Disable Perimeter Lighting

[jrm223]

36 minutes ago, sKiZo said:

 

Which brings up one of my favorite pet peeves - the automatic locking of the rear doors when you take the key out of the ignition. I suppose getting rid of that is also a trip to the dealership, or a job for ForScan? Took me long enough to figure out that you had to use the trunk button on the remote to open those ... Apparently a dash switch would have been too much trouble ... (mutter mumble)

 

First I've heard for that one, but I also have a gen 2, 2015. My doors only auto-lock after about 10-20 feet of driving, but that's all of 'em, or if I accidentally bump the unlock button on the remote and then don't open a door, it will auto-relock after 60 seconds or so. When I park, shut off & get out, whatever doors were unlocked before I started driving will be unlocked after I stop driving; conversely, whatever doors were still locked before I started driving (ex. pushing the unlock button on remote only once for driver door instead of twice for all doors) will still be locked after I stop driving, park it & take the key out. On my remote, the regular unlock button will unlock ALL doors when pushed twice (I also have barn doors, like you), or I can use the cargo unlock button to only unlock the barn doors, I think - I've never tested to see if the sliders will unlock with the cargo unlock button, mainly because I don't lock the damn thing, anyway! 

 

As for a separate dash switch button?? Does the door lock/unlock button on the front doors not work for your barn doors, also? That sounds like a problem with your specific van, in that case. All of my doors will lock or unlock using the buttons on the doors or clicking the 'normal' unlock button twice on my key-remote. That said, I do remember seeing some various auto-lock/unlock options in Forscan, but I didn't really play with them. 

 

 

@desert_connect, when I still had active perimeter lights, I found that the turn-stalk method would work for me until I manually locked the doors (auto-lock when driving did not seem to affect things, AFAIK). I could open and close doors for days or weeks on end, but once I manually hit lock sometime, I would then have to tap the stalk twice, again. Obviously, most people won't leave their vehicles unlocked for long periods (like glass is really going to stop a determined thief in the first place?? But, I digress), but when camping & awake by the van, there's not really any reason to lock it up, IMHO. So, you should be able to open & close to your hearts content, until you lock the doors for bedtime. 

[OLDSCHOOLFOOL]

50 minutes ago, sKiZo said:

Think Gorilla Tape ... <G>

 

On the old switches I believe you would be correct. However, I don't believe the new ones are set up that way....purposely so I'm sure. The shade tree mechanic has been under attack for decades.

[OLDSCHOOLFOOL]

1 hour ago, sKiZo said:

 

Which brings up one of my favorite pet peeves - the automatic locking of the rear doors when you take the key out of the ignition. I suppose getting rid of that is also a trip to the dealership, or a job for ForScan? Took me long enough to figure out that you had to use the trunk button on the remote to open those ... Apparently a dash switch would have been too much trouble ... (mutter mumble)

I was able to disable (most) of the auto-lock features on my '16 myself. Yours I believe is a '12?, but you should be able to do it yourself.

 

I had to do the dreaded RTFM command before I got started.

[jrm223]

Indeed. Good luck taping or gluing a switch when it's built-in to the door latch and then runs through a computer module. Let's play "find the door switch that isn't there"? 

 

[jrm223]

5 minutes ago, OLDSCHOOLFOOL said:

I was able to disable (most) of the auto-lock features on my '16 myself. Yours I believe is a '12?, but you should be able to do it yourself.

 

I had to do the dreaded RTFM command before I got started.

 

Come to think of it, I remember seeing programming options for exactly which doors the normal unlock button on remote will actually unlock. Sounds like maybe Skizo's van is programmed to not unlock the barn doors from the regular unlock button, must be something to do with how the original purchaser spec'd the van. Considering that I bought mine new off the lot and it's always unlocked all doors from a double-press of the unlock button on the key-remote.

 

@sKiZo, I bet your van had a partition/bulkhead when you bought it, yea? 

Edited January 17, 2020 by jrm223
Additional info

[OLDSCHOOLFOOL]

29 minutes ago, jrm223 said:

Indeed. Good luck taping or gluing a switch when it's built-in to the door latch and then runs through a computer module. Let's play "find the door switch that isn't there"? 

 

It will be like a treasure hunt to find the action that trips the circuit. Then to mimic it.

[jrm223]

Door open = unlatched door latch mechanism = closed contact (or open contact, depending on how Ford designed it - although I can't imagine an open contact for open door would be it, since that would then use power when the doors are shut).

 

Shoot, I just spoiled the treasure hunt. This is a CAN-BUS system, so I don't think we'll ever come up with some redneck, hillbilly or ghetto "workaround" to disable the P.L., it just has to be done right. "Anything worth doing, is worth doing right." - Hunter S. Thompson

 

CAN-BUS is also the very thing that allows us to add factory accessories so easily that didn't come with the vehicle originally, no splicing or rewiring required. Every switch has a specific resistance and the computer knows what to control via the ohms of the switch. At the same time, that will also drive us insane, eventually. A buddy of mine is a school bus mechanic and was troubleshooting a non-op marker light. Checked the wire with a multimeter, found the ohms was different than expected, but it wasn't open, so he continued troubleshooting elsewhere. Eventually, he found out that the ohms of even the wire matters, and it had a partial break internally, which caused the odd ohm reading. Fixed up the wire to spec and now the marker light works, again. Keep that in your gray matter for the future when y'all have some crazy & hair-pulling problem, lol. 

 

[sKiZo]

2 hours ago, jrm223 said:

 

Come to think of it, I remember seeing programming options for exactly which doors the normal unlock button on remote will actually unlock. Sounds like maybe Skizo's van is programmed to not unlock the barn doors from the regular unlock button, must be something to do with how the original purchaser spec'd the van. Considering that I bought mine new off the lot and it's always unlocked all doors from a double-press of the unlock button on the key-remote.

 

@sKiZo, I bet your van had a partition/bulkhead when you bought it, yea? 

 

Not sure, and yes it was used as a commercial van before I got it. As mentioned, took me a while to figure out the trunk button on my remote opened the back doors. Until then, I used the key. Seems to me I actually fat fingered the button for my "discovery". So, what do other type one owners do with their trunk button, seeing as how there's, like ... no trunk?

 

And yes - It did come with a cargo wall. Most of it's still there, even ...   ;-}

 

 

PS - the normal lock/unlock buttons only work with the front and side doors.

 

 

 

Edited January 18, 2020 by sKiZo

[OLDSCHOOLFOOL]

16 hours ago, sKiZo said:

PS - the normal lock/unlock buttons only work with the front and side doors.

 

Until you mentioned it here I wasn't even aware there was a separate button to unlock the back doors. I guess I had seen it but didn't pay any attention to it since in general I can't think of why I might want to unlock the cargo area but have the passenger compartment still locked. Maybe the other way around, but I'm just in the habit of double clicking the fob every time I unlock anything even if I don't actually need into the cargo area. Finger just does it automatically.

I'm going to be pissed off one day when the electronic lock doesn't work since the is no mechanical key back there. That might be the day before I sell it.

[jrm223]

On 1/17/2020 at 7:28 PM, sKiZo said:

 

PS - the normal lock/unlock buttons only work with the front and side doors.

 

 

Like I said, that's a programmable option in Forscan. The original commercial buyer of your van clearly wanted the barn doors to not unlock with the regular unlock button, so that's how Ford programmed it for them - personally, I'm kind of surprised they still have the sliders programmed to work on the regular button since the barn doors don't, but maybe their drivers normally only use the sliders to access cargo, who knows. I haven't hooked up my laptop/Forscan to my van since some time last summer, so I don't recall exactly which module, but I believe the door/unlock programming is in the As-Built module. I remember it's the same spot as cruise control & global windows (and sadly I couldn't get G.W. working since my passenger door doesn't have the "express down" option... I may need to find the correct express power window switches to enable it all). 

[Ben Obo]

This is the answer every camper is looking for!

 

https://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/6233-turn-off-exterior-lights/?_fromLogin=1#elControls_20013_menu

 

"with the doors open turn the ignition on and off again"

[Ben Obo]

On 7/13/2017 at 6:55 AM, reid said:

with the doors open turn the key on and off

 

7 minutes ago, Ben Obo said:

This is the answer every camper is looking for!

 

https://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/6233-turn-off-exterior-lights/?_fromLogin=1#elControls_20013_menu

 

"with the doors open turn the ignition on and off again" unlike the headlamp toggle keeps the running lights from coming on again when another door is opened, but it only lasts for a while ...