Help,
I have a 2004 Excursion with the 6.0 diesel. I whipped into the bank this morning, shut it off, when i came back out and tunrned the key....NOTHING.
The lights work, the starter just will not engage and the theft light flashes very fast when you try to start it. I used the same key I always use. Of course the dealer says tow it in we will be happy to look at it it could be a hundred things.
I have had good luck here in the past so I figured I would try again. Is anyone familiar with this and what the cause might be???

Thanks.

 

Congratulations, your truck believes it has been stolen! Along with this, you get a non-starting truck.

But wait! There's more! Act now, and you may get a large bill for:

- A new ignition key (unlikely... but if you didn't try your second key, possible)
- A new radio receiver in the steering column (more likely)
- A new powertrain control module (also likely)

I can't remember what other components are involved with this sytem, but it's not 100. The PATS (Passive Anti Theft System) will do what you're describing when the little frequency from your key is not detected by the truck when you try to start it. On my 2000, this happened to me shortly after I bought it. Turned out to be the powertrain control module (I think that's the name, I can't remember for sure). In my case the truck would crank forever, but not catch. I think it cuts off fuel and spark when it thinks it's stolen. More annoying was that this would occur randomly. Eventually it got bad enough that the dealership was able to find and fix the problem.

When this happened to me, they said that normally it is the receiver in the steering column. The computer is the second probable cause. Unfortunately, it does really go from working to not working that quickly.

Good luck. Expect the bill to be around $300-$1000 depending on what it is.

 

Mine thinks that every time I try to start it in the morning... Of course, that's b/c usually I try and do it using the mustang key...

 

I sort of had the same problem you are having, when I installed a cortex superchip program. It wouldn't start, and kept draining the battery. VERY frustrating. I was about to turn the chip when the vendor gave me some instructions from Ford to re-sync the key.

Turn the key till the gauge/warning lights come on. The anti-theft light will flash really quickly, as I'm sure you've already scene. Keep the key this way for about almost a minute. You should see the anti-theft light noticabley slow down. Once slowed down, turn the ignition off. Count 40 seconds off, turn the ignition gauge lights back on. You should see the anti-theft (either slowly flashing) or turn off quickly. Now, you've synced your key, she's ready to start.

Whenver I take mine in to a Ford dealership for service, I have to unload the cortex tune and put the stock program back. So, I do this re-sync process every couple of months. Good Luck!