My Excursion recently had all of the door lock actuators replaced, but locking still wouldn't function correctly...everything works fine with both the fob and the door keypad, but when using the door switches it would only lock, not unlock.

I searched for three days trying to find where the door relays were because I knew my actuators were all good....I happened upon a thread on here where a user had my same issue and was asking about relays. Like me he was trying to find out where the relays were, but users kept wanting to tell him to do the foil quick fix on his actuators. Even after he specifically said he was sure it was NOT the actuators, posters kept telling him to focus on the actuators, that there were no relays other than internal to the VSM I think...he finally took it to the stealership and they told him they had replaced one of the power lock relays under the dashboard.

I searched the internet for a couple more days trying to find where those elusive relays were, and all I could find was a generic "under the dash" if even that much--most people kept wanting to point users to the actuators. So for any future readers who want to know where the door lock relays on a 2000 Excursion are located, there are three of them--one for "all doors lock", one for "all doors unlock", and one for "driver's door lock". They are buried in the dashboard, mounted to the firewall upside down behind the radio. The easiest access to them is from the floorboard to the right of the accelerator pedal. You'll need to remove the knee panel under the steering wheel that covers the fuse box; then remove the rubbery lower wiring cover below it that's held in place by 3 or 4 pf the phillips head push-pins; then in the lower right of the opening where you removed the knee panel (look just above the accelerator pedal), find and remove the single gold 7mm screw that holds the driver's footwell air diverter in place, and remove the air diverter. Then lay on your back in the drivers floorboard and look up to where would be directly behind and just below the radio--you'll see a small (2"x6") rectangular black cover facing down that hides the relays, held on with a clip at each end. Pop the cover off, and you'll see the three relays. I'm not sure what order they are in. In my case, I was intending to make sure the relay was my problem by having what was functioning change when I swapped relays....apparently my problem was a poor connection on one of the relays because everything started working perfectly and has worked fine since.

Best of luck and hope this saves someone all of the aggravation I went through!

 

Reps sent, good looking out dude.

 

Added to the tech folder, thanks!

Stewart

 

This is excellent, thanks for figuring this out. Keep in mind relays have a mechanical component to them and can get stuck in either the closed or open position. Sometimes shaking or knocking them frees them up. Often times, they will go back to being sticky eventually. In case the issue presents itself again, I'd go whack or replace the relays before looking elsewhere.

 

Dang Mike: THANKS & WELCOME to the world of XXX's

 

ABSOLUTELY....for the small cost of the relays, if the locks act up again they WILL all three be replaced because they are a pain in the butt to get to! LOL

 

There are actually four relays in that box. The fourth one, a half-size ISO relay, is for the lamp flash function when locking, unlocking, or when the PANIC mode is activated.

All four relays are activated by the GEM module and are present only in RKE-equipped Super Duty and Excursions up until the time the RKE function was moved to the VSM.

 

Could a failed relay cause only the front passenger door lock to fail to lock with that door's toggle. All doors lock with master driver side controls and all doors lock with the fob. This door unlocks with the toggle but does not lock. A new toggle switch did not fix the problem.

 

Nope. That door does not have its own relay.

 

Thanks for clarifying that my problem is not a relay. Any thoughts as to what to look for next? Key fob locks all doors. Driver side rocker switches lock all doors. Front passenger door rocker opens door but does not lock door. Help!

 

I would check the wire loom mounted on the passenger door itself--looking for a smashed, severed wire between the door lock button and the GEM module. Also look at where the wires go up into the passenger door lock switch, making sure that all of the connector pins are pushed up into place. If you see a wire that looks further out than the others, that could be your problem.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I will take a look inside the door on Saturday.

 

Is there ANY reaction of that actuator when the switch is used, perhaps a feeble attempt? If so, the most plausible thing I can think of is that the actuator is getting lazy and can't react as quickly as the rest. Perhaps the pulse duration is shorter for an switch-initiated LOCK sequence than for one from the RKE?

Have you done the foil repair on the actuator or is it in original condition (aged, of course).

 

No, I have not done the foil repair. The actuators all still seem strong. As I wrote it works when directed from the driver side toggle or key fob and it also unlocks from the toggle switch on the passenger side. There is no noise at all when I try to lock it from that toggle switch.

Would a continuity test of the lock and unlock wires or a voltage test tell anything or would the solenoid negate one side from testing?
Thanks for your ideas. I am going to open up the door on the weekend and look for wire breaks, etc. If I take the actuator out I will do the foil repair too.

 

With the additional clarification, I'd now get on the path suggested by mikentucky. I think you have an open circuit in the "Lock" signal wire from the passenger side switch. That's a pink/yellow wire that goes from the switch, through the boot between the door and the frame then up into a main harness up in the dash where it splices into the common unlock signal from the driver's door switch and GEM module that is fed to the LOCK relay.