98 ford explorer theft light glows solid when I lock the vehicle

[cbranning2012]

Hi all,

I have a weird issue. I have a 98 Explorer Eddie Bauer Edition and had the infamous no lock switch problem, where the key fob, driver and passenger switch would not lock the vehicle and also the key pad on the exterior part of the driver door would not lock the vehicle. The only switch that would lock the car is the switch in the rear cargo area. So i fixed the problem by resplicing all the wires under the rear driver side seat where the pink/yellow wires all meet (they were corroded pretty bad). So now all the switches work; the driver and passenger switches, the key fob and exterior key pad all work (unlock and lock).

Here's the weird part that's got me really stumped. When i hit any lock switch the theft light on my gauge cluster glows solid red. Which i dont think it is suppose to do that.

Before i fixed the wiring problem, i would lock my explorer by hitting the lock switch in the rear cargo area and the theft light would just flash every 3 seconds like its suppose to.

So now I'm confused on what to do.

Could it be a bad RAP module or PCM or a broken relay?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks in Advanced

 

[nitrodude]

I'm pretty sure my theft light glows solid when I hit the lock button on my door too

 

[cbranning2012]

I think it suppose to glow solid unless the vehicle thinks its being stolen.

I read a post in here that was pretty similar and the guy said that if you let the car seat too long it could drain the battery. Also he couldn't find a solution.

So I'm pretty lost.

 

[DjDom]

Actually, I disagree. I think a solid glow means the system is in Valet mode, as with most aftermarket alarms.
I can't really comment though, as I don't have a factory alarm/keyless entry system.
There is a huge post called "Everything you need to know about Keyless entry"
Search for that, it's literally what the title says.

 

[SoNic67]

The LED normally blinks (every 3 seconds). There is no solid light on either my Explorer or Sable.

 

[cbranning2012]

Thanks DjDom i will check that out

And sonic 67 it flashes every 3 second all the time except when I hit the lock button it glows solid

 

[cbranning2012]

The LED normally blinks (every 3 seconds). There is no solid light on either my Explorer or Sable.

When u lock your vehicle does the theft light in your instrument cluster glow solid

 

[SoNic67]

No, I went outside and checked again. The word "THEFT" blinks with very short pulses - every 2 seconds stays 'on' for some 1/10 second.
If I press "lock" (door or FOB), "THEFT" does nothing. If I press twice, horn sounds, lights and "THEFT" lit for short time.

Actually, even after I unlock the car, the 'THEFT' blinks, until I put the key in the ignition. That's normal, car is still secured, it won't start with a key with the wrong chip.

 

[cbranning2012]

Ya for some reason when I hit lock the theft light stays solid for about five minutes and then turns off and just starts flashing every 2 second. Maybe mines just different. My dads 99 mercury mountaineer does the same thing.

 

[828gasman]

This is completely normal. Don't be worried. It is a time delay built in so that if the lock button was hit then another passenger opened a door from inside it would not set off the alarm. I have had 2 '97 x's and 3 '96 x's and now finally my 1st 97 mounty...my 1st 5.0... and glad to be rid of the tranny issues that plague the 4.0. The light should come on solid for anywhere from 30 sec to 1.5 min. It will then start flashing very short flickers. No issues with yours from what you are saying. It took me a while the first time to diagnose my wire splice for the lock buttons but have worked perfectly since...all before I knew about this forum.
Oh yeah...the reason it didnt work before you repaired the wire splice is that the PATS (passive anti-theft system) module gets its signal from the pink/yellow wire forward of the corroded wire splice. With a bad splice the PATS was never being told to arm the alarm when the rear lock button was hit. Now that the connection is repaired it receives the signal through the splice no matter which lock button or keypad or fob is used to lock the doors

 

[cbranning2012]

This is completely normal. Don't be worried. It is a time delay built in so that if the lock button was hit then another passenger opened a door from inside it would not set off the alarm. I have had 2 '97 x's and 3 '96 x's and now finally my 1st 97 mounty...my 1st 5.0... and glad to be rid of the tranny issues that plague the 4.0. The light should come on solid for anywhere from 30 sec to 1.5 min. It will then start flashing very short flickers. No issues with yours from what you are saying. It took me a while the first time to diagnose my wire splice for the lock buttons but have worked perfectly since...all before I knew about this forum.
Oh yeah...the reason it didnt work before you repaired the wire splice is that the PATS (passive anti-theft system) module gets its signal from the pink/yellow wire forward of the corroded wire splice. With a bad splice the PATS was never being told to arm the alarm when the rear lock button was hit. Now that the connection is repaired it receives the signal through the splice no matter which lock button or keypad or fob is used to lock the doors

Awesome answer I finally fiqured that out one day I locked it and I went out side to look and see if it was still solid but it was just flashing.

Thanks for the reply