Opinions/Experiences wanted: Engine won't turn off

[pnwtechie]

This past Saturday 12/15/12, while traveling on the way out of a parking lot, my 2013 Explorer XLT 4x4 with just over 3000 miles on it flashed "Hill Descent Fault" on the display and stated I needed to stop and restart the engine.

I dutifully stopped the vehicle, shifted the gearshift to "Park" and then attempted to turn the engine off with the intent to restart the engine. Problem is, the engine did not turn off, even after removing the key. The heater, which was on before, also remained on. At that point, I re-inserted the key in the ignition and tried turning and jiggling the key around just in case there was some kind of short. I tried this several times and no dice. No response whatsoever. Add to that, despite the engine was still running, the vehicle would not shift out of park. No matter how hard or how many times I stepped on the brake, the gearshift button would not depress.

So here I was, stuck in the middle of a parking lot, engine stuck running, headlights stuck on, heater stuck on, 6 people in the car, gearshift stuck in park. The headlight switch was in the OFF position and the MyFordTouch climate controls indicated everything was OFF. The steering wheel still worked fine. Electric assist was still working. I could not believe what was going on. Despite the engine running, I could not get it in or out of gear to push or move the vehicle.

Add to that, after a few minutes, the dash would flash on and off with the same fault and the touch screen would turn on and off continuously.

I had to get the vehicle towed to the dealership and, as I understand it, they let the vehicle run out of gas (because they left the engine running) and the battery went dead (because the heater and lights could not be turned off).

When the dealer got back to me. the quoted Ford SSM-22280 stating that they believed it was my aftermarket HID lights that caused the run-on problem because the Explorer (among other Ford vehicles) has a low-current ignition switch.

Has anyone ever encountered anything like this before? This boggles the mind!
If you have installed aftermarket HIDs, I especially invite your input.
Has anyone had much experience with ANYTHING regarding SSM-22280?

I installed my plug and play HIDs (no splicing was necessary in any way), it all just used the existing plugs with no mods or cutting of any wires. This is the only time it has ever happened and my HIDs have been in for over a month and are still hooked up.

 

[JeffsSport]

This past Saturday 12/15/12, while traveling on the way out of a parking lot, my 2013 Explorer XLT 4x4 with just over 3000 miles on it flashed "Hill Descent Fault" on the display and stated I needed to stop and restart the engine.

I dutifully stopped the vehicle, shifted the gearshift to "Park" and then attempted to turn the engine off with the intent to restart the engine. Problem is, the engine did not turn off, even after removing the key. The heater, which was on before, also remained on. At that point, I re-inserted the key in the ignition and tried turning and jiggling the key around just in case there was some kind of short. I tried this several times and no dice. No response whatsoever. Add to that, despite the engine was still running, the vehicle would not shift out of park. No matter how hard or how many times I stepped on the brake, the gearshift button would not depress.

So here I was, stuck in the middle of a parking lot, engine stuck running, headlights stuck on, heater stuck on, 6 people in the car, gearshift stuck in park. The headlight switch was in the OFF position and the MyFordTouch climate controls indicated everything was OFF. The steering wheel still worked fine. Electric assist was still working. I could not believe what was going on. Despite the engine running, I could not get it in or out of gear to push or move the vehicle.

Add to that, after a few minutes, the dash would flash on and off with the same fault and the touch screen would turn on and off continuously.

I had to get the vehicle towed to the dealership and, as I understand it, they let the vehicle run out of gas (because they left the engine running) and the battery went dead (because the heater and lights could not be turned off).

When the dealer got back to me. the quoted Ford SSM-22280 stating that they believed it was my aftermarket HID lights that caused the run-on problem because the Explorer (among other Ford vehicles) has a low-current ignition switch.

Has anyone ever encountered anything like this before? This boggles the mind!
If you have installed aftermarket HIDs, I especially invite your input.
Has anyone had much experience with ANYTHING regarding SSM-22280?

I installed my plug and play HIDs (no splicing was necessary in any way), it all just used the existing plugs with no mods or cutting of any wires.

Wow never heard anything like that.

 

[Peck]

the dealership must be a sorry one unhook the air box and cover the air intake to stall the motor and unhook the battery to force stuff inside off hell a moron could figure that out might not that good for it but better than running the tank dry and killing a battery

 

[Cougar XR7]

That is my biggest nightmare. I had that happen on a newer snowmobile that cause it to run erratic and lose power. Took it to the dealer and they called back an hour later to say they unhooked what I did and everything was good.
I am still looking for a place on this explorer to grab power but I only want power on when the explorer is running any ideas?

 

[cnsheets]

I have had plug-n-play HID's installed in my 2011 for over a year without any problems. I am using a relay harness, so the factory headlight wires are basically just a switch triggering the relay. The power for the HID's comes directly from the battery. I just don;t see how the HID's could have ANY affect on the vehicle not turning off......

 

[pnwtechie]

@cnsheets: Exactly. The Plug and play HIDs I used were literally that. I did not use the relays, but essentially, the ballasts I used are effectively a solid-state relay. This was an approved way in the HID installation instructions. But I did not tap anything other than the headlight outputs that would have normally plugged into the 9005 bulbs provided by the factory. No wires were cut. No wires tapped.

After coming back from the dealership today, I agreed to remove them and test. Frankly, any car you where can remove the key from the ignition and the engine is still running may be an unsafe car, but I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.