Ford Focus Central Locking Woes

[Granty88]

Hi All,

Hope someone can help me on my first post! Read similar posts on her using google but nothing quite solved the problem, although helped in cutting down where the issue could lie.

Right I will go through my problem start to finish including how it started:

Right sometime last year my remote central locking stopped working on my drivers side door, the passengers side still worked fine, it just meant me opening mine using the key.

I took my car to ford they wanted £76 for a diagnostics test, I thought no way.....I can use the key!

Anyway I read some more and it looked like it could be the solednoid....so I started looking for a new one of these but randomally one day I decided to clean my engine bay, after doing so my central locking randomally started working a treat again and everything was fine...I was happy....don't know if cleaning engine bay did anything, like knock dust off or something.

About a month later though, the whole system failed and now I have no remote central locking at all, just central locking with the key. Of course I tried cleaning engine bay again with no luck.

Now having no remote central locking is starting to bug me, i've tried reprogramming the key but that has not work. I have took the fuse box out, removed the fuse and it's not blown, so I have now also left the fuse out for 10 minutes in hope it would reset the system, tried to reprogram my key but I dont get the confirmation chime. Remote central locking still does not work.

I doubt however the fuse is the problem as the central locking works, just not with the key....I have changed the battery in the key twice by the way.

Does anyone think it could be the drivers side solenoid being faulty? And when I got it to work again for that month it mayoverloaded the system with too much current and knocked the wireless out faulty or something?

Or maybe its my key not transmitting wirelessly and thats broke? I don't have a second key to try which is a shame? Maybe I should ask my mate if I can use his? Also I have took my key apart, and when you take the first part off (the key blade) you can see a little LED, if I press something on mine the LED does not light up or anything, not sure if it is meant to though.

If anyone has any ideas please help, I really dont want to pay ford to fix it!

Thanks

 

[Granty88]

BUMP

I still haven't figured this out.

 

[adrian lloyd]

it sounds like the key could be the micro switch collapased check switch clicks when you press them had a few of these break on me we end up soldering new switch in.

 

[mikewil]

i think ford really let themselves down with this issue, i have heard of so many people who suffer problems. i have recently got my central locking working as it should but it sort of fixed itself or the fairies did it!
heres what i did: firstly changed the fuse at rear of fuse box even though it looked good (quite an expert at getting to it now), unplugged the blue and green plugs on receiver in drivers footwell near accel pedal on right hand side, left 10 mins and re connected, none resolved the issue but may have helped. what seemed to work was leaving drivers door exposed to sun, when warm and operating lock switch from inside (door closed) several times, the central locking started working. it would not work the following morning but did once warmed again. then i used loads of WD40 type spray through the key hole, on the lock mechanism and up and around it into door space. this has worked a treat and fingers crossed it stays that way. hope this helps

 

[birkee]

My car: 2005 Focus, 3 button type 2 key remote.

Having seen some weird answers to this problem of the remote locking not working, I've sorted mine out, and it is now as good as new.
FORGET about "static electricity" in the control box, and other such suggestions. Rubbish!

As an ex electronics engineer, I asked myself "why should it degrade in range, and then simply give up altogether"?
SIMPLE.......insufficient, or no battery voltage to operate the electronic key module properly.
But I've put in a NEW battery! I hear you say. So what?
The problem is:-
The condition of the battery contacts to the electronic module, get tarnished by age and dirt.
The electronic module draws such LITTLE current, that it can't break through this tarnish, and so it has, in effect, no battery to supply it.
Luckily, I've seen this problem before on other circuits, and seems a very prone to occuring on small signal relays etc, even though the circuit is otherwise FULLY functional.

Clean the battery connections!
BUT BUT BUT BUTTTTT......
The pads on the electronic module PCB in one half of the key, have a thin gold plating.......rub them very gently with an alcohol soaked tissue, DO NOT use anything abrasive. Finally, do the same with the battery connections, both sides of the battery, the battery to the built in contacts, and the built in contacts, to the remote module.
SORTED!

OH.....and when you have cleaned the contacts, you will need to reprogramme the key......30 second job, as mentioned above.
Insert key in ignition, and start at position 1.
Turn key to position 2 (Ign ON), and then back to position 1, doing so four times in less than six seconds, and remove the key from the ignition.
You will hear a beep from the system to indicate programming mode.
Press any button on the remote, and the system will beep again, to indicate acceptance.
WAIT 20 seconds before operating ignition or door locks while it closes "programming" mode.

NOTE: People suffering other problems have my sympathy, but these are almost certainly due to component / installation failure.
Faulty mechanism blowing fuse 63, one lock failing, but not blowing the fuse, etc etc etc.
That one about "remote locking" self operating is weird though. My guess is there is a faulty earth somewhere in the circuit, and the mechanism is being operated by electrical noise, or, the remote key is so worn and tired, that it's possible to operated it just by knocking the fob etc.
Replace the key? Easy but pricy......faulty earth connection? Good luck!

 

[phil87]

hi all,
Wonder if anybody can help just got a focus 51plate 3dr 1.8 zetec, and now today when i try and lock it with the remote it will just lock and unlock itself so you have to lock it manually with the key. But you can still unlock it with the remote and inter it will lock (but not often). Hope somebody can shed some light on this please thanks. Phil

went down to ford yesterday told me to look at locks inside car door handle when locking it, and one of them will be locking slightly slower than the other. this is why it was locking then unlocking again due to one being slower the car detects problem and just unlocks itself straight away. they told me to lube the door latch well (the one one thats slower) ive done them all seems to have fixed problem hope this helps anybody with same problem

 

[mrfordfocus]

hey all.....my ford focus 01 wil only lock properly by doing so manually from passenger door,i can lock with the remote,or manually on drivers door,,but the locks open straight away,can anybody tel me how to fix this?
thanks

 

[panther100]

phil87 and mrfordfocus Your problem is with one of the door lock switches. As to which one it is a bit of a guessing game I'm afraid. Saying that I think there is a way of getting the vehicle into test mode and you can find out that way.

 

[Yinger]

birkee is spot on. I've got a 2001 1.6 Focus Zetec and the remote locking started to act up about a year ago. The central locking worked OK using the key manually in the lock. At first the problem was that the remote would only work when you were a few feet away from the car, and you had to press the remote several times before it responded, but after a few months it stopped working altogether. I replaced the key battery (twice, in case I'd bought a dud) to no avail. I cleaned up the gold contacts in the key with a soft cloth, again it didn't work. When I tried reprogramming the key there was no beep when you pressed the key button.

This is what worked, and it took about 10 minutes to do - I scrounged a couple of alcohol wipes from a nurse I know (the ones they use to wipe your arm before an injection), and used these to gently clean the gold contacts & the springy battery contacts, and the battery. Then I reprogrammed the key (using the 4 x on and off as described in another post) and this time I got a beep. Birkee is right, you need to use an alcohol wipe to clean off the tarnish.

It all works fine, and from longer range than it ever has before.

Thanks birkee.

 

[smith1]

I have just got a 2001 fucus 1.6 estate and the key fob would not operate the locks at all. The salesman said it probably the battery so as I needed transport that day I bought the car anyway. I replaced the battery but no difference so I ask my more experienced sons for ideas and they said to try this forum. After reading this thread and others I cleaned the battery and contacts but still nothing. So the next easiest thing I had read about here was to disconnect the two wire connectors (blue and green) from the control box in the drivers footwell and left it for 1 hour then reconnected the wires and unbelievably it worked. I did not reprogramme the key as mention aboved as everything works that was my next trick if my attempt had failed. I am very pleased, many thanks to those that posted the cure for this common problem. I wonder how much a ford agent would have charged to cure this.

 

[Stapps]

I've got a 2001 1.4 Focus Zetec, no remote central locking, activated by the turn of the key in drivers door.

My problem is that the central locking system only works in the summer when it's very warm, I can be an hour into a journey, and suddenly the other three doors will unlock. Stop for 10 minutes and it all fails again.

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers
Stapps

 

[segelene]

I too appreciate the tips from birkee. Spot on. I don't know why the repair shop didn't do that when they changed the battery in the fob but all's well that ends well.

Also had a go at disconnecting the Siemens box (once I eventually found it). That didn't seem to help.

It's only a 10 minute job once you know what to do.

Thanks again.