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door sensor problem

Sent to Car Experts August 14, 2006 10:50 a.m.

I have a '98 Ford Taurus. It has automatic door locks. It has a sensor in the instrument panel that alerts you to an open door. My problem is that this system is failing somewhere. The alert light is on most of the time which won't let the doors to autolock and it also keeps the interior lights on. I pulled the fuse/relay/controller (I'm not sure what it is as it was pulled some time ago) an the interior lights don't stay on. When the alert light is off the doors lock correctly. I was at church a couple of weeks back and had locked and armed the car and while listening to the sermon the car sensed the door condition change though no one was there(witnesses cofirm this) and the alarm went off. How do I discover what is the problem and how do I fix it.

Optional Information:
1998 Ford Taurus 3 liter

Already Tried:
nothing

Customer (name blocked for privacy)

Status: Closed Value: $8

Reply
Sent August 15, 2006 12:45 p.m. (1 day and 1 hour later)

Relist: No answer yet.

Customer (name blocked for privacy)

Answer
August 15, 2006 12:50 p.m. (4 minutes and 25 seconds later)

ACCEPTED

The door ajar switches are in the door latches. The quick fix is to spray wd 40 or some other penetrating oil into the latch and open and shut the door several times. This sometimes unsticks the switch. If that does not work then the switch will need to be replaced, but without a scan tool that allows you to look at data there is no way of knowing which door switch it is. Most of the time it is the drivers switch because that is the one used most, but it is not always the case.

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