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Amber running lights wont go off.

17848 Views 17 Replies 8 Participants Last post by  Skyhawk
Hi All,

The front amber running lights and rear running lights on my 1999 Exploder will not go off, even with the delay switch in the off position, the lights remain on.:sosp: Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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Hi All,

The front amber running lights and rear running lights on my 1999 Exploder will not go off, even with the delay switch in the off position, the lights remain on.:sosp: Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Do the lights turn off when you turn off the key switch? Or do they stay on and cause the battery to go dead?
There is a relay named the "parking lamp relay", but it may be part of a larger module.
Yes they remain on, key out of the ingnition and all. But the weird thing is the head lights go off.
Well, I would pull the park light relay to see if that influences the lights.
I'm guessing that the park light relay is under the hood in the fuse box.
If you suspect the relay, you can always test it.

How to check a relay

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It appears that the parking light relay is within an under the dash relay module.

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Which relay is the Parklamps?

Okay, almost there. I am under the dash looking at the relay module(housing) with 7 relays-one large one on the bottom, and 6 smaller ones above-3 on the left and 3 on the right. Which one is the Parklamps Relay? I'll try to post a pick.

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Update

I finally isolated the Parklamps Relay and replaced it. Unfortunately it was not the problem. :( Back to the drawing board.
Have you looked at the RAP module.This module controls the alarm system and may have shorted.it's the relays that flashes the lights when the alarm goes off.Another place to check is the GEM module located behind the radio.
I don't think it's the RAP, the lights still flash when I set the alarm, unfortunately the damn things stay on when the alarm is set. I will check the GEM mod.

Thanks
If you know how to test the GEM without advanced tools, I would love to see a writeup of that!
looking at the wiring diagram. removing the Parking Light Relay removes the GEM from the loop. the only other way they can get power (barring a short to power) is through the Dimmer Module via the Dimmer Relay.

the Dimmer relay is at the top right of your picture, just above the Park Lamp Relay
Thanks everyone, I will have a look at the dimmer relay next. Is the dimmer relay part of the Dash Relay Module or the Under Hood Relay Module?
According to the diagnostics for the lamps being on continuously it has to be in the head light switch or the parking lamp relay or the anti-theft module.

Below is a wiring schematic, headlamp connector pinout & test plus a diagnostic for the park lamps always on.

If you need something else let us know.

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Thanks everyone, I will have a look at the dimmer relay next. Is the dimmer relay part of the Dash Relay Module or the Under Hood Relay Module?

it's in the same block that you have a pic of in post 6

the Dimmer relay is at the top right of your picture, just above the Park Lamp Relay
Thanks everyone. Two more things, where is the anti-theft module located, and is it possible that the Speed Control Harness that Ford just installed four days ago (that was part of a '09 recall) could be part of the problem?

Thanks again!
the anti-theft Tranceiver module is located behind the center of the instrument panel(I/P). 4-Pin connector

the Passive Anti-Theft System (PATS) module is located behind the top right side of the I/P. 16-Pin connector

the Remote Anti-theft Personality (RAP) module is located Left Rear Quarter Panel

i would doubt that the cruise control recall had anything to do with this.
Use a wiring diagram to identify the hot wire supplying power to the parking lights (amber) out of the Generic Electronic Module (GEM). With the lights off there should not be power coming out of the GEM module hot wire to the parking lights. If there is power then the relay to the parking lights in the GEM is stuck. The headlights have a matching relay in the GEM and you can splice the parking lights into that hot wire (for the headlights). The GEM is unique to your vehicle by VIN number and you cannot replace any of its components, which consists of about a dozen relays and a microprocessor (computer). The unit has to be replaced and that involves a download of your specific programming, removal of the GEM, replace the GEM and reload your programming into the new GEM. This is about a $500 to $600 job. Finding an exact match to your GEM (programming) in a salvage yard is a million to one proposition.
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