Door locks not working

[Perplexed Ranger owner]

I'm looking for some help with my door locks. I have a 2020 XLT Crew Cab. Two months ago, at 39,000 miles, the door lock switches stopped operating (touch them, nothing happens, no lights displaying). When this happened, the doors that were unlocked could not be locked. My first trip to the dealer, I was told the truck blew a fuse.

Two days later I had the same failure. This time, after a couple of days of diagnosis, I was told they couldn't identify the problem, and that I might have to replace all four of the door locking mechanisms. When they replaced the drivers door lock that took care of the problem.

After two months, the problem has come up again. As I was getting out of the truck, I hit the drivers door switch to lock the door. Nothing happened, and the door was unlocked.

Any ideas what this is?

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[airline tech]

This may take some diagnostic as although a simple system it has a lot of variables.

Does the passenger switch work?
If you use key blade in the door and rotate it CCW, do you hear the electric actuators moving for the other door locks?
Note: From Driver's door, rotating CCW, locks all doors and CW only unlocks Driver's Door.

Check BCM Fuse #3 = Unlock Relay
#24 = Lock Relay

If one or both fuses is blown, then a wire check is required to find the circuit causing it to blow.
Specifically, which door lock actuator circuit is causing it.

BCM Self-Test = Pass or Code anything with the Door Lock circuit, if it has a code, what is it?
This will help pinpoint.

I have the Lariat with Passive Entry; do you have the FOB with keyless entry or only a Keyblade to enter?
If you have remote FOB, will it lock and unlock with that?

When you are hitting driver's door lock switch and door is opened, are you getting a chime sound from the IPC with a message (Switch Inhibited)?

As you are driving, just start moving - Do the doors (Auto-Lock) and the door lock indicators light up?

If the truck is running and in park, open door and cycle the door lock switch, does it operate normally?

Have you tested the battery? One of the first signs of AGM Battery failure is issues with the door locks not working correctly. Sure, you have enough voltage to start the truck, but the Battery Managment system will disable certain functions after engine is shut off to conserve battery power for engine start.
And that trigger voltage is 11.5 Volts or below.

You may also try cycling this (manual) Lock & Unlock on the door Jamb and see if it will reset the door (electric) locking.

Note the actual key blade is NOT required, a flat blade screwdriver will work,

A= Lock -----B=Unlock

Another thing to try: In IPC Settings / Vehicle / Locks
Try deselecting and reselecting - Autolock and Mislock and see if that will reset the system.
If I recall that's how they are labeled.


Sorry but here are quite a few possibilities, and not easy to pinpoint down without a deeper look, it may just need a lube of the door lock actuators - dry and blowing the fuse?
So, to sum it up, if a Sofware (operational) or something just out of sync the above tasks should reset it.
If electrical and blowing the fuse will need a deeper troubleshoot.

 

[Grandaccess]

did you try Ford Pass and see what the App says?
@airline tech Gives the best detailed answers ever, its like reading the Ford manual with pictures and all, never leaves room for any of us to kick it around LOL if we ever see a humorous answer we will know he has been kidnapped

 

[JRRangerAZ]

December 2023. Nancy Drew and the Case of the Ludicrous Locks. So, I had an event the other day. After accidently engaging the panic alarm on the fob, I madly pressed every key on the fob multiple times trying to shut off the horn and lights. (I somehow missed simply pressing the red-painted panic button a second time, given it’s difficult to see in subdued light conditions.) When no action on the fob stopped the alarm, I opened the driver door and pressed the start/on button. That quieted the alarm. After that episode, I noticed the doors now behaved differently. Only the driver’s door behaved “normally” with the unlock sensor on the door-side of the handle unlocking the door, and the touch sensor on the outside of the door handle engaging the lock. The fob now had to be used to lock/unlock all other doors.

Using the indispensable collective wisdom of the forum (looking at you airline tech) I:

1. Checked the battery voltage and found to be at 12.4 V.
2. Attached a trickle charger.
3. Reset the fob by pressing and holding the lock and unlock buttons through two cycles to set behavior to “driver door only” then back to “all doors”.
4. Using the “Setting/Locks” menu in the driver display window, I unchecked and re-checked all the locking behavior settings.

That seems to have corrected the problem. All doors now respond to the fob. All doors can be locked or unlocked by touch at any door.

Here’s the mystery. After verifying nominal lock functions, I checked the battery voltage. The trickle charger managed to raise the voltage to 12.8. So, did my button pressing and resetting machinations solve the spasmodic solenoids… or was it battery voltage that latched the ludicrous locks?

p.s. I left it on the trickle charger overnight. Immediately after disconnecting the charger the next day, the voltage read 13.0 volts. Two hours later it was down to 12.6 V. Three hours after that it remains at 12.6 V. I will scan the boards for references to battery life now. Any 2020 Lariat owners who see this: Are you still running the OEM battery? What are your battery experiences? If you’ve replaced it… with what?

 

[airline tech]

I am thinking the panick button pressing changed the door lock settings, if it is now working correctly.

 

[Radioman]

.. Any 2020 Lariat owners who see this: Are you still running the OEM battery? What are your battery experiences? If you’ve replaced it… with what?

My 2020 Lariat was manufactured on 11/27/2019. During the first quarter of 2023, i starting having problems with the door locks and the ASS stopped working. I would charge the battery overnight with a battery tender which restored the functions, but only for a few days. I finally gave up and replaced the battery with an AutoZone H7 AGM battery in April 2023. So far, all functions continue to work as when the truck was new.

There is a large thread on this forum concerning batteries and their care but, for me, just replacing the battery worked for me.

 

[JRRangerAZ]

My 2020 Lariat was manufactured on 11/27/2019. During the first quarter of 2023, i starting having problems with the door locks and the ASS stopped working. I would charge the battery overnight with a battery tender which restored the functions, but only for a few days. I finally gave up and replaced the battery with an AutoZone H7 AGM battery in April 2023. So far, all functions continue to work as when the truck was new.

There is a large thread on this forum concerning batteries and their care but, for me, just replacing the battery worked for me.

I'll check that out. Dropping from 13.0 to 12.6 in 2 hours with (what should be anyway) minimum parasitic draw is a concern. MSO vet, eh? Wooden ships and Iron men!

 

[Radioman]

MSO vet, eh? Wooden ships and Iron men!

Indeed...

Edit: MSO also standing for Mighty Slow Outfit

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