2ndcovenant
Member
- Joined
- March 20, 2015
- Messages
- 41
- Reaction score
- 1
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2002ExplXLT 4x4 4.0L 6cyl
Hi folks,
Two days ago my 2002 ford explorer xlt got me to the gym just fine but as I was leaving it would not crank and the theft light rapidly flashed. I got it to start by removing the negative cable from the battery for 15 minutes and then after putting the negative cable back on but before turning the key in the ignition switch, I lowered the steering wheel from it's raised position to the lowest postion, and then turned the key to start and it did start.
It has not cranked nor had any power other than the theft light, twice since then including tonight while trying to go with my grandson trick or treating.
The second and third time, I tried the same thing, raising and lowering the steering wheel and disconnecting the battery cable but neither time did that work on the first few tries.
The third time, I took the battery to the shop and it showed a great battery charge, so I put the battery back into the truck and tried again, still a no go. I noticed that the negative cable's clamp had two issues.... 1) a Lot of oxidation, a Lot. 2) The clamp refuses to tighten over the terminal. It will sit there and mostly stay but it will not tighten to the point that you can't move it by hand easily.
I noticed that while the truck had no power and the theft light was blinking rapidly, I could move the negative battery clamp around and the head lights would blink on, basically saying Hey you have power! So I moved the clamp until the truck had power and it cranked straight away with no theft light issues.
First question: Could the clamp being loose cause the truck not to start ***and*** make the theft light rapidly go off? Could a good tightening fix the problem? I don't have any tools that can reliably tighten this clamp. I have purchased three over the past four months and the first two cracks beyond repair and I ended up getting a Marine Battery Terminal Clamp which was stronger. I am hoping that it could be that simple. I am going to take it to the place where I bought the clamp and get them to tighten it tomorrow.
Secondly: the car dealership, which has gone out of business, where I purchased the truck only had a key fob and an ignition key for the truck. So to unlock the doors, I have to have the key fob. I purchased two today since my daughter washed the original and both key fobs work fine. If I wanted to have two additional keys made for the doors and one additional key made for the ignition (so that my wife would have a set too), is that possible since I only have an ignition key? Would I have to do it at a dealership or could a locksmith do it?
Thanks,
Jeremy
Two days ago my 2002 ford explorer xlt got me to the gym just fine but as I was leaving it would not crank and the theft light rapidly flashed. I got it to start by removing the negative cable from the battery for 15 minutes and then after putting the negative cable back on but before turning the key in the ignition switch, I lowered the steering wheel from it's raised position to the lowest postion, and then turned the key to start and it did start.
It has not cranked nor had any power other than the theft light, twice since then including tonight while trying to go with my grandson trick or treating.
The second and third time, I tried the same thing, raising and lowering the steering wheel and disconnecting the battery cable but neither time did that work on the first few tries.
The third time, I took the battery to the shop and it showed a great battery charge, so I put the battery back into the truck and tried again, still a no go. I noticed that the negative cable's clamp had two issues.... 1) a Lot of oxidation, a Lot. 2) The clamp refuses to tighten over the terminal. It will sit there and mostly stay but it will not tighten to the point that you can't move it by hand easily.
I noticed that while the truck had no power and the theft light was blinking rapidly, I could move the negative battery clamp around and the head lights would blink on, basically saying Hey you have power! So I moved the clamp until the truck had power and it cranked straight away with no theft light issues.
First question: Could the clamp being loose cause the truck not to start ***and*** make the theft light rapidly go off? Could a good tightening fix the problem? I don't have any tools that can reliably tighten this clamp. I have purchased three over the past four months and the first two cracks beyond repair and I ended up getting a Marine Battery Terminal Clamp which was stronger. I am hoping that it could be that simple. I am going to take it to the place where I bought the clamp and get them to tighten it tomorrow.
Secondly: the car dealership, which has gone out of business, where I purchased the truck only had a key fob and an ignition key for the truck. So to unlock the doors, I have to have the key fob. I purchased two today since my daughter washed the original and both key fobs work fine. If I wanted to have two additional keys made for the doors and one additional key made for the ignition (so that my wife would have a set too), is that possible since I only have an ignition key? Would I have to do it at a dealership or could a locksmith do it?
Thanks,
Jeremy
