Hello
This is my first thread. I own a 2001 S'crew XLT. It was used. My problem is sometimes both remotes work great (awake) up to 50 feet or they both don't work at all (asleep). I have to open door manually. My first thought is maybe something was jamming the reciever with RF. But this happens all too frequently at different places usually when truck sits for an extended time. Any suggestions? I was hoping this problem was popular but from what I read it isn't. By the way I live in So. FL and I bought the truck in Feb 2004 of all places a Dodge Dealership (price was right). Thanks for any advice. :-) Vic

 

Hate to point to the obvious, but have you tried changing batteries in both remotes. A battery from 2001 will be getting a bit old.

 

Initially I thought the same thing I did check battery on one remote with a voltmeter and is was good. More importantly I made sure I had good contact from battery and contacts. The other remote is brand new and was recently programmed by a Ford Dealer 2 Months ago. It is strange that both remotes will either work (up to 50 ft away) or both will neither work. It has never occurred where one remote unlocks/locks the door while the other doesn't or vice-versa. Which leaves me to believe it is the receiver (or lack of voltage to the reciever) and not the actual remote. When I park my truck at work I lock it with no problem but 10 hours later ready to go home it won't unlock/lock/alarm. When I take short rides the remotes will work like there was no problem. It's like the reciever runs on it's own internal battery and loses its charge Then when I drive the truck it's like I recharge the recievers internal battery up again. I know this sounds crazy and is absurd. Thank you for your reply. Any other suggestions? :-) Vic

 

I've had a problem w/ a remote unlocking a vehicle, not my F150 though. All I needed to do was hit the lock button and then it would unlock. I think they have whats called a rolling code that changes everytime you lock it so that a potential thief can't steal the code and unlock your vehicle.

 

xxvicxx -
It would appear your Central Security Module is acting up - this is the remote keyless entry receiver. It is a white/beige box under your dash, mounted above and to the left of your brake pedal (towards the parking brake pedal).

There are two wire harnesses that connect to this box - check them both to make sure they are connected properly.

 

I tried something different today almost what TJ said. Instead of trying to unlock the door before I went home today. I pushed the Lock button instead, even though door was still already locked, to my surprise the lock mechanism did respond by activating the locks to lock again, Then I pressed unlock and it unlocked the doors. This is definitely Strange. I see a possible solution. Always press lock button first (to activate reciever) then press unlock second to open door. Hmmmmmmmmmmm

if I go the other way around (normal sequence) then I may or may not be able to use remote to enter vehicle all depending on how long truck sits.

I'll check white/beige box under dash tomorrow after work for proper contact. This is a phenomenom. I only tried this idea once and I'll try it again tomorrow (maybe this was luck). I'll let you Know. Thank you very much for this Idea. :-) Vic

 

xxvicxx,

Just out of curiosity, try this; when you get to work or where ever, lock your truck as usual, then try to open it after a minute, if that works, wait 15 minutes. If after 15 minutes the locks will not activate, it could be that either your module is cooked or there are wires crossed.
The passive anti theft system will not allow the locks to be activated from the unlock button on the inside of the door after the truck has been locked for about 10-15 minutes. This prevents someone from using a stick to unlock your doors from a window left cracked open.
I wired my “remote start” FOB to this circuit and the locks would function fine within 10 minutes of locking, but would not work after that unless I started the truck remotely. Do you have any after market accessories that are wired into the module or locking circuit?

 

Hello,

I had no problem unlocking door when I first depressed the "lock" button then depress "unlock" button door unlocked. Car sat 10.5 hours. So the temporary solution worked for the 2nd day in a row.

When I got home I saw screwloose's post and followed his instuctions:
First I locked door with remote, waited 1 minute and then was able to unlock door with the remote then I locked door again with remote and waited 20 minutes and was still able to unlock door with the remote without any problem. At least now we know module isn't fried. There doesn't appear to be an alarm in this truck. I locked the door using the remote while seated in the truck and waited another 10 minutes then manually exited the door with just using the door handle. No Alarm sounded. This truck had 40K miles when I bought it in Feb. It is also interesting to mention I'm able to roll window up and down without a key in the ignition. I've never done that before. This truck has a lot of electrical quirks.

Next I checked the connections on the receiver module exactly right where buschman told me right above parking brake pedal and they looked OK also moved the connector wires up and down (they were locked into the module) since all the wires are on the bottom of beige/white module box (made in Canada).

I hate intermittent problems usually these take hours to figure out. Thanks again for the responses to this post. :-) Vic

 

I believe I don't have any other accessories other than what appears to be OEM. Remote side view mirrors. Temperature guage, compass up on truck cieling. CD stereo. By the way the side view mirrors also operate without key in ignition. Having these operable directly to battery seems odd. I would rather had them hooked to the ignition. Is it possible the locks and windows are both hooked through the same connection. As soon as window no longer works The unlock is not going to a hard ground therefore screw ups receiver module (locks up when I try to use "unlock" on the remote) and maybe by repressing lock button on remote causes a path to hard ground therefore activates the receiver module (like powering the window again). And that is why I'm now able to get remote to work. I wonder if a Ford Engineer frequents these boards. Ford would make even more $$$ if they did. Just some more thoughts. Thanks! :-) Vic

 

The windows will remain "active" for about ten minutes after turning off the ignition or untill you open a door. That is normal and very convenient when you forget to close the window after shutting it down and removing the key. I always used to do that in my 85' Mustang. My 01 Toyota Sienna has the same function.

 

Hello TJ

Thanks for the info. I Had a 1988 Mustang GT Conv't (sold it 2 weeks ago) and it never did that. I also just checked my 2003 281SC Saleen Mustang Convertible and it doesn't do it either. Maybe just Mustang Convertibles don't have this option. Oh well. It is interesting though that both side mirrors on truck are also operable as well as the windows. Apparently they are both on the same circuit. Why would anyone need to adjust the sideview mirrors while car key is removed? I bet someone has an answer to that!

By the way it is the 3rd day in a row I was able to unlock the door by pressing "Lock" first then by pressing "unlock" 2nd on the remote. Thanks TJ for the idea. I believe this a first Generation Truck (2001) even though I have backseat headrests (The manufacturing date says 12/00) . Thanks again everybody :-) Vic

 

Sitting in the parking lot waiting for your wife/girlfriend to finish shopping. Babe walks by in a pair of shoes your wife/girlfriend would like, so you visually follow her all the way to her car without drawing attention to yourself by squirming in the seat. Hence, the sideview mirror remains live without fumbling for the keys. Those ford engineers, always the thoughtful bunch.