when they came out in 2006 and the shifter was a joke, awkward as hell. Today's "Caprice" is even worse but that car is a different story for another day!

Unixadm, the conversion was easier than expected. The big plus is that the retail and the PIU use the same shifter cable. To go from colum to floor, you'll have to adjust the linkage out on the tranny just a bit to lengthen it (there is plenty of adjustment available in the cable). The biggest pain was wiring up the brake interlock, park detect and key removal inhibitor from the column down to the floor shifter. I broke down and bought an OEM wiring manual on eBay for $30, money well spent! I took the "low gear" button on the end of the column and put it on a small, momentary push button on the steering column. I also replaced the steering column cover so to do away with the huge rubber boot from the column shifter. Believe it or not, that whole cover was $7 from Ford.

Possibly the best part, the floor shifter allows the tranny to physically go into "sport" mode. Now just got to pull my airbag and see if the wiring for the paddle shift steering wheel is there. Will have to check a few other leads as well, but it may be possible.

Do you have the factory console already? If so, you're in pretty good shape.

I plan on doing a write up very soon.
Have you had any success on the conversion yet? and if so, could you share you findings. thanks
 


















This thread was helpful and helped me understand the "Fake admin packages" I've seen in my search for a PU. I literally was trying to justify the price of a few based off the console.
 






Welcome to the Forum Adam.:wave:

Peter
 






This thread was helpful and helped me understand the "Fake admin packages" I've seen in my search for a PU. I literally was trying to justify the price of a few based off the console.
Not sure I follow. Are you trying to buy a used piu? Prices for a vehicle with a center console are going to be higher than without, same for carpet, cloth rear seats, and other features. Center console is an alacarte option and not part of a "package". There are several resellers that put in almost any console they can find, retail or otherwise, just to broaden the market for their vehicles. It's no fun driving a piu without a center console.
 






Not sure I follow. Are you trying to buy a used piu? Prices for a vehicle with a center console are going to be higher than without, same for carpet, cloth rear seats, and other features. Center console is an alacarte option and not part of a "package". There are several resellers that put in almost any console they can find, retail or otherwise, just to broaden the market for their vehicles. It's no fun driving a piu without a center console.

Yes that what I was doing and started noticing a random trend of mismatched color consoles with rear hvac controls with no front rear hvac controls in sight.
 






Hey everyone. Does anyone have a OEM center console with plate they're looking to get rid of? I decided that I'm not going to convert to the floor shifter and that the OEM console will be perfect. Let me know! I saw a new one on Ebay for $300 + shipping. Is that a good deal?
 






Hey everyone. Does anyone have a OEM center console with plate they're looking to get rid of? I decided that I'm not going to convert to the floor shifter and that the OEM console will be perfect. Let me know! I saw a new one on Ebay for $300 + shipping. Is that a good deal?
Are you sure? There haven't been any complete PIU consoles on ebay in a while. There are a lot of retail consoles for $300-400 - some are being advertised as PIU consoles, but they obviously are not as they have the shifter or the shifter cutout.

I am aware of a few PIU console parts and complete consoles available, but they are not on eBay.
 






A rookie's guide to center consoles for the Police Interceptor Utility by Ruben in Phoenix

So you just purchased a PIU (get used to that acronym)? Chances are that it didn't come with a center console and you figured "Hey, that should be an easy fix!" Well according to 9 pages on this forum it isn't as easy as you thought. After much web surfing and research (more web surfing) I have come up with the 4 best solutions, please let me know if you did something better or outside the box.

1. Get the OEM console either through sheer luck at a junkyard or through someone on the forum. Car-part.com should be something you check regularly. These are extremely hard to find and pricey when you do find them, they are essentially a regular Explorer console with a different top piece. There are some pictures on page 6 of this forum of what an actual OEM console looks like. $500-$100
2. Get a console from a regular Explorer and either change to a floor shifter from the column shifter. This looks to be the most common but may seem a little daunting to a rookie. If you want to find out more about this, there are several great threads in this forum on how to do it. After much consideration I decided that I wanted to stick with the column shifter, which leads me to option three. $150-250 depending on the condition and your level of skill
3. Get a console from a regular Explorer and modify the floor shifter hole. Some people have 3D printed an insert for it (don't ask for the file I think they guy that had it quit the forum), others have made it out of sheet metal and others have zip tied the bottom and used it as a cell phone pouch. My current idea (which I have had about 300 so far) is to keep the leather boot and have an iPad mount coming out of it. Allowing me to integrate my iPad with the sound system and use it for navigation. $150-250 depending on the condition and your level of skill
4. Another option is to order the one from Nenno Products on Ebay. They have two options, with the mounting plate and one without it. The one with the plate is $340 shipped and you will need an accessory plate to cover the hole under the radio (another $90). It looks nice but leaves a gap at the front. Idea number 299 was to get this one and mount my iPad in the gap.

Hope this helps someone out there!
 


















pdxgeek - yeah that's what I did too. Some large washers to help distribute the load, and four self tapping screws, voila'. Far easier/simpler than any of the other jimcrackery I've read about.
 



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Or, I don't know. You could buy and add the correct console from any number of retailers instead of half ass-ing it.
 






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