How To: Fix the Door Ajar Problem | Page 11 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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How To: Fix the Door Ajar Problem

Doing the wire repair inside the door is actually pretty easy with the help of this site.
You will need black electrical tape; wire strippers; 10 mm socket with ratchet with extension (3/8 drive) however 1/4 drive will work.
The black wire is the heaviest however there is a blue wire the same. Then I had two thin wires busted and a couple wore through but still together.
Tape those first.
Add about 6 inches to the broken wires. You can more as there is lots of room to fold up excess wire.
You have two small socket screws at the bottom of the door. Approximately 7 or 8 mm. I used an imperial socket with no size on it.
Then use a small flat head screwdriver of mini pry bar to snap out the cover from around the door handle.
You will find one 10 mm socket screw behind the cover.
The switch mounts for the windows and door lock will snap out also by pushing on the plastic clip at the bottom which you access once you remove the door handle cover.
Push and release the wiring harness from the three switches and lay the switches on the dash to keep it safe.
You can then lift up the door trim panel.
I couldn't get the power mirror switch disconnected so I just swung the panel upside (end for end) down and out towards the windshield it sat up there with no issue.
You then remove the door speaker (remember how it is installed). There are four screws 10 mm. or smaller if they have been changed.
Set the speaker aside.
The rubber boot between the door and the body is taped at the door end. You can strip the tape off pretty easy and pull the boot out towards the body. Then pull the boot out of the body.
I found it easiest to then push the boot back through the door opening out of the way!
Then find and repair the wires.
I just stripped and twisted them together however if I had of had time I would of picked up wire wraps (Merrutes) and then taped over them.
When you put the boot back into the door side reach in and tape it back in place.
That will stop prevent it from coming out. It has two long strips that are taped to the harness.
You will be totally please with the results. Have wire gauges 12/10/8/6/ About 8-10 inches will be plenty!
WARNING!
When you are stripping the wires be careful of how much pressure you put on them as you can pull them apart father down the line.
Borrow or invest in the style of wire stripper that can he used in one hand and holds the wire solid while it strips it. All the best and i hope this helps.
 



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This door ajar thing is freaking me out. What I don't understand is that it only happens if I have the interrrior switch for the dome light/instrument cluster light on. When it is in the full off position, the door ajar comes on and off with the opening and closing of all doors as it should. This tells me that the ajar switches in the doors are fine. Could the problem be a bad light switch, or is there a ground problem somewhere?
 






You need to read the posts again. That is 100% a broken wire in the driver's door tunnel. Maybe more than one.

It is a 20 to 30 minute repair even for a novice.
All the instructions are on this site.

The Ford Motor Company doesn't have the instructions as clear as this website.

You can do it.
 






Doing the wire repair inside the door is actually pretty easy with the help of this site.
You will need black electrical tape; wire strippers; 10 mm socket with ratchet with extension (3/8 drive) however 1/4 drive will work.
The black wire is the heaviest however there is a blue wire the same. Then I had two thin wires busted and a couple wore through but still together.
Tape those first.
Add about 6 inches to the broken wires. You can more as there is lots of room to fold up excess wire.
You have two small socket screws at the bottom of the door. Approximately 7 or 8 mm. I used an imperial socket with no size on it.
Then use a small flat head screwdriver of mini pry bar to snap out the cover from around the door handle.
You will find one 10 mm socket screw behind the cover.
The switch mounts for the windows and door lock will snap out also by pushing on the plastic clip at the bottom which you access once you remove the door handle cover.
Push and release the wiring harness from the three switches and lay the switches on the dash to keep it safe.
You can then lift up the door trim panel.
I couldn't get the power mirror switch disconnected so I just swung the panel upside (end for end) down and out towards the windshield it sat up there with no issue.
You then remove the door speaker (remember how it is installed). There are four screws 10 mm. or smaller if they have been changed.
Set the speaker aside.
The rubber boot between the door and the body is taped at the door end. You can strip the tape off pretty easy and pull the boot out towards the body. Then pull the boot out of the body.
I found it easiest to then push the boot back through the door opening out of the way!
Then find and repair the wires.
I just stripped and twisted them together however if I had of had time I would of picked up wire wraps (Merrutes) and then taped over them.
When you put the boot back into the door side reach in and tape it back in place.
That will stop prevent it from coming out. It has two long strips that are taped to the harness.
You will be totally please with the results. Have wire gauges 12/10/8/6/ About 8-10 inches will be plenty!
WARNING!
When you are stripping the wires be careful of how much pressure you put on them as you can pull them apart father down the line.
Borrow or invest in the style of wire stripper that can he used in one hand and holds the wire solid while it strips it. All the best and i hope this helps.

I followed this how-to pretty much to the 'T'...except I had to pull the boot out of the body as well to gain access to the other end of the wire. But, while doing so, I also noticed a tiny stray yellow wire that was snipped for some odd reason. Tracing that back into the door, I found out it was for the power mirrors! So, not only was I able to fix that annoying door ajar light issue, I now have functioning mirrors! :D

110% time well spent!
 






A few weeks ago I kept having a problem with my door ajar, rear defrost, and dome lights coming on and staying on when I would turn on my rear defrost. After weeks of looking on the internet I finally found the cause. Here is what I did to fix it. It turns out it was a broken wire in the door boot.


1. These were the tools and stuff I used to fix it. Yes the butter knife actually helped. I used: 1/4" Ratchet, 6" extension, 6mm 7mm and 8mm sockets, wire stripers, a butter knife, needle nose pliers, a screwdriver, electrical tape, and 12 AWG Industrial wiring from Menards.
IMG00056-20100213-1301.jpg



2. Start by removing the door panel trim. There are 3 bolts. 2 on the bottom of the door and one when you remove the trim piece above the door handle. Slide the panel over the door handle and disconnect any connectors that are there. DON'T leave the panel hanging with the connectors because you run the risk of damaging them or the wiring going into them. I used a butter knife to get the mirror adjusting connector out because I didn't have a small enough screw driver.
IMG00057-20100213-1305.jpg



3. Once you remove the trim panel there should be a boot that goes in between the door and the body of the truck. I used a 1/4 ratchet and a screwdriver to get it out. I used the screwdriver to get under the boot on the body side and jammed the ratchet in so I could take the screwdriver and move it around the boot to pop it out. Once you pop it out go threw the wiring and look for a 12 awg wire that is broke give it a few light tugs until it comes out.
IMG00052-20100213-1050.jpg



4. This is the side of the wire coming out of the body of the truck. I used a single piece of stranded 12 awg industiral wire to jump across the break in the wire.
IMG00055-20100213-1236.jpg



5. This was the side that was in the door. I took the other end of the 12 awg wire and spliced it to the end that was in the door. After that I checked it and the problem was solved. I finished up by wraping it in electrical tape. Don't mind the taping skills, this is just a temporary fix for right now until it gets warm enough for me to stay outside and solder and heatshrink it.
IMG00054-20100213-1236.jpg



6. Another view of the repair.
IMG00053-20100213-1235.jpg


No more pictures????? I have this problem now, and I could REALLY USE THESE! Anyone have any?
 


















I'm splicing the wire tomorrow when its light out. Stupid question..do I have to disconnect the battery to avoid getting shocked or any other electrical risks to the car?
 






so I spliced out where the cracked black wire was and now the door ajar light stays on as well as the dome light! I drove around the block for 5 minutes and no beeping noise from instrument cluster.. Thats a much better tradeoff for right now as the noise goes off constantly. Can always turn off the interior lights as long as I'm not driving at night.

Whats next? Continuity test? Could be broken/corroded somewhere else that I can see?

IMG_20130420_134156_422.jpg
 






Figured mine out. No amount of Wd40 would help, so took apart the door, and found that the part of the switch that connected to the door had broken off. Thus, whenever it touched something metal, it completed the circuit and the alarm went off. Eventually I plan on soldering it back on, and securing it with tape or glue, but for now, I just wrapped the leads with electrical tape (after cleaning off the copious amounts of wd40) and I haven't had a problem since. I'll post pictures in the future.
 






02 early model Explorer, Door ajar Light on

I too have the door ajar light on accompanied by some light s staying on and keyless remotes not working locks as long as the light is on. Scanner showed the pas. front door ajar, pulled panel and switch was good, .2 ohms closed and meg ohm unlatched. tested several times with the same results, traced wiring to the module located on the "C" pillar. intermittent open circuit to the module. ran 2 new wires from inside the kick panel to the master connector at the latch. Problem resolved at the module, .2 ohms latched and open circuit unlatched. Plugged back in, cleared codes and everything worked good for about 2 minutes then reverted back to the original issue, when light is on there is also no response from the rear doors on the scanner, always showing closed. Installed a new Ford module with no improvement......Theory and operation is lacking on many Fords in both Mitchell and Alldata, any others with the same issues
 






wires breaking in the doors

This is becoming a more common problem as manufactures are trying to lighten up and cheapen production, wire connectors are too small to handle the amperage and smaller and smaller gage wiring is used. These latch wires are too thin for the flexing they go thru and simply break
 






Door Ajar Light and Dome Light Stuck On

Mine just started doing this tonight. I work only 4 minutes from my home, so I got in the truck drove home, parked in the garage, went in the house for about 10 minutes & realized I had forgotten to run a couple errands. When I went to get in the truck the door handle seemed hard to open. It has been doing that for the last couple days, but I associated it with the cold, because it just got very cold outside. I started the truck, the door ajar light was on and the dome light stayed on. When I put it in gear, the dome light turned off, but the door ajar light stayed on. When I got to the store, I got out, and used the key fob to lock the truck. I got a double beep - typically I associate this with leaving my headlights on. I went into the store for maybe 10 minutes. When I got in the truck to head home, the door ajar and dome light were on again, until I put it in gear. Got home, got out, closed the driver's door and this time the dome light stayed on. I put the key in and rolled down the windows, figuring I would just use the interior door lock switch to lock it so the light would turn off. Well no luck because the driver's side door interior lock/unlock button was completely unresponsive and didn't do anything when the driver's side door is closed. It works to lock/unlock the truck when the driver's door is open though. The key fob and passenger side interior lock/unlock button work still no matter if the doors are open or closed though.

So the interior lock/unlock button on the driver's side door acts dead when the door is closed, the door ajar light is on, and the dome light won't shut off. I finally ended up using the interior dome light switch to turn off the dome light. I read through all of your posts, and tried WD-40 just on the driver's side latch.

Have any of you had the interior lock/unlock switch not work when the drivers door is closed, on top of the door ajar light being on, and the dome light? What would you say it is, and do I have to take the door apart to fix it? The WD-40 has sat on the latch for about 45 minutes now, and it didn't fix anything.
 






Just as all have stated before, there is a broken wire somewhere. I just fixed mine a few weeks ago. I had all the same issues as you have stated as well as the radio turning off once I turned off the ignition. I also noticed that if I turned off the dome dimmer switch, then the door ajar light would go off as well as the driver lock would work again. I pulled back the rubber boot that protects the wires in the door jam, and gently started pulling on the wires. It didn't take long to find the broken one. Mine was the large black wire which I just spliced a new one in, and all of my headaches have been solved.
 






I think I have both problems; a sticky door ajar switch AND a broken wire. So today I sprayed all the locks with teflon spray and that stopped the errant random alarms. Too cold to check the wiring. But the spray is solving most of the issues right now so I'll wait 'till warmer weather to check the wiring. Getting the weird door ajar, dome light locks possessed action. Thanks to all the contributors to this thread.
 






So 24 hours later and all the symptoms have disappeared. Spraying the locks must've done the trick. No more phantom door lock-unlock and no more alarms going off in the middle of the night. Going to add this to my routine maintenance schedule to do every 6 months.
 






I think I have both problems; a sticky door ajar switch AND a broken wire. So today I sprayed all the locks with teflon spray and that stopped the errant random alarms. Too cold to check the wiring. But the spray is solving most of the issues right now so I'll wait 'till warmer weather to check the wiring. Getting the weird door ajar, dome light locks possessed action. Thanks to all the contributors to this thread.

So 24 hours later and all the symptoms have disappeared. Spraying the locks must've done the trick. No more phantom door lock-unlock and no more alarms going off in the middle of the night. Going to add this to my routine maintenance schedule to do every 6 months.

I hope the WD does the trick. :thumbsup:

Mine is exhibiting some broken wire symptoms again. I'm gonna have to tear into it again.

Let me know if you any info or diagrams from the shop maunuals. :thumbsup:
 






ok i have repaired broken ground wire(black) in door boot and still have a few problems i dont understand...driver door window goes up and down but switch is going down when should be going up and going up when I press down on switch; also passenger rear window still does nothing...any ideas? the only wire that was broken in door boot was the black one and I have already checked to make sure wiring was plugged in correctly, please help!
 






ok i have repaired broken ground wire(black) in door boot and still have a few problems i dont understand...driver door window goes up and down but switch is going down when should be going up and going up when I press down on switch; also passenger rear window still does nothing...any ideas? the only wire that was broken in door boot was the black one and I have already checked to make sure wiring was plugged in correctly, please help!

Welcome aboard!! :salute:

Is it possible that you had more than one broken wire and subsequently crossed the wires when you did the repair? :dunno:

I can PM the wiring diagrams from my shop manuals upon request.

Good luck getting it sorted. :thumbsup:

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

Edit: Here is a link to the diagrams: https://app.box.com/s/52ggn6ixgc40u267eioi
 



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Has anyone had an issue with he icon lighting up on the lower left corner of the display showing the airbag? It flashes then stays on. I have already repaired the black wire breaks.
 






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