2013 Explorer PI wont start and interior lights go on & off when driving

[RBTECH]

Many problems have started at once. First the charging light came on and off but every time I checked it was charging at 14V so I replaced the battery. That helped for a week and the light started coming on and off again but the car worked fine. Now when I go to start the car nothing happens at all. No sounds... nothing. On the dash the car will run and fail every test. Low fuel, overheating, and a few others that are not actually bad. Then all of a sudden the car will start and run fine. Now while driving, all the lights that come on when you turn the headlights on will all go off and then come back on when driving. These are just the lights that are activated for night. Spedo, tach, door switches etc. The center menu on the dash does not go out nor does the menu in the center console. When the lights do come on it shows the dimming bar doing something. The headlights and fog lights do not go off only inside lights. When this happens, the sync also goes out so All those items must run from the same source. I plan on checking all the fuses and relays and making sure all the cables are not loose and nothing got missed when all the police lights were removed. Just wanted to see if anyone has experienced anything similar before i get started. Thanks

 

[KayGee]

Wiring sounds like a good place to start - check grounds and connections.

 

[peterk9]

Many problems have started at once. First the charging light came on and off but every time I checked it was charging at 14V so I replaced the battery. That helped for a week and the light started coming on and off again but the car worked fine. Now when I go to start the car nothing happens at all. No sounds... nothing. On the dash the car will run and fail every test. Low fuel, overheating, and a few others that are not actually bad. Then all of a sudden the car will start and run fine. Now while driving, all the lights that come on when you turn the headlights on will all go off and then come back on when driving. These are just the lights that are activated for night. Spedo, tach, door switches etc. The center menu on the dash does not go out nor does the menu in the center console. When the lights do come on it shows the dimming bar doing something. The headlights and fog lights do not go off only inside lights. When this happens, the sync also goes out so All those items must run from the same source. I plan on checking all the fuses and relays and making sure all the cables are not loose and nothing got missed when all the police lights were removed. Just wanted to see if anyone has experienced anything similar before i get started. Thanks

Welcome to the Forum.
One thing that will cause many issues like you described is a bad/weak battery. Several members have experienced similar 'weird' scenarios. I doubt it is a fuse. A fuse is either good or bad. Have you rechecked the new battery? Not sure what you mean by "dimming bar". Have you checked to see if any trouble codes have been stored?

Peter

 

[RBTECH]

No trouble codes stored and the dimming bar is what shows up when the lights come back on in the inside. It looks like some auto dimming feature. It comes up in the screen between the spedo and tach and literally says dimming above a slider bar. I have not rechecked the battery and was leaning toward pulling out the alternator and check it and wiring as a drop in power seems a likely place to start. Thanks
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