O.K. I wanted one forever and I pulled the triger. I trader my 03 Ram quad cab for a 02 Excursion Limited. I bought it from a Ford dealership for $12k with 122,000 miles on the v10. They put new Tires new calipers rotors and brakes on it. Also they replaced the whole front end before I took delivery of it. All I added was reflex shocks all the way around. I wanted a 02 cause I like the Chrome bumpers not the painted ones.I have put 2500 miles on it in the last 3 months that Ive had it. Runs like a scared rabbit. Well about 5 days ago the radio did not shut off after I opened the door after shut off. All the other crap that comes with it happened also ,remotes not working, door ajar light on, dome light on. I did the wd-40 trick on the doors several times I also pulled the door panels and soaked the switches point blank. Still did nothing. pulled the battery cable and it was fine for about 3 or 4 trips. now I have to pull the cable every night. I have 2.5 volts at every door switch when opened. and 0 when closed. Pulled the dash apart and I can see that the VSM is the original one. Guess I'm just looking for a confirmation on replacing it. Thanks for your time. Love this forum and my Excursion

 

Sounds like alot of issues. The radio should shut off with the key not the door closing?

Perry

 

No. It shuts off the radio, windows,etc when you open any door, or after a timeout. It's part of the options package.
JL

 

So it sounds like I take a bullet and replace the vsm.

 

The accessory delay isn't controlled by the VSM. It's controlled by the HEC (Hybrid Electronic Cluster) via a relay. You want to check the relay first, it may just be sticking.

I THINK the 2002 is the same as the 2004, which is what the following diagram is for. Replace the relay, or simply swap it with one of the other identical ones.

 

Thanks David I forgot to mention that I swaped that out but it did nothing. Also one time after I started the truck the horn beeped super fast short beeps like a machine gun til I pulled the battery cable. I hope the vsm swap works. Can I swap it then drive to the Ford Steelership to have it programed?

 

wow this is wierd. I just ran out to the store and when I hoped back into the X the door ajar light came on after i started it and the headlights did not come on (it was dark outside). I sat there looking at it and after a couple of choice words I heard a click under the dash and Poof! the headlights came on and the door ajar light went off and all was good! WTH? I think I'll revisit those nasty door switches again. WD-40 here I come

 

Where is a good place to buy a vsm?

 

bump

did you every find your issue? and did unplugging the battery help any? I had my battery/alt go bad last fall and I've been having issues here and there since. my radio/lights/windows are all experiencing issues and I'm 99.9% certain it's the VSM

 

I thought I should add my experience for the sake of others. I have a 2002 Excursion with the 7.3 and had a number of electrical gremlins such as keyless entry not working, auto lights not working, auto locks not working and I believe there were others that I cannot recall. After an internet search based on my symptoms I concluded the VSM had failed. The 2002 model year was especially bad for VSM failures. I was unable to find a new module and even Ford was out with no ETA. I went to a junk yard and bought one from a 2004 F250. I told them I did not want a 2002 module. They referred to an interchange manual that supposedly gave me a module that was acceptable for my application. I installed it and it resolved some things and didn't resolve others and even created a couple of new issues. I left the module hanging out from under the dash. I took it to an independent shop to reprogram and they did not do the job right despite touting having the factory software. I finally went to the dealership. They had quite a time getting the module to work. They had to reprogram 3 modules to trick them to accept the new module that as they described as "almost interchangeable". The 3 modules were the instrument cluster module, the VSM and I cannot remember the other. I was told for a while they were unable to even start the vehicle while struggling to get everything to jive. I was there for some hours thinking it was a 20 min deal. Eventually they resolved everything including some issues that were there when we bought the vehicle. If you need to have a VSM changed have the dealership program it. If you get a used module call the Ford dealer to verify its interchangability using the numbers on the front of the module. Make sure you do not get a 2002 module only to deal with the same issues again.

Nelson

 

which dealer fixed your truck in Tampa ,technician or advisor name ?? Ive have the same issue for about a year know .. Help I live in WC

 

I was finally able to find my receipt, of course only after recruiting my wife.

I took my Ex to Brandon Ford. The name of the man who did the work is Ed Craft. He did a nice job.

Nelson

 

Oh dear, reading this thread makes me realise the downward spiral of whats going on here.
I bought an ex a week ago, 2002 6.8L v10 gas pretty cheap, good condition except some electronics issues.

Same issues as listed, auto-headlights not working, door ajar light on constantly, radio not turning off with door open, dome light not on when doors opening.
This is making me think its the VSM, how much did you spend getting the VSM and the dealer to program it per chance?
Steve
hopefully youre still about this forum.

 

I just got a 2002 Big Boy with the V10 & 150,000 Miles that has the same Issues. Can you tell me the Part # you got for the 2004 F250?

Thanks

David

 

David,

I looked to see if I had taken a picture of the module before I installed it and apparently I did not. So, the short answer is that I don't have a PN. I don't believe it matters however. I would not hesitate in getting a 2003 module out of a F350 for example for my 2002 Excursion. My biggest criteria would be it is not a 2002 module. If you find a module out of the same model vehicle that has the same exact options you may not have to have it reprogrammed or reconfigured. Good luck finding that needle. Since my Excursion is a 4-door and the example F350 above that I get the module from is not, the door ajar feature needs to be "turned on" for the 2 back doors. You can begin to imagine how many things would need to be changed. Someone needs to go through that list in the VSM using the proper software and toggle on or off all the stuff that needs to be changed. The dealership software probably allows the technician to download the configuration from the old VSM and then upload it to another VSM assuming the old VSM isn't broke to the point the dealer computer can't communicate with it. In my case, the dealer complained to me that I had not gotten a compatible VSM and they had to go through too many ropes to make things "work". But who knows what exactly was going on? What I do know is that they got it to work and it still works today. If I were to get a VSM today, I would probably try to get a 2003 module because there are probably fewer design changes to account for when moving further away in years. I don't know if I can see the VSM where it is installed on my vehicle and see a PN on it. You may not be able to get one anyway. When I inquired about a new module from Ford they did not have any. I had to get a used one and could not get too picky. My suggestion is to aim for a 2003 module. In the mean time I will see if I can see the module and get some numbers off from it and post them. Maybe it will help. Btw, I recall that the dealership charged me $200 for the job but its been awhile.

Nelson