The remote keyless entry works ok on all doors of my van, except the rear doors. The actuator pulls the rear door into the locked position whatever I do, I can no longer open it manually using just the handle from the inside or outside. This makes the rear load space useless to me.

When I press the inside switch on the right rear door to unlock, the manual release pull goes up like it should, and then immediately goes back down, as if the actuator is getting a signal to lock it again. It does the same thing if I open all the doors from the master switch on the driver's door.

I have had a helper try to open the door manually from outside at the same time I'm pressing the switch to open from the inside, but no luck.

Is this a switch problem or something else? Any guidance would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

I'd bet it's a switch problem, try unpluging the switch on the rear door.

 

Thanks for the reply!

I tried to remove the switch from the right rear plastic door panel. I was able to pull it into the car enough so that the metal retaining spring clips were inside the panel and not holding the switch back. But I couldn't pull it clear enough to see behind the switch or to disconnect the switch. It was acting as if the harness was limiting how much I could pull it away from the door. I really don't want to cut the door panel, which is otherwise in original condition. Do I need to use brute force to get it out?

Is the rear door lock switch prone to acting up? It did look a bit rusty on the switch spring clips, so it seems like the door cavity is not water sealed.

I suppose a short from water in the switch could be telling the actuator to lock the door as soon I attempt to unlock it. The problem did get incrementally worse over time, which could be result of the water damage going from occasional to permanent.

I guess it makes sense that this switch is more likely to be the culprit instead of the master lock switch on the driver's door. Does anyone know if one of the wires off the master switch could be disconnected and take the rear door lock off the master lock circuit? If so, which one? Thanks.

Thanks again. Any further comments welcomed.

 

How does the locking mechanism work when the key is used? Does it exhibit this same behavior?

 

Thanks for the reply.

If I use the key in the outside of the rear door, as soon as I turn it to the unlocked position, the actuator inside the door returns it to the locked position instantly. The key turns to about 2:00 position, and then turns back to the 12:00 position on its own. It has done this progressively worse for some time, but only very recently have I not been able to open it with the key from outside. Before it became impossible to open the door, I would sometimes have to use the key 2-3 times, after hearing it lock itself spontaneously several times.

Basically the electrical system overrides unlocking manually, whether I'm using the key on the outside or the door handle on the inside. Just the rear doors, however. All other doors work fine with key or on the driver's door switch.

 

You could pull the fuse under the dash for the PDL system or simply disconnect the positive battery terminal---that would remove any electrical input to the locking solenoid allowing the door to open normally.

It does appear that door mounted actuator switch is acting up---they can and do cause all sorts of issues when they've failed. As an anecdote my '05 E350 Club Wagon's PDL stops working from- time-to-time and I've tracked it down to that switch. In my case its not the switch or the wiring harness connector rather its in the wiring harness itself. When I'm less lazy and the weather is better I'll fix it.

If you need replacement parts the switch can be easily found but not so much the connector itself---they're both fairly expensive all things considered.

Good luck with this---I know how aggravating it can be.

 

Thanks very much for that suggestion, JWA! I see from the owner's manual that fuse #4 is the one for my model. I can't pull it permanently, there are other important components on that circuit, but I'll do so to get the doors open. If successful, will then try to remove the rear trim panel and see how I can access that switch. I can't find that rear door switch being sold by itself, but will continue to look.

 

Michael, allow me to suggest a simple temporary solution. First, based on your observation and my previous experience with these systems, water damage has obviously occurred, either in the wiring harness going to the locking actuator, or the actuator itself. Years ago, my van sometime use to exhibit this annoying characteristic after heavy rain storms. There are usually 2 wires that connect a modular electrical connector to the electrical actuator in the rear door. For the time being, before you investigate the wiring within the door, or replace the actuator, simply cut One of the 2 wires in half, then place electrical tapes around the end of the 2 wires cut. Then, no electrical voltage will flow to the actuator to lock it. This should allow for manual operation of the rear door lock only. At least you can use the rear doors for access, simply don't forget to manually lock it when necessary. Your rear door key should operate the lock as well, lubricate the inner lock for ease of operation.

 

Thanks desmond53! That sounds like a very good good plan. I'll do just that tomorrow when I can work on it and report back. Great suggestion! Since both of you who have replied report water issues with the harness itself as well as the switch, I'll also investigate that at the same time. Thanks!

 

I finally could work on my van, and am still stymied. Even with the #4 fuse pulled out, the rear door actuator is somehow still getting power and resisting all efforts to manually open the right rear door with the key from outside and with the handle from inside. This made me think it was the wet harness problem mentioned above.

Went to Plan B, disconnecting the battery. Even with no power to the vehicle, the actuator is still holding the rear door in the locked position. I guess this means its designed to fail into the locked position. Not only I can't use the rear doors, I can't even open them to remove the inside trim panel to see if I can manually open the door from inside the door cavity.

From You Tube, I've seen that I can probably cut through the plastic license plate mounting box's front face and make an access hole, but that seems pretty crazy. Sounds like vans the age of mine don't have the anti-theft bracket/plate inside the door structure, but I couldn't find this out definitively.

Any additional suggestions as to how to open the rear door without destroying the inner trim panel or the license plate box? Any other thoughts on the whole problem? Thanks!

 

To update, I found another thread here that described how to remove the plastic door trim panels, and I've now done the RH one successfully. Then removed the license plate/door handle plastic box. I found the long cable with the ball ends loose at one end and hanging down to near the bottom of the door. The cable had the rubber grommet that holds it into the metal bracket missing. Not really clear what the loose end originally attached to, but there must be some videos of this on the web.

Looks like what I need to do is replace the two cables that are in use. Will now start looking for the threads that discuss how to refit these cables.

 

Greetings Michael17 Your rear door actuator problem is a common issue with older Ford vans. You have observed the rubber end of the cable that fits in the actuator fork linkage has rotted away; and without a holding point for the cable, the cable simply will not operate the door locks/linkage. Allow me to offer an economical solution that will not require purchasing new cables. The original cables can be used with the addition of aluminum caps that can be placed in the exact position of the original rubber '*****' that fit in between the linkage fork. Go to ebay and search for Ford cable repair pieces. Many different companies sell these tapered aluminum end caps. Look for a seller named ' shoppingsoon'. he offers 16 of these pieces for 10 bucks, enough to repair 4-8 doors. The cables will have to be completely removed, the remaining rubber ***** will have to be cut off; and then replaced with the aluminum pieces I speak of. Make sure the new pieces are fitted in the exact same location as the original rubber *****, the cable will have to be inserted into the end of them until you reach a stopping position, do Not trim or remove any of the original vinyl cable sheath that covers the cable. When performing this procedure, carefully observe and record with photos the original position of all linkages and cable placements. Do NOT force anything, nor make unnecessary cuts into sheet metal, ect. You will need 4 hands to successfully accomplish this objective, be patient; and document every sequence of disassembly, this is very important!! Make sure you have a friend to help you that has patience and be careful not to cut your hands on sharp metal screws that hide from sight.This is not a 'plug and play' procedure, especially on the van's rear doors, it takes time and patience to do it right if you have never attempted this before! Use the correct tools! If your rear door cables have failed, you can bet your other doors are very close to failing as well. With the aluminum inserts, this problem will never happen again. 10 bucks for a set of 8 sure beats paying 18-20 bucks a piece for new cables. Remember, no cutting, bending or excessive force is required to successfully complete this job, but it will require time, patience; and carefully observing your sequence of events as you conduct the repairs. Allow 4-6 hours to complete both rear van doors.

 

Desmond and every one else---Dorman makes more than acceptable pre-made cables for the Ford E-Series side and rear doors. Sure they're not as cheap as the repair ends but apart from simply removing the bad cable(s) and swapping in the new they don't require anything else.

I've used the repair ends and they're just okay---I prefer an intact machine-made cable assembly completely new for the longest lasting repair.

 

Thanks for the additional suggestions. I ordered a pair of Dorman cables off Amazon, $22 delivered in 2 days since I'm a Prime customer already. Compared to $36 a set via local Autozone, etc. I figured if the original pair lasted 20 years and I'm 70 years old, these will outlive my driving days.

The challenge with using cables like the originals is that they don't want to stay in place while you maneuver the various components into their locations within the door. I did the whole assembly to find out something had popped apart, and had to do it again. This time, it went much quicker. If I had to do it again, I could do that door in about an hour.

Here are some tricks I used that helped a lot the second time around.

The actuator in the right rear door is held tightly with a u-shaped spring clip that has to be pried open with a screwdriver to take the actuator out. The actuator has pins on the sides of its body that engage into grommets in the spring clip. When it is time to put the actuator back into place, I found the best solution was to insert 2x 2" wide metal putty knives on each side of the spring clip, and then align the actuator body so the pins will meet the grommets when the actuator is pressed back into place, relying on the putty knives to spread the spring clip open. It wants to fight you, but in the end, this went pretty well. Note the locating pins on the actuator body are closer to one side of its body than the other, and that side of the actuator has to go into the spring clips. IE, put it back in the same orientation it came out!

Whatever you do, don't drill out the rivet on the outside of the door that holds that spring clip into place. This is a colossal error shown in some online guides.

Another tip is to wrap protective tape around the plastic lock **** that sticks up through the lower window trim. To put the main catch into its correct position, its threaded release rod needs to stick up through the door trim hole first thing. Then screw the **** on it, and use a small vice grip to grab the plastic **** so it will hold the whole assembly loosely in place while you check that the cables have not popped out of their bracket slots and that the cable runs are smooth and not kinked. You can feel all the cable attachment points even if you can't see them, to confirm the cable ball ends are still where they need to be and are moving the appropriate linkage.

Even though I can now lock and unlock my door fine with the main switch at the driver's door and with the switch on the inside of the rear door, I can't open the right rear door with just the key from the outside. I am ignoring this for the time being, but will look at it again soon. Perhaps the key lock is acting up, or the linkage rod that runs up to the main catch has become dislodged. I also want to install a metal piece behind the plastic license plate box, since a thief with a 3" hole saw and a battery drill could open an access hole in about 1 minute, enabling him to reach in and use the inside handle to open the door. I understand later vans have some metal there already, but not in 1999. This design oversight is shocking.

 

Greetings JWA, many thanks for the suggestion. I'm sure Michael will appreciate the alternate method of approach you offer. When I repaired my door cables on my 2, e-150 vans, I repaired all 12 doors at the same time. Wanted to keep the repairs as economical as possible, so the aluminum cable tips worked fine for me; and that was 2.5 years ago. Once again, many thanks for your time saving suggestions.