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Ford Explorer Community - Maintenance - Modifications - Performance Upgrades - Problem Solving - Off-Road - Street
Explorer Forum Covers the Explorer ST, Explorer Sport, Explorer Sport Trac, Lincoln Aviator, Mercury Mountaineer, Mazda Navajo, Ford Ranger, Mazda Pickups, and the Ford Aerostar
Going down the road, horn all of a sudden honks continuously, had to stop to unhook it to get it to stop, then when I stopped at a store I noticed my headlights and all running lights were on. After I was going to unhook the battery they went out, have no idea what caused this, any ideas out there? Thought maybe it might be the mirror that has the sensors on it, but unhooked the plug in and didn't make any difference.
94 Explorer XLT
Thanks, Al
Is yours a Limited or an XLT? I see Limited in your avatar and you mention an XLT. If you have the auto headlights, they will stay on after shutting the engine off for some time. You can turn this feature on and off and also vary the time delay by using the buttons on the inside mirror. The mirror should also have an auto darkening feature. I have never seen this option on an XLT, only on Eddie Bauers with the electric package and it was standard equipment on Limiteds.
As for your horn, check the relay to make sure it's not sticking, and also pull the horn pad off the steering wheel. I have seen the metal structure bent and allowing the contacts to touch. The pad is fairly easy to take apart and repair. I guess someone got mad and punched the one in my truck before i got it. It was bent all to hell! If yours has the electric group it will have the keyless entry as well. The horn beeps when locking the truck with the key fob. It is possible that the keyless module is sending a constant signal to the horn circut, but I doubt this is the issue.
I think it's the xlt, but it does have that mirror, so not real sure. Does not have the overhead console either. Yes the mirror has the auto button for the lights but I've never had it on, it wasn't on then. I'm thinking that maybe the horn relay is sticking but I didn't push the horn for anything, it just came on and didn't just beep once but stayed on till I unhooked it. The lights I could not get to go out, even unplugged the plug in the back of the mirror, only option was to unhook the battery and never got it unhooked but they went off then and haven't came back on yet, got me, strange stuff. This was during the day so I didn't have the light switch on either.
Thanks, Al
Is yours a Limited or an XLT? I see Limited in your avatar and you mention an XLT. If you have the auto headlights, they will stay on after shutting the engine off for some time. You can turn this feature on and off and also vary the time delay by using the buttons on the inside mirror. The mirror should also have an auto darkening feature. I have never seen this option on an XLT, only on Eddie Bauers with the electric package and it was standard equipment on Limiteds.
As for your horn, check the relay to make sure it's not sticking, and also pull the horn pad off the steering wheel. I have seen the metal structure bent and allowing the contacts to touch. The pad is fairly easy to take apart and repair. I guess someone got mad and punched the one in my truck before i got it. It was bent all to hell! If yours has the electric group it will have the keyless entry as well. The horn beeps when locking the truck with the key fob. It is possible that the keyless module is sending a constant signal to the horn circut, but I doubt this is the issue.
heh mines the same way by the cruise controls on the right side of the steering wheel thats from me punching the horn to all these idiot drivers and our stock horns are really loud too.
heh mines the same way by the cruise controls on the right side of the steering wheel thats from me punching the horn to all these idiot drivers and our stock horns are really loud too.
By the way, is it easy to get that off, at least I could check mine? Still think it's the relay, doesn't click when the horn does that and it's unhooked, then it will click again after a little bit, so it's sticking from itself or the metal thing you're talking about. The lights seems to be a different deal. What's weird is nothing was even touched when it went off, just going down the road.
By the way, is that hard to get off, at least I could check mine and see what it's like? It could be that or the relay since after I unhooked the horn the relay wouldn't click for a little bit then clicked again. The lights is a different deal and nothing was touched just going down the road, got me on the lights, wouldn't know where to start.
Not sure about the model since it doesn't say anywhere on it or the title, has the fiberglass deals on the rocker panels and that mirror that auto dims also if that tells you anything. Don't think it's the limited like I thought at first, think they have the over head console, so thought it was probably the xlt.
Well I got the pad off the steering wheel and the metal horn thing looks fine, not bent or anything. The relay is clicking now but I know it wasn't when the horn went off and I unhooked it, so I ordered a new relay for it, not sure if that's going to be what's wrong either since it does work now, but it could have got stuck at the time and is going bad. Still don't know why the running lights all came on for a while and then went off?
few questions for you. You said that your horn was blowing constantly, and now the lights are on. Has it by chance been wet or raining recently? I had a similar problem with my 93 limited which i tracked down to a bad window gasket on the rear drivers side. Water was leaking in and on the alarm module which sits in front of the jack compartment. Pop the door off of the jack area, and take a good look in there looking for rust or other signs of water. My plan of attack to fix my problem was i pulled the trim off the inside and removed the panel, then wrapped the alarm module in a few plastic bags mixed with duct tape to try to water proof the module. I guess i got lucky when i had a neighborhood kid shoot out that window and had to get it replaced, because it solved the gasket problem.
Yes my horn did that then I noticed the running lights were all on when I went into a store. They most likely came on at the same time my horn blasted but didn't notice them till at the store, this was during the day. After I got home the lights were still on and went to unhook the battery but they went off then so never did the battery and they haven't been on since. Checked in the rear panel and I don't have any leaks back there or anywhere else that I know of. Yes we have had plenty of rain but it's been in the garage part of that time. Not sure if this is the limited or not, no overhead console but has the mirror that auto dims and has the auto light switch on it that I have never used, and the fiberglass ground affects on the rocker panels so thought it must be the xlt, any ideas on that? Not the eddie bauer either.
I just noticed today that since I have the horn relay out and the horn unhooked I don't have any cruise control or auto theft on the dash. I remember the last time I didn't have a horn it was the same way! What do they have all this tied together somehow and maybe the running lights also????
Thanks, Al
Try to post a pic. If your steering wheel and column is the same color as the rest of the interior then yours is a limited. These were the only ones built this way. Yes the limited also had the overhead console. Also is it white, green or purple? Those were the only available factory colors. If any of these colors, then is should have color matched front and rear bumpers. What wheels are on it? They had their own wheels as well. The interior was much different than other Explorers. The seats will be grey or tan leather with Limited stitched into them and have seperate headrests. The carpeting will be green or burgandy only and the tops of the door panels will be a plush type leather instead of the plastic panels.
I think to help you more accuratly, we need to see how your truck is constructed. The limited had its own wiring harness, unique to itself.
It doesn't sound like the limited. It has a gray cloth interior, no leather and no the steering wheel and column are not the same color, they are just black, and no overhead console. It has the chrome front and rear bumpers, no colors. Carpet is gray like the rest of the interior. I'll see if I can get a pic n here, tried to put one as the avatar but that didn't work. I would think it is just the XLT from the ones I've seen. I see the only way to get an image in here is to have the url and I don't know what that would be from my pictures. Why can't I get it in to be the avatar? I'll see if this will work. It has the spoked looks like stock wheels.
Well that didn't work. Found one on ebay that is an XLT that looks the same as mine, http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford...bfbQQitemZ230498421755QQptZUSQ5fCarsQ5fTrucks
Well got the new horn relay today and now it works okay so far but it did before, cruise control works again but not the light on the dash for the auto theft which worked before this. So time will tell I guess if the horn starts blasting again when ever and scares the crap out of me!! Still don't know why that would have turned all the running lights on or why the auto theft light won't work now, hate wiring problems.
