My 2002 Explorer has electrical issues. | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

My 2002 Explorer has electrical issues.

ridehoodcliff

New Member
Joined
April 23, 2011
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
City, State
Gladstone, OR.
Year, Model & Trim Level
2002 Explorer XLT
Hello everyone!
I have a 2002 Explorer that's driving me nuts. The power locks keep cycling and chiming repeatedly while driving and the factory alarm keeps going off all by itself at all the wrong times. What can I do to fix this?
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.











Could be as simple as your rear-liftgate not being tight. Mine did the same thing and still does occasionally. The upper portion of the latch doesn't always close right and will randomly cycle the locks and all that. Start there, best of luck!
 






Welcome aboard ridehoodcliff! :salute:


I had similar electrical issues with my 02 xlt. The dome lights would stay on until the battery saver feature turned them off, the driver side puddle light didn't work, the keypad on the door would set off the alarm when I pressed it, the door ajar light would flash and beep at highway speeds, the radio would shut off as soon as I turned the key off, etc. Most recently all 4 windows stopped working.

A lot of electrical issues can be traced back to broken/damaged wire(s) in the boot between the body and the driver's door. I found 2 broken wires and repaired them. The thin black ground wire was broken and after repairing it all was back to normal. When the windows stopped working, I repaired the thick black ground wire and the windows now work like a champ.

Could also be related to the door ajar switch.

Here is the thread for removing the door panel: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums//showthread.php?t=303524

Here is a great thread for checking/replacing the door ajar switch, thanks to borland for the awesome write-up: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=249253

That is a great write up.

On a side note, before going through a complete replacement of the switch, you can spray WD40 into the door latch opening on each door, as these become stuck sometimes....and this can alleviate the issue.

This worked for me, after going for more than a year of the "door ajar" light coming on occasionally...mainly after a car wash, high humidity, or rain....making me unable to lock/arm the vehicle from the door keypad and keeping the dome lights on. Worth a try....it worked for me :thumbsup:

Here is a great thread for checking for broken/damaged wires, thanks to synyster for this awesome write-up: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums//showthread.php?t=270081

Be sure to take your time when looking for broken/damaged wire(s). When you think you're done looking, look again, and again, and again. A bright flashlight can be very helpful.

Hope this helps out! :biggthump
 






We've had the same issues in our 02 XLT start within about 2 years of ownership. We had the dealer change the transponder, some components in the main computer and a bunch of other stuff...nothing worked.

My wife mentioned that she thought it was originating in the drivers door. She was dead convinced it was all starting from there. As I started to trace wires originating in the door, low and behold, there were many of the problems. I think I'm going to keep here for a while longer now...I'm also going to keep my wife too :)
 






A lot of electrical issues can be traced back to broken/damaged wire(s) in the boot between the body and the driver's door. I found 2 broken wires and repaired them. The thin black ground wire was broken and after repairing it all was back to normal. When the windows stopped working, I repaired the thick black ground wire and the windows now work like a champ.

Could also be related to the door ajar switch.

/this^
 






Could be as simple as your rear-liftgate not being tight. Mine did the same thing and still does occasionally. The upper portion of the latch doesn't always close right and will randomly cycle the locks and all that. Start there, best of luck!

This is the problem I had. Easy to diagnose if it does it when hitting a good sized bump. Makes the rear window jiggle, setting off the door ajar, et al.
 






This is funny because I have the same issue. My father in law somehow managed to completely shatter my back hatch (lets not mention that he completely sheared off the hinges too) brings it back to me and says "and I think you have a short somewhere too" thinking door ajar light has a little something to do with the hatch.....um....not being there. The other day my horn was going crazy at 6 in the morning and the only quick, in my underwear in the driveway fix was pulling the big fuse for horn and a/c clutch solenoid. Taking a trip to junkyard today for back glass and a few other things.
 






Back
Top