l1k2gadd
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- September 23, 2006
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- City, State
- Summerfield, Florida
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- '93 & '00 Explorers
From this Explorer Forum thread http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=196489&highlight=brake+lights AND another one I couldn't find a second time that had a link to Ford Motor Company's owner's manual page from BrooklynBay...
Here's the Blah-Blah-Blah, and all kinds of rambling, but.... ...read on...
I know I am bringing up o-o-old news with that o-o-old thread, BUT... as I have seen said many times before... this site is awesome!!
I first found this site when I bought a 1993 Explorer XLT 4x4 and I was looking for reference material for working on a vehicle I wasn't familiar with. This site helped me over and over again. I was also able to help others once I got to working on the '93 and got familiar with it from "diving in and getting my hands into it". When I gave the '93 to my daughter I didn't visit often because I got my 1968 F100 pickup (and located a forum for those trucks because I wasn't familiar with them either). Shortly afterwards I helped my daughter sell the '93 so she could be given my 1989 Mustang GT Convertible so after the '93 was gone I didn't visit often. I would tell others I met that had Explorers about this site though.
Now, for the update! I was driving by a local transmission shop last Tuesday (May 27th 2008) and saw an Explorer for sale in front of the shop. Since I was at work when I saw the Explorer I memorized the number on the transmission repair place's sign as I drove by and called them about the Explorer. I was SHOCKED when they told me the Explorer was a 2000 and they were selling it for $1,500.00 and / or were taking offers on it. I told them I was going to call my daughter and let her know about it being for sale. My daughter talked about wanting a "wedge-nose" Explorer recently (we call them wedge-nose being former 1st gen box-nosed Explorer owners). Since I am troubleshooting a phantom problem in the 1989 GT Convertible I gave her, and she is now driving one the 1966 289-2V Mustang that's been sitting here a while, she decided to start looking for another vehicle for herself. Since I knew she was looking around for a vehicle, and had shown interest in a 2004 BowTie Lumina, I called her and told her about the Explorer. She said "Daddy, I don't want an Explorer anymore." I told her it sounded like a deal but she insisted on wanting the $8,500.00 Lumina (with payments) instead. So-o-o, I didn't call the tranny shop to tell them what my daughter said and let it go..... .....maybe?
I went to my mom's on Wednesday and we got to talking about the Explorer. I thought about getting my mom out of her 1989 Ford Club Wagon XLT van because of the gas prices and I called the transmission shop from my cellphone's dialed calls log. I figured the Explorer would already be sold when I called them because the Explorer was priced so-o-o low. The lady remembered me and said "You were supposed to have your daughter call about the Explorer". I told her my daughter said she wasn't interested but I asked if it was still for sale. She said yes, WOW, so I told her I would stop on Thursday to look at it.
I went to work on Thursday and at lunch I changed out of my work clothes into daily (junky, look at a vehicle) clothes and set out for the tranny shop. Since they had no license plate to put on the Explorer I let the guy from the shop take me for a test-ride and I rode shotgun. It seemed to run and drive good so I asked if they'd hold it for me, but they didn't like the non-refundable deposit idea, even if it was for a few days. They took my number and told me they'd call if someone else stopped to look at the Explorer and were interested in it, BUT they said I would have first choice to buy it. I agreed and returned to work.
All I could think about at work was the Explorer. I changed to my daily look at a vehicle clothes at the end of the day and went back to the tranny shop to test drive the Explorer, tag or no tag. I got there, we went for a test drive again, only this time I was at the wheel, and wouldn't you know it, there were cops all over, everywhere I was driving. Whew, they didn't mess with me though. When we got back to the tranny shop I started talking cash, credit card or check with them. They said they'd have to charge tax if I paid by credit card, and I didn't want to pay them tax and then pay the tag office tax so I said no to the credit card deal. They didn't like the check deal so much because of having to wait for the check to clear and holding the Explorer at their shop until then. I told them I would come back tomorrow (Friday) with cash.
I brought my tow-dolly to work, behind my 1968 F100 pickup, and took one-and-a-half hours off early from work to give me time to load the Explorer up after paying for it and get it home and unloaded while it was light out. I got the money from the credit union on my break at work and was at the tranny shop by 15:15 hours Friday. I paid them, got it loaded, disconnected the driveshaft, and in an impulse moment decided to run to the tag office to transfer the Explorer into my name. I called my Allstate agent, added the Explorer to my insurance on my way to the tag office, and got the title transferred and got a tag for it by 16:45 hours.
I don't dicker with sellers. If an asking price seems more than fair I will pay it! If I think it is too high I will say "no thank you, I'm not interested" and leave. I paid their $1,500.00 asking price, which was way under NADA book value for the Explorer.
Anyway, I got the Explorer home, connected the driveshaft, unloaded it, got it in the yard, and was going to take it for a ride to my mom's to show it to her. Here's where we go back to the top where I posted the link to the other thread. The Explorer's brake lights didn't work. NONE of them. I was bummed out, I called my mom to tell her what happened, and told her I was going to search later tonight on the internet to see what I could find about the problem.
My daughter had asked me to come by her place on Friday so I took the 1968 F100 to her place so we could go out to dinner that evening.
I got home at about 21:00 hours Friday night. I fed the dogs, did a little basic troubleshooting on the Explorer, and decided to go online when nothing I tried seemed to help the problem.
Friday night, 20:00 hours to after 00:00 hours Saturday morning was spent searching this site through old threads. I figured I wouldn't ask a question that was probably on here somewhere already. I found two possible threads to look into when it was light out on Saturday morning. Explorer Buff's pictures of his stoplight switch are great because the one picture of the switch in his Explorer looked like the one in the Explorer I bought.
I got out first thing Saturday morning (this morning) and unplugged the 5 pin plug, started the Explorer, jumpered pins 4 and 5 like cjones101812 said to do in the thread, and, BAM!! I have brake lights! It was still about 08:15 hours this morning, and traffic would be light so I drove the Explorer to Napa (using the parking lights as dim, but working-looking, brake lights). I backed the Explorer into the parking space so I could see the brake lights in the reflection in the glass on Napa's doors, and went in to buy the switch I had already called ahead for. I removed the old switch, installed the new switch, pressed on the brake pedal (I can't remember if I had the key on or not) and FIXED! The brake lights work great!
THANKS EXPLORER FORUM! Thanks to all of the historical troubleshooting threads posted by others too. Thanks! Thanks! Thanks!
My suggestions to everyone when you are having problems with your Explorers, use the search tool in the section that applies to your Explorer, be patient, and read, read, read. You can learn a lot by just looking around this site.
Here's the Blah-Blah-Blah, and all kinds of rambling, but.... ...read on...
I know I am bringing up o-o-old news with that o-o-old thread, BUT... as I have seen said many times before... this site is awesome!!
I first found this site when I bought a 1993 Explorer XLT 4x4 and I was looking for reference material for working on a vehicle I wasn't familiar with. This site helped me over and over again. I was also able to help others once I got to working on the '93 and got familiar with it from "diving in and getting my hands into it". When I gave the '93 to my daughter I didn't visit often because I got my 1968 F100 pickup (and located a forum for those trucks because I wasn't familiar with them either). Shortly afterwards I helped my daughter sell the '93 so she could be given my 1989 Mustang GT Convertible so after the '93 was gone I didn't visit often. I would tell others I met that had Explorers about this site though.
Now, for the update! I was driving by a local transmission shop last Tuesday (May 27th 2008) and saw an Explorer for sale in front of the shop. Since I was at work when I saw the Explorer I memorized the number on the transmission repair place's sign as I drove by and called them about the Explorer. I was SHOCKED when they told me the Explorer was a 2000 and they were selling it for $1,500.00 and / or were taking offers on it. I told them I was going to call my daughter and let her know about it being for sale. My daughter talked about wanting a "wedge-nose" Explorer recently (we call them wedge-nose being former 1st gen box-nosed Explorer owners). Since I am troubleshooting a phantom problem in the 1989 GT Convertible I gave her, and she is now driving one the 1966 289-2V Mustang that's been sitting here a while, she decided to start looking for another vehicle for herself. Since I knew she was looking around for a vehicle, and had shown interest in a 2004 BowTie Lumina, I called her and told her about the Explorer. She said "Daddy, I don't want an Explorer anymore." I told her it sounded like a deal but she insisted on wanting the $8,500.00 Lumina (with payments) instead. So-o-o, I didn't call the tranny shop to tell them what my daughter said and let it go..... .....maybe?
I went to my mom's on Wednesday and we got to talking about the Explorer. I thought about getting my mom out of her 1989 Ford Club Wagon XLT van because of the gas prices and I called the transmission shop from my cellphone's dialed calls log. I figured the Explorer would already be sold when I called them because the Explorer was priced so-o-o low. The lady remembered me and said "You were supposed to have your daughter call about the Explorer". I told her my daughter said she wasn't interested but I asked if it was still for sale. She said yes, WOW, so I told her I would stop on Thursday to look at it.
I went to work on Thursday and at lunch I changed out of my work clothes into daily (junky, look at a vehicle) clothes and set out for the tranny shop. Since they had no license plate to put on the Explorer I let the guy from the shop take me for a test-ride and I rode shotgun. It seemed to run and drive good so I asked if they'd hold it for me, but they didn't like the non-refundable deposit idea, even if it was for a few days. They took my number and told me they'd call if someone else stopped to look at the Explorer and were interested in it, BUT they said I would have first choice to buy it. I agreed and returned to work.
All I could think about at work was the Explorer. I changed to my daily look at a vehicle clothes at the end of the day and went back to the tranny shop to test drive the Explorer, tag or no tag. I got there, we went for a test drive again, only this time I was at the wheel, and wouldn't you know it, there were cops all over, everywhere I was driving. Whew, they didn't mess with me though. When we got back to the tranny shop I started talking cash, credit card or check with them. They said they'd have to charge tax if I paid by credit card, and I didn't want to pay them tax and then pay the tag office tax so I said no to the credit card deal. They didn't like the check deal so much because of having to wait for the check to clear and holding the Explorer at their shop until then. I told them I would come back tomorrow (Friday) with cash.
I brought my tow-dolly to work, behind my 1968 F100 pickup, and took one-and-a-half hours off early from work to give me time to load the Explorer up after paying for it and get it home and unloaded while it was light out. I got the money from the credit union on my break at work and was at the tranny shop by 15:15 hours Friday. I paid them, got it loaded, disconnected the driveshaft, and in an impulse moment decided to run to the tag office to transfer the Explorer into my name. I called my Allstate agent, added the Explorer to my insurance on my way to the tag office, and got the title transferred and got a tag for it by 16:45 hours.
I don't dicker with sellers. If an asking price seems more than fair I will pay it! If I think it is too high I will say "no thank you, I'm not interested" and leave. I paid their $1,500.00 asking price, which was way under NADA book value for the Explorer.
Anyway, I got the Explorer home, connected the driveshaft, unloaded it, got it in the yard, and was going to take it for a ride to my mom's to show it to her. Here's where we go back to the top where I posted the link to the other thread. The Explorer's brake lights didn't work. NONE of them. I was bummed out, I called my mom to tell her what happened, and told her I was going to search later tonight on the internet to see what I could find about the problem.
My daughter had asked me to come by her place on Friday so I took the 1968 F100 to her place so we could go out to dinner that evening.
I got home at about 21:00 hours Friday night. I fed the dogs, did a little basic troubleshooting on the Explorer, and decided to go online when nothing I tried seemed to help the problem.
Friday night, 20:00 hours to after 00:00 hours Saturday morning was spent searching this site through old threads. I figured I wouldn't ask a question that was probably on here somewhere already. I found two possible threads to look into when it was light out on Saturday morning. Explorer Buff's pictures of his stoplight switch are great because the one picture of the switch in his Explorer looked like the one in the Explorer I bought.
I got out first thing Saturday morning (this morning) and unplugged the 5 pin plug, started the Explorer, jumpered pins 4 and 5 like cjones101812 said to do in the thread, and, BAM!! I have brake lights! It was still about 08:15 hours this morning, and traffic would be light so I drove the Explorer to Napa (using the parking lights as dim, but working-looking, brake lights). I backed the Explorer into the parking space so I could see the brake lights in the reflection in the glass on Napa's doors, and went in to buy the switch I had already called ahead for. I removed the old switch, installed the new switch, pressed on the brake pedal (I can't remember if I had the key on or not) and FIXED! The brake lights work great!
THANKS EXPLORER FORUM! Thanks to all of the historical troubleshooting threads posted by others too. Thanks! Thanks! Thanks!
My suggestions to everyone when you are having problems with your Explorers, use the search tool in the section that applies to your Explorer, be patient, and read, read, read. You can learn a lot by just looking around this site.
