I have an 02 4 door explorer, it started out when it was cold out the door ajar and dome light would come on and off driving down the road, now when i open the drivers door there is no dome light and after i drive then shut the explorer off with the key out and open the drivers door the radio stays on! All of the other doors work normally and will turn the dome light on and off and they cancel the radio out when they are opened with the key out. Where do i start?

 

Sounds like one or both of the very common issues with either a bad door ajar switch in the driver's door latch or a broken wire in the accordion boot between the driver's door and the cabin. There's have been several posts on this forum for each, so rather than clutter the forum with duplicate info, I'll leave it as an exercise to you to try the "Search this forum" feature.

-Rod

 

I had similar electrical issues with my '02 XLT. The dome lights would stay on until the battery saver feature turned them off, the accessory delay wasn't working, 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, the alarm would beep twice when I armed it. Recently all 4 windows stopped working. Most recently the driver door lock actuator 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 3 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. I had to repair the pink/black wire to fix the driver door lock actuator.

Here is the thread for removing the door panel: How To: Remove/Replace 3rd Gen Door Panel - Ford Explorer Ranger Enthusiasts "Serious Explorations"®

Here is a great thread for checking for broken/damaged wires, thanks to synyster for this awesome write-up: How To: Fix the Door Ajar Problem - Ford Explorer Ranger Enthusiasts "Serious Explorations"®

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

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Could also be related to the door ajar switch.

Here is a great thread for checking/replacing the door ajar switch, thanks to borland for the awesome write-up: Door AJAR Switch Replacement on 2002XLT w/Photos - Ford Explorer Ranger Enthusiasts "Serious Explorations"®

Good luck with the fix!

 

Sorry for the highjack, but seemed liek the best place to ask. I found the broken black wire in the wlires running from the door. Now the automatic locks still do not work. Could they have reset them selves? Is there a sequence to be able to turn them back on? Everything else seems to be fixed once I repaired the wire.

The wife really likes the doors to lock once it is put into gear.

 

There's likely still a broken wire or two. Do they in either direction (lock or unlock)? Do any of the other lock switches work (other doors, cargo area)?

What year Explorer?

Wires can break inside the insulation making them difficult to spot without a careful examination. If you tell me what year your truck is, I can tell you what wire colors are related to the power locks in the driver's door.

-Rod

 

It is a 2004. And it seems that everything else works just fine, just does not lock once put into gear. I guess I will look again to see if there are any other wires.

I noticed there isn't much room to work with to try and fix the wires.

 

My recall is the auto locks are programmable. Take a look in the owner's manual and try the steps that I think are called out there.

-Rod

 

I just checked the electronic copy of the manual for my former 2004 Mountaineer. The steps to enable/disable Autolock are listed in the Locks and Security section, starting on page 87 in that manual. There are multiple ways to enable/disable. The below seems like the one most likely to work across vehicles.

Power door unlock/lock procedure

You must complete steps 1-5 within 30 seconds or the procedure will have to be repeated. If the procedure needs to be repeated, you must wait 30 seconds.

1. Turn the ignition to the 3 (ON)
position.
2. Press the power door unlock control three times.
3. Turn the ignition from the 3 (ON) to the 1 (OFF/LOCK) position.
4. Press the power door unlock control three times.
5. Turn the ignition back to the 3 (ON) position. The horn will chirp.
6. Press the unlock control, then press the lock control. The horn will chirp once if autolock was deactivated or twice (one short and one long chirp) if autolock was activated.
7. Turn the ignition to the 1 (OFF/LOCK) position. The horn will chirp once to confirm the procedure is complete.

Owner's manuals are quite useful, when people use them.

-Rod

 

Thanks I will try this out. And honestly we got the truck used and did not receive the owners manual with it. But I am guessing that I would've found it in there. But thanks for the write up.

 

You can download a PDF of the owner's manual here. There are a few other ways to enable the autolock feature listed in the manual as well.

-Rod