Door-ajar sensor problems...help!!!

[Bill Younger]

I have that door-ajar-sensor-alarm-goes-wacko problem with my 2002 Explorer. I've taken out, cleaned and lubed the driver and front passenger side door sensors and it worked for a year.
Now everything is wacked again - and the neighbors are getting woken up at night.
I've read about checking the driver's side wire harness for shorts - and thought "cool - no prob". However - opening up the panel I find wires tightly bundled in tape or flexible conduit - all behind the metal door frame. I don't know how to inspect inaccessible wires - and am reluctant to unwrap them behind the frame w/o a means to re-wrap them...
I'd like to at least disable the door alarm so I stop annoying neighbors and running my battery down.
In short: HELP!
Thanks for anything you can offer!!!

 

[1Aauto]

You may want to try taking the fuse out.

 

[Bill Younger]

Thanks Tony. That was my first quest. I scanned the owner's manual for the fuse - but couldn't find anything described as door-ajar-alarm - or close enough to that that I could feel confident about it. Any idea which fuse does this?

 

[1Aauto]

Thanks Tony. That was my first quest. I scanned the owner's manual for the fuse - but couldn't find anything described as door-ajar-alarm - or close enough to that that I could feel confident about it. Any idea which fuse does this?

The fuse box or cover to it should have a diagram on it as to which fuse belongs to what circuit.

 

[BigRondo]

I have that door-ajar-sensor-alarm-goes-wacko problem with my 2002 Explorer. I've taken out, cleaned and lubed the driver and front passenger side door sensors and it worked for a year.
Now everything is wacked again - and the neighbors are getting woken up at night.
I've read about checking the driver's side wire harness for shorts - and thought "cool - no prob". However - opening up the panel I find wires tightly bundled in tape or flexible conduit - all behind the metal door frame. I don't know how to inspect inaccessible wires - and am reluctant to unwrap them behind the frame w/o a means to re-wrap them...
I'd like to at least disable the door alarm so I stop annoying neighbors and running my battery down.
In short: HELP!
Thanks for anything you can offer!!!

Welcome aboard Bill!!


I had similar electrical issues with my '02 XLT. The dome lights would stay on until the battery saver feature turned them off, the accessory delay wasn't working, the driver side puddle light didn't work, the keypad on the door would set off the alarm when I pressed it, the door ajar light would flash and beep at highway speeds, the radio would shut off as soon as I turned the key off, the delayed accessories didn't work, etc. The alarm would beep twice when I armed it. Recently all 4 windows stopped working. Most recently the driver door lock actuator stopped working.

A lot of electrical issues can be traced back to broken/damaged wire(s) in the boot between the body and the driver's door. I found 3 broken wires and repaired them. The thin black ground wire was broken and after repairing it all was back to normal. When the windows stopped working, I repaired the thick black ground wire and the windows now work like a champ. I had to repair the pink/black wire to fix the driver door lock actuator.

Here is the thread for removing the door panel: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums//showthread.php?t=303524

Here is a great thread for checking for broken/damaged wires, thanks to synyster for this awesome write-up: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums//showthread.php?t=270081

Be sure to take your time when looking for broken/damaged wire(s). Check all the wires for breaks/damage. When you think you're done looking, look again, and again, and again. A bright flashlight can be very helpful.

Could also be related to the door ajar switch.

Here is a great thread for checking/replacing the door ajar switch, thanks to borland for the awesome write-up: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=249253

That is a great write up.

On a side note, before going through a complete replacement of the switch, you can spray WD40 into the door latch opening on each door, as these become stuck sometimes....and this can alleviate the issue.

This worked for me, after going for more than a year of the "door ajar" light coming on occasionally...mainly after a car wash, high humidity, or rain....making me unable to lock/arm the vehicle from the door keypad and keeping the dome lights on. Worth a try....it worked for me

What other symptoms are you having? Providing more symptoms may help to pinpoint what wire might be broken/damaged.

When I was having the following symptoms, it turned out to be the thinner black wire that was broken:

The dome lights would stay on until the battery saver feature turned them off, the accessory delay wasn't working, the driver side puddle light didn't work, the keypad on the door would set off the alarm when I pressed it, the door ajar light would flash and beep at highway speeds, the radio would shut off as soon as I turned the key off, the alarm would beep twice when I armed it.

The fuse info is contained in the owner's manual. If you don't have an owner's manual, Dead Link Removed.

Here is the info from my owner's manual:

There is 1 fuse related to the PATS (Passive Anti Theft System) in the fuse panel located in the passenger compartment. #14 is a 5A labeled PATS Module:

Dead Link Removed
Dead Link Removed

Sorry for the long winded post. I hope I haven't confused you or overloaded you with info.

Good luck getting it sorted.

Please keep us posted as feedback helps others reading this post looking for a fix to the same or similar issue!

 

[Bill Younger]

Thanks for all the good info - especially the PATS fuse (I never would have guess that PATS was the alarm....)
I ordered all 6 door ajar sensors for the Explorer from silverstatefordparts.com. I think the rear hatch is going funky - so might as well replaced them all (about $215). BTW - got a very helpful salesman on their help line who gave me correct part numbers. Apparently, the parts listed for the 2002 sensors are wrong on their web catalog - and no one wants to fix it...
I read about the wiring - and thought "awesome - just repair some shorts" - then opened up the door panel to find a huge tightly bunched bundle of wire wrapped in tape or in flexible conduits - and inside the metal door-frame or the boot between the hinges. How in the world can you carefully examine a mostly unreachable and mostly wrapped or conduit-enclosed bunch of wires?

 

[BigRondo]

You're welcome Bill. Glad to help.

As mentioned before, here are some helpful links:

Removing Door Panels: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums//showthread.php?t=303524

Changing Door Ajar Switches: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=249253

Let me know if you need info for the liftgate glass switch. I have taken mine out and cleaned it to get it working again.

Checking for broken/damaged wires: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums//showthread.php?t=270081

I know the pics are missing, but it may still offer you some guidance. I can't remember, but I believe I unwrapped the wires enough to gain access. When I have gone searching in there I had an idea of what wire I was looking for so I gently tugged on that wire on the door side. The wire was pulled toward me and out of the harness. I then went inside the vehicle and gently tugged on the same wire and was able to pull it inside the vehicle. I then spliced a length of wire to the 2 ends, completing the circuit. I then gently pulled the excess into the door.

Like I said before, when I was having the following symptoms, it turned out to be the thinner black wire that was broken:

The dome lights would stay on until the battery saver feature turned them off, the accessory delay wasn't working, the driver side puddle light didn't work, the keypad on the door would set off the alarm when I pressed it, the door ajar light would flash and beep at highway speeds, the radio would shut off as soon as I turned the key off, the alarm would beep twice when I armed it.

I recommend following the above steps with the thinner black wire.

Good luck & be sure to keep us posted.

Feel free to ask as many questions as needed. "The only stupid question is the one not asked."