Curiosity killed the cat as they say.

Been many years since I did mine so I went out in the garage and took mine apart and tried a few things.

But first, here is a pic of the excursion specific wire and tab.


Edit..... Internet is going wonky....will upload the pic when I can... But on my e curation it looks just like the brown one but is black. Pretty much the same .

 

Take dome lights as an example. there are two bulbs in the same housing. they have a common power wire. you turn one on and provide ground, but there is still power in the circuit to flow to another ground when you turn on the other switch. That is why testing for a draw or a short in a circuit sux. If it is a bad wire the component can still work even though there is a short to ground draining the battery.

 

So I put my black/pink wire and the plastic tab holder back in.

Door chimes worked as designed.

Then key off I grounded the wire and turned key on.... Ding ding ding, Key off , still dinging, Key back on ....still dinging... Wouldn't stop.

To make it stop I simply turned the key off, grounded black wire for a quick second or two, did this twice, Turned key on and grounded twice, turned key off dinging stop stopped.

My best guess it there is a rely stuck somewhere on yours.... Try grounding and ungrounding in various key positions and see what happens..... Then find a wire diagram and find the rely....may be a gem function in which case..... Seek and destroy the dinger which according to urban lore is buried deep inside the dash. Lmao

 

It is not so much as the dinger as the accessories staying on and killing my battery, but i belive it is a stuck relay as well.

 

^ well there ya go

Found this, not excursion specific as it was listed for a f250 but it gives you an idea.

 

Is there a Single Relay that controls the door chime in addition to the radio and the interior lights as well as other accessories? I don't think there is one that controls all those things...but I am not sure on the 7.3. Did you see the pinpoint test that I posted on the previous page? The GEM is the only thing that I know of that has power going to all those items and it specifically lists the Black/Pink wire test for resistance.

 

But that's not a series circuit. Thats parallel. In a series circuit power would flow out of the second pin of one bulb to the first pin of the second bulb and then have only one ground at the second pin of the second bulb. Turning on one switch would turn on both bulbs. Also, removing one bulb from its socket would cause the second to go out. If you wire the same bulbs with the same power supply in a series circuit, they would light dimmer then if you wired it in a parallel circuit since the resistance decreases as the power flows from one bulb to the next.

In a parallel circuit both bulbs share a common connection to power and ground. The switch could be on either the power or the ground side and it would never affect the second bulb because the power takes the path through the bulb that you provided a ground to. The second bulb won't light because the power can't flow through it as it has no ground on the other side because the switch is open. The power is still present at the second bulb, it just has nowhere to go so the bulb doesn't light.

The circuit for the key chime has its own direct wire from the gem/vsm/whatever. It's not in series with anything else, it even has its own dtc code that can be set if there's a fault, it's b1352 or something like that. But as cyclevin mentioned, if you have other accessories staying on then you might have a stuck accessory delay relay or a bad gem. The accessory delay relay is in the fuse box under the dash in the 02 and up model years. I think it's there in the 01 also.

 

Can i run theses tests with just a standardcode reader? i do not know how to access the pid's. this is the first i have ever even heard of that.

 

PID's are Parameter Identifications. A standard code reader will not show the Key In/Out Status PID usually, you will need something like the Autel MaxiSys or Snap-On Modis/Versys to see those kind of PIDs. If you can borrow a good scan tool, it should be simple to determine if it is just your Key in Ignition Warning Switch or if you need a whole new GEM. The other tests can be performed with an voltmeter that can measure resistance (ohmmeter).

 

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I believe the cheaper code scanners can't read PIDs. They will just show you the DTCs from the regular engine components, some of them don't even show stuff stored in the GEM or other modules, just the ECM. You can get a cheap elm327 code reader and then use a compatible app to see the PIDs. I use the BAFX bluetooth obdII reader. It's about $20 and works really well. I use the Forscan app on my android and on my laptop to communicate with it. The Forscan software is the best I've found before stepping up to the stuff they use at the stealership.

 

So any ideas on where i can find a gem on the cheap? i got the code reader suggeted by didiex, that can read pid's, and the key in ignition always says no, but the alarm keeps going. key out door closed.

Also, is there any option to have it programed other than ford?

 

So the key in ignition PID says no even when the key is in? Doesn't that mean that you need a new Key in Ignition Warning Switch not a new GEM?

Who told you the GEM needed to be programmed. They do not need to be as far as I know as long as the part # is the same.

Did you end up going with the ELM327? What app did you use with it, Forscan?

 

You can try car-part.com, it basically searches all the scrap yards for you. A big selection but make sure you call the yard first and confirm that it was actually working when removed and that they will refund you if it DOA. Also, I could but wrong about this, but depending on major options, the GEM may be different, check the model number to be sure it's compatible.

I had asked the local Ford dealer about programming costs for the VSM before I found the problem with mine (was a wiring issue). I think they said it would be an hour of work plus tax, somewhere in the ballpark of $120. There was a local electronics shop near me who wanted $250. I belive that as long as the shop has the right equipment and software access then it can be done.

 

Cyclevin. yes, the elm 327 and forscan. as per programing, the reading i was doing said that it had to be programed unless it came from an identical vehicle with identicle options. since it is used across so many vehicles the chances of it coming form an 01 excursion lmiited are probably pretty low.