Hey all! Brand new here and have an issue that I'm hoping some of you guys could help with.

I have a 2005 Ford Escape, very low millage on it for its year, and the "Panic Alarm" has been triggering automatically. I don't have an ACTUAL alarm on the car, just the little red button you push on the key fob to make the horn go off annoyingly.

I have read about a hood latch sensor triggering it, but would that be the same case if there isn't a legit alarm system?

This only SEEMS to happen while I am at work. My first instinct was that there is some sort of interference causing it to go off on its own since there are a lot of electronics around me. Today was the worst though, as it went off, I hit the red button to shut it off, then it would go off again, hit the button, go off again, this happened about 10 times in a row. I finally got sick of it and just went out and took out the horn fuse.

Luckily the horn can't go off now... but...
1. I now have no horn, obviously haha
2. The panic alarm lights still blink, which concerns me that it may kill my battery if it does this and I don't catch it.

One of my coworkers told me that one day the alarm went off (without me knowing)... then it just turned off on its own after about 20 seconds.

This is just getting very frustrating. I swapped out my key fob battery and cleaned the contacts as well when I got home from work tonight. I am hoping that this will do the trick.

Does anyone have any personal experience with this? Is there any way to just disable the "panic alarm" and blinking lights all together?

Thank you all in advance!
- John

 

To add to this, I am not getting any door ajar notifications or anything like that.

I'm thinking there is some sort of interference in the area I work, but just wanted to get some professional opinions!

The places around where I work are...
- Video game store
- Arcade
- Guitar amp repair shop
- Apartment complex

So obviously, a lot of electronics and computers and whatnot which I am guessing may be the big factor here.

It's hard to tell whether it's the fob acting up or the car itself that is the issue.... or a combination with the electrical interference.

 

Welcome to FTE.

It’s unlikely this is an electronic interference issue, but in cases like this you want to rule out the simplest problems first. To me this sounds like either an undercharged/bad battery or intermittent open.

Start by making sure the car battery is fully charged and the connections are clean and tight. Use the owners manual to check related fuses - you’re not looking for blown fuses but fuses that are loose in their slots and could be making and breaking contact on the circuit.

 

I have had the "panic alarm" go off maybe half a dozen times in the 14 months that I have owned my 2005 Escape.


I am not 100% sure but I think it has something to do with the way it sits inside my pocket of my jeans


I believe that something else in my pocket is / was pressing the "panic button"

 

Thanks DBGrif91!
The thing that made me think it was electrical interference was that it only ever happens when I'm at work. *knock on wood* I have never heard it go off when I've been at home or out and about. The car battery is very fresh, I keep it all super clean, too.

I opened up my key fob and noticed that the battery in it was kinda wet. I couldn't tell if it was dialectic grease or potentially leaking, but I cleaned it and swapped the battery out for a new one.

Thanks gunner!
The issue with this is that I never have my keys in my pocket, always attached to one of my belt loops. I also thought "Maybe I'm just bumping it on something?" but then it went off when my keys were just sitting on my desk.

 

One thing that throws a whole new wrench into this situation is that yesterday I was out driving and suddenly I was getting "Right rear door ajar" alerts on my dashboard for a few blocks, and it seemed to kind of do it in the pattern that my alarm was on on the day I took out my fuse. I don't remember the last time I even opened that door and this is the first time I have ever had anything like this pop up (a few weeks ago I drove 3 hours straight with no weird issues).

I'm not sure if this would be related to the alarm, since it ONLY happens when I'm at work, and I've never experienced this, but I've heard some stories relating the two things.

Headache inducing!

 

If it’s interference at all, it’s most likely coming from the key fob of another Ford owner who’s parking close enough that their fob is being picked up by your car. The frequencies are supposed to be such that this doesn’t happen but Ford often warns of this in service information.

I’m still doing some digging for you, but I think it would be worth it for you to have the codes pulled. You’ll probably have to go to a shop because most auto parts stores will only read power train codes and you need to know what codes are in the security and body systems. SOME independent shops will read codes for free but that’s entirely up to them - if you go to a dealer they will likely charge you a diagnostic fee.

That will at least give us a direction to move in - there’s a lot of wiring diagrams to sort through looking for a connection between the panic/alarm system and the door ajar notifications so it’s taking time. With the door ajar now part of the equation (for apparently no reason) I’m starting to think there’s moisture intrusion into a wiring harness or control module.

 

So cool, let's add more to this now -___-

I was parked and sitting my car last night. I had the doors locked and was hanging out. When I went to open the door (still in "lock" position) the "panic lights" started to flash. I wasn't at work either. I thought maybe I hit my panic button as I was getting out of my car, but then when I pushed the button and turned it off they went right back on. Only did this one more time, then it was fine the rest of the night.

There are just too many weird things that do not make sense as to why this is happening now. It seemed like a pattern at first, now it's just being really random. Still going to do some investigating, but definitely need to take to the dealership or to an electric professional to get the codes read.

As DBG said above, it very well could be moisture. It just get very cold here in the Seattle area and we've had some frosty mornings.. I'm usually parked in my garage, but that doesn't mean it still couldn't be getting affected by that.

 

You should still have the codes read, but one thing you can check is G300 under the driver seat. It is a ground for the door ajar switches, and sometimes when there’s multiple faults like this, fixing one proves to be the fix for the rest.

You’ll probably have to remove the driver seat completely and pull back the carpet to see it, but check that it’s clean and tight. Clean if needed.

 

I have had a similar issue with our 07 Mariner Hybrid. One simple thing to try (if you have not already done this) is to "lube up" all four door latches as well as the hood latch, rear hatch and rear hatch window latch. I used WD-40 on each of these latches and so far so good.

I got this idea from a Youtube video. The culprit there is a Dodge minivan, but the basic theme applies to any vehicle. Even though each latch appears to be fully closed, there is a possibility that it may hang up just enough to impact the alarm system. Spray plenty of WD-40 and then open and close many times to work it in to the latch mechanism. No harm done if it does not work, just make sure you clean off the door jam so no one wipes out any clothes.

 

Just for giggles, try discounting the battery for awhile... and reconnecting.. It resets the system.

 

Right Rear Door Lock Actuator Motor, Takes about 1 hour to take out and 1 hour to put in. Do search for the best price.

 

The hood ajar switch is a cheap easy place to start the part is about $20.

 

Gentlemen/Ladies,

First a confession, I was reply #10 to JohnTheDrummer88 for the subject concern. My suggestion to lube up the various door latches, hood latch, hatch and rear window latches has not eliminated my issues with the panic alarm going off. (07 Mariner hybrid)
What I have leaned since making that suggestion is that my issue may be "interference'. I have never had the alarm go off when I park the Mariner out at the end of our backyard.. Conversely, if I park close to our house (neighbor's houses close to ours) I get a random panic alarm. Can average every other day or so. No other Ford vehicles nearby, nor can I correlate the alarm going off to neighbors getting in and out of their cars etc.
My understanding is that the panic alarm is configured in a way that it cannot be disabled ? I will post the issue in the Electrical/Wiring forum, since the issue seems to cut across all Ford vehicles. I will probably end up visiting the dealer but hoping to learn as much as possible, first.

Thanks !

 

The dealer will charge you $160 to tell you right rear door is the issue.