Why won't my electric locks work?

OK, so if you use the fob remotely OR you use the button on the door things seem to work, but the doors don't actually lock. Is it all of the doors that don't lock? If you push the lock manually will they lock or are they very stiff and don't move very well? When you try the locks do the lights dim or change? If it's all the locks then it could be a bad relay. Is this a factory system? Just trying to narrow down the problem first.

WOW all that i typed didn't stay on here.. here is my answer again.
is it a factor system no. Its a remote start system made by a company called Excalibur
And that is correct when the buttons on the doors and key fob are pressed no doors lock or unlock but the alarm part of the system still works. and the remote start of the system still works too. And no i didn't see any light changes while using either one door buttons or key fob. The stereo installer give me this part number GQW3VT20R he said that was to what was called the lock module..

OK as the door buttons do not trigger the locks it likely isn't the aftermarket module. Those should work independent of any add-ons. As such I would look at the power and ground feeds into the lock system. A poor connection at either one would cause this issue as it would limit the current enough that the solenoids wouldn't fire. Both wires run through the flex between the door and A-pillar, I would look there as well as at the ground itself. The ground is on the panel at the left of the footwell ground 204. It then goes through the flex to the door switches. It's also a common failure point as it has to bend every time the door is used. To get to it the accordion cover can be pulled back to expose the wiring.

I will have to take off the kick plate to see the wires behind it correct? and if so how do you get it off? the pull hood switch thing is on that side and it doesn't want to go in the hole so i can take it out of the way completely. Also will this wire be labeled as g204 so it can be identified pretty quickly? Reason why i am asking is because i'm not very good when it comes to wiring myself..

forget about the kick plate i think i remember how to get that off. Also i forgot to tell you when either of the lock and unlock buttons are pushed. he said one or the other i can't remember which one. it blows a 30 amp fuse. now what fuse that is and where i have no idea. this is the first i heard about that.

OK, blowing a fuse when actuated sounds like a broken power wire that has shorted to ground instead, that could also be in the flex area. The wires are color coded The ground wires are Black, the power wire in this case is Black with a white stripe. The kick panel should be snapped in. Just be careful, 26 year old plastic will be brittle.

Ok if i can get this kick plate off i will take a look. Do you think i should try changing the door actuator first? the one on the driver's side door didn't really act normal like the others did anyway before this problem showed up. And its the only actuator that makes some kind of faint clicking sound when you use the key fob or the buttons on the door.

I would start with the wiring first. While a failed actuator might stop one door from locking it shouldn't stop all of the doors from working. They work by reversing the polarity of the voltage to them like power windows do. That is what the switches do, simply reverse the polarity. The actuators are just motors that move the locking pawl in the latch.

Ok i will start there... looks like this kick panel on the driver's side has never been taken off. Its in there sold too. The one on the passenger side was easy to take off etc. Ok when i get this kick panel taking off what is it that i am looking for reason i am asking again is because while trying to take it off. we managed to get that little clip that comes off allowing you to get the pull hood thing through. And it looks as though someone shoved ALOT of wires in there. I was told earlier that, this is where the so called keyless entry module was located. Because i sure didn't see it under the dash unless its a object i am not used to looking at. At that may be the case too. Also someone told me that the driver's side door was the master switch to all of the door locks. If that one fails it will stop the others from working. Now if that is true i have no idea.. I shared that with you to see if that was true or not.

Yes the drivers door is a master switch however you stated that moving the switch one way would blow the fuse, that should mean the switch isn't the issue. As far as what to look for, there should be a few wires in a ring terminal bolted to the body, one of those should be the Black ground wire, that wire goes across the dash and into the right front door and connects to the right hand switch, you want that one and one that is Black with a white stripe, that should be the power wire that goes into the door flex and into the left door switch. Then if you remove the door panel you can get to the other end of the wiring. The way the system is wired is a mess. While the drivers door is the master switch it is also the last in line to the actuators. It's a mess but a bad wire shouldn't be that hard to find a bad wire. Because it blows fuses the issue almost has to be between the drivers switch and the actuators.

Ok i will look for those wires.... today i was messing with it and it didn't pop any fuses this time... But still behaves the same way. Also i still didn't get that stupid kick panel off must be some screw or something that i can't see some where. Also some guy told me that i was looking in the wrong place for it.. He said it is slightly behind the driver's seat close to where the seat belt thing comes out of the floor behind the side panel. I am going to look there as well but i never heard of it suppose to be there before.

The ground is in the front of the door behind the kick panel. Attached is the location chart. The connector for the locks is in the same area. The kick panel can be a bear. The attached is the right hand panel, the left side should have the same clips just reversed.

You guys always seem to get a hold of the neatness documents lol Good i am glad i was looking for in the right place the first time you told me.. So, to get the panel off do you lift up more and toward the driver's seat? Or just pull it back directly toward the driver's seat? And you are right it is a bear getting this one off. I am afraid of just man handling it because i don't want to break anything.

They were made to be installed, clip in and never be removed. Then after 26 years the plastic gets really brittle and it can shrink some as well. I can say I've broken a lot of plastic over the years. I'm a pro at plastic welding and repair! In this case I believe they are simple push trees in slots on the back of the panel but it's been a while since I had to remove one. They are a bear to remove once installed.

Hello there Steve.. so sorry for such a late reply but I have been messing around with my van and I discovered that the or a Ford or maybe the aftermarket one that is. Keyless entry module was located behing the back of the front driver’s seat in the side panel. Now if it’s the original one or not I have no idea but I do know when you click the keyfob and press the lock and unlock buttons on the door it clicks big time but the locks doesn’t move at all. Since Ford as discontinued their keyless entry module I might try wiring up my remote start part of that system to lock and unlock the doors. I just need to know where are the door locks located in the system harness… If this can be done that is.. Also i notice when i press the lock buttons on the door i hear what sounds like a clicking sound coming from the front part of the van too.. like under the dash.. i sure hope not as to i cannot reach that part. I am thinking the keyless entry module in the photo is the one that has the number 0190A written on it. I couldn't get a good picture of it because i couldn't get it lose from the bolt that has it attached to the wall. And so far i cannot seem to get that kick panel off yet either. Not without destroying something to get to it that is lol

Is your van a conversion van? Don't normally see wood in the E-series. Can you take a picture of the key fob as well. It's possible you have a dealer or upfitter module if this is a conversion. From your description and that batch of snakes and added wires I suspect conversion?
If so it will take a bit more digging as there are upfitter harness changes.

Yes it is a conversion van and sure i will take a picture of the entire system i have put in my van 5 yrs ago.. I haven't had a problem with it at all until now. The installer of the alarm / remote start system thinks its the for entry module that has gone bad and not my alarm / remote start system. And i have a bigger problem then that if the original ford entry module is in the kick panel by the driver's door. Because i have one of those 6 way turning seats in my van it is bolted to the end, the most edge of the floor by the front driver's door. And it is sitting right on top of that thing you put your foot on to step inside of the van. You can't or it seems that you can't get that kick panel off unless you take that part lose first. Well lets just say not without cutting something up etc

Being a conversion van they move things around some so I'll see if I can find info on yours. OK, looking at the wiring for your alarm system, it looks like you could unplug the left most red 4 pin connector on the top of the unit. That would remove the unit from the locking wires, now see if yours work using the door buttons. I suspect they won't but this should eliminate the aftermarket unit. If they suddenly work, then there is a problem in that unit. The catch to this vehicle is that the base door lock motors don't use a control module, they simply have the switches do all the work. When you lock the doors one wire becomes negative and the other goes positive. The motor then moves the lock. Then to unlock the switch reverses the polarity the opposite way, the motor moves and it unlocks. There is a memory lock module that was an option but it simply locks the sliding door if you forget. So I would ask the installer if they used a relay module or what to interface with the locks. The reason for the kick panel removal is to look for broken or shorted wiring between it and the door. A bad wire that rubs against the door or inside the kick panel could blow a fuse and stop the locks. Then when you move the lock the opposite way it doesn't blow because that wire is now a ground anyway.

Ok so what i will be unplugging will be a 4 pin connector, Correct? I will be happy if just the buttons on the doors work at this point.. not having keyless entry to a vehicle is very unconvenient etc But if i can get the buttons to work on the doors would be good enough for me.

The 4 pin red should disconnect the aftermarket unit from the factory locking system. The reason is to find out if maybe the aftermarket unit is sending out a control signal that is blocking the OE parts from working. It would demonstrate yes or no if the aftermarket unit is a problem. I fully expect it to do nothing but that has to be eliminated and it's easy to do. Then it comes down to what does that harness connect to in the vehicle. I suspect a relay assembly that turns the pulses from the controller into 2 reversed polarity outputs. That would be an easy interface method with the "vintage" locking system in your van. one relay clicks to lock another clicks for unlock. Likely the clicking you hear when using the remotes. That is why I think the issue is in the wiring itself. Basically you have one power wire that feeds the switches, and one ground wire that feeds the switches. A broken or bad ground wire would stop them from working but likely wouldn't blow any fuses. However a broken power wire that was hitting a ground point would stop the locks and cause the fuse to blow as it would be a direct short.
So we try to work through the system to make sure it wasn't something else, then you end up tearing into the doors and panels to get to the wiring. Have worked on many conversions and for the most part they were all different when it came to any of the added pieces. One had a main fuse panel that was hidden behind the interior trim panels they added, You needed to remove the entire wall panel to access it! Another had a nice drop out panel with all the add-ons mounted there.
In your case it sounds like it's between those two. To get to the wiring might require removing the seat or trimming away a piece of the panel to gain access. You may also want to follow the clicks and see if you can locate the controls that way.

Ok i will try my best to get to that tomorrow i hope. Also i notice something today while i was messing around with it. It might mean something it might not mean nothing. Here goes, when i open my side swinging doors the cargo like doesn't come on. But when i open all the rest of the doors the cargo light comes on. Would that have any type of effect on the door locks of any kind? Also, here is the picture of the kick panel on the drivers side door. As you will see in the picture a big metal plate is covering it and it will make getting that foot step thing nearly impossible to get off unless i cut it in some type of way. Also, i was told that fuse 8 (30 amp) in the van's manual has the following information by it says the following Radio Capacitor(s), Ignition Coil, PCM Diode, PCM Power Relay, Fuel Heater, Glow Plug Relay (Diesel Only). That fuse could make your locks stop working? is that true? Because if it can, i haven't check that fuse.. I checked 4 and 5 and there not blown at all.

That piece shouldn't need to come off to get the piece above it off, see photo. The power feed goes through each door but the dome lamp switch is a different circuit entirely. Fuse 8 would shut down the engine, not the locks. Testing fuses is a lot easier with a test light, a fuse can actually look just fine but still be bad.
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-use-a-test-light-circuit-tester/
Using that method on both sides of the fuse tells you if it's good quick.

Ok, i think i have a working test light... i will give it a try and see what happens.

Well i got a change to mess with it today and i got the kick panel finally off. I seen alot of spliced / taped wiring behind the kick panel. The ground wire that was bolted to the van was the only thing i seen behind the kick panel that looked like it was sold, I moved a few wires to take a look around behind there and i didn't see anything.. But then again i don't have a trained eye so i guess i didn't know what i was looking for. And while i was doing that.. i must have moved something to much is because now the cargo lights don't come on anymore. The locks are still the same (not working) the remote start and alarm part still works.. Now i am more frustrated then ever. I didn't get to use the test light where i needed to.. being in a wheelchair creates problems.. but i did get to use it once on a fuse behind the driver's door and come to find out that fuse was the cigarette ports for charging your phone and things with,,, That part works only when the van is started lol. And the keyless entry module that is in the side panel behind the drivers door has to be the one from ford. It looks nothing like the one that goes to my remote start / alarm system. Make matter worse is that module.. is bolted to the wall some kind of way and there isn't much room to lose the screw or bolt out to get a real look at it. I even wiggled the wire part between the door and the body of the door and the locks didn't work but you still can hear that clicking sound in the side panel behind the driver's seat.

And i did not see the keyless module that works my remote start and alarm system at all. If its on that van it must be under the hood some where because i didn't see it at all. Unless the installer straight wired it some kind of way. If that is possible.. I will look again later on but so far i did not see it at all. :-(

Here are a few picture i got to take... not very good but that's the best i could do my cellphone doesn't take good pictures

2 more pictures

Last picture right here... sorry for so many post...

No problem on the extra posts. I'm going to bet at least one of your problems in in there under one of those bits of tape. Don't get too upset. I've seen much worse work by "professionals" before. One of the worst was literally wires stripped and just twisted together, no tape, nothing, and that was on an Ambulance !!! Rewired it all for free, they suddenly had things working that hadn't since they bought the thing. Anyway, if you can get to them, I would pull the "connections" open one at a time and look for loose or damaged wires. Open one, write down what colors are in it and if it looks OK. Take a picture if you want as well. Then go here and get the manual. I suspect the lighting is messed up because of this as well. A lot of alarms flash lights and turn on interior lights, so if they cut and spliced the wires, they may have just fallen apart.
https://www.caralarm.com/Content/Manuals/AL-XX70-B%20install%20guide%20V1-3_1870_English.pdf
With that you can see the table of which wires do what. The lock wires all come from the red connector on the aftermarket unit. Hit the button a few times and see if you can find where they hid it, tucked under the dash or behind trim panels are popular places, so is under the seat. If yours has the antenna out where you can see it, look around that area under the dash or wherever, it won't be far from it. However my suspicion is that it's in that rats nest, probably cut a wire and then spliced the two cut ends with something from the alarm, it has come apart and caused your problems.

Ok that is a good idea... i will try and do that.. or see if i can get someone to do that for me. Oh yeah i forgot this one picture. i have no idea what once was plugged into that plug but nothing is in there now.

Might be an option you don't have, lot's of those on vehicles. Might be the attached one. Looks to be in the correct spot. Called "Modified Vehicle Power". Used on emergency type vehicles to handle specific things they need without needing to tap the wiring in other places.

I was wondering what that was for... i suppose you just can't plug anything you want into that plug can you? Don't worry i haven't try to.

It would depend on what you wanted to do. Where I generally see it used is to plug in lighting control modules for things like ambulances or police related vehicles. Never really bothered with it myself.

Oct 23rd 2026: Hello guys its just me warren so sorry it took me so long to write.. i had to find my password to the site.. I forget where i write stuff down sometimes.. well anyway. here is the latest on my door locks and now dome light problem. I finally got a chance to test a few things.. well i got myself one of those light testers and i did test on fuse 4 and 5. Well fuse 4 would make the light tester light up on one side but not the other side. Fuse 5 make the light tester light up on both sides (the fuse wasn't blown out at all). With the vans ignition key turned off. When i first checked it though fuse 4 was blown. I replaced it with a brand new fuse and then my dome lights came back on again but not my locks. Well last sunday i went to church and my dome lights worked. i remember getting out of my van and going into the church and i pressed the lock button on my remote start / car alarm. And for some reason i remember pressing that same button again. Well once church was out i came back and entered in my van and boom. the dome lights had stopped working again. So here is where i stand once again no working dome lights at the moment and the power locks still doesn't work. But if you use a key to unlock the doors. All of them will lock and unlock by using the key. That might not mean anything but. i wanted to let you guys know. Don't know what keeps blowing fuse 4 but something is. i have a strange feeling its the remote start / car alarm that is doing it. And i forgot to tell you this too. I found the original key fob for the van and when you press the button to lock and unlock the doors nothing happens. but when you press the panic button on it. It works like normal. Flashes the light and honks the horn. And you can still here the clicking either in the dashboard and behind the driver's seat in pillar b. At least that's where it sounds like it is coming from to me anyway.

OK, normally the way the system works is that one press on unlock, only opens the drivers door. Then if you press it twice it unlocks all the doors. If it is blowing fuse 4 when you hit the button twice then it is because something is putting a heavy load on that circuit when the module tries to unlock the rest of the doors. The other item is that the interior and exterior lights should be turned on when you trigger the locks, that is the illuminated entry feature. That normally means things like the dome lights, step lights and parking or headlights depending on what the upfitter did for options. If you put the fuse in and don't touch the power locks, do the lights and doors all work normally? If you use a key in the locks or the manual buttons do the locks all move freely? The van I had used a bunch of christmas style lights in the roof as well as map and seat lights, if yours has those check if they all work. What you are looking for is something that causes the fuse to blow when it is turned on. From the factory fuse 4 is a 15 amp fuse. My thinking is that the upfitter tapped into that circuit when they added extra lights and now when all the locks trigger with those lights coming on, there is a short or a bad lock motor and it's causing the fuse to blow. What you might try is buying a 15 or 20 amp circuit breaker that would plug into the fuse box in place of that fuse. That way you don't keep buying fuses. Now start testing by using the fob, trigger only the single lock, did the breaker trip? Now hit it twice, did it trip? If yes you have a hunt on your hands because most of the upfitters don't follow factory wiring. On mine there was a separate fuse block they added that was tucked in the wall. In it were fuses for things like the lights, fans, radio, power bed and the rest. See if you can find that, unplug the lights and test again, breaker still trip, even though the rear lights are out? Yes- we need to test the rest of the system to find the increased draw. Not going to be fun to do but with an ammeter in place of the fuse and vigilance you should be able to track it down. On thing that might help. Go to each door and listen to the locks as you trigger them, do any sound different, like louder or delayed? Check those first.

Here are the question you asked me:
1. Question: If you put the fuse in and don't touch the power locks, do the lights and doors all work normally?

Answer: The dome light did. But the locks didn’t work at all still

2. Question:If you use a key in the locks or the manual buttons do the locks all move freely?

Answer: When I use a key the locks seem to go up like normal. But when using the manual buttons. Nothing happens at all.

3.Question: Now start testing by using the fob, trigger only the single lock, did the breaker trip? Now hit it twice, did it trip?

Answer: I haven’t had the chance to try this yet. To answer this question I am going to need some help testing this part unfortunately Also, I am going to have to buy some 15 amp 20 am breaker fuses. I had no idea they even made those.

4.Question: See if you can find that, unplug the lights and test again, breaker still trip, even though the rear lights are out?

Answer: Ok, I will have to find someone to help me with this one too. I got a chance to do a little digging in my van and so far the only thing I could find was the clicking sound behind the driver’s back seat in the B pillar.

5.Question: On thing that might help. Go to each door and listen to the locks as you trigger them, do any sound different, like louder or delayed?

Answer: Ok I give this one a try myself again. The last time I was sitting at the doors I didn’t hear anything out of none of them. The only sounds I heard where from the dash and in the b pillar. Now it could be a echo that I am hearing but. It really sounds like I am hearing 2 sounds from 2 different directions. One in the dash on the driver’s side and in the b pillar behind the driver’s seat. I let me family hear it once too and they said they only hear one (B pillar). But it sounds like from 2 different sources to me.
And thank you for showing me the picture about the fuses 4 and 5. And you know the crazy thing about that is. fuse 4 was blown but the power mirrors and the chime still works.. no working locks or dome lights etc.

Nice work Steve, I have seen those aftermarket locking system go out and cause this problem. FYI.

If my system keeps this up... i may just take my remote start / alarm system completely out. i have had it for 5 yrs and this is the first time i have had problems with it. the remote start still works but not the rest of it.

I've done that a number of times when the system was causing more grief than it was worth. Especially if it was one that there was no paperwork on. In this case the company still has install and diagnostics for the modules. They might help but I would do some testing. The way it's blowing fuses though isn't likely to be the unit itself. It doesn't trigger it just sends a signal through the original wiring and that triggers the locks. I suspect the remote locking system is fine, but there is a problem on the original vehicle side. Either the BCM or a bad lock that is shorting out. That gives a high draw and the current burns out the fuse. I think you could remove the remote and using the factory locks would still blow the fuse.
I never take service info as gospel, but it's very possible that the upfitter that built the van added to a circuit or altered things. The problem then becomes finding that build info. Or we do it the hard way, by going to the alarm module and disconnecting wires and then creating a signal to trigger the different items and trip the breaker or blow the fuse. Then go to the vehicle control module and trigger things there and see what the issue is. The attached are the diagrams for the remote unit.

Well first of all let me say thank you for sending me the diagram of how that is wired up. and i hope like crazy its not the BCM. Because we all know it has been discontinued by Ford. The sad thing for me is going to be getting to it and removing any of it. I read where a company can rebuild our BCM's too.. I am sure you guys read / seen companies too. Now back to the diagrams you posted. If i where to unplug C do you think that would be enough so my BCM might start working again providing it didn't go belly up on me and providing the installer didn't cut the crap out of my wires down there? When i took it back to the installer of the remote start / alarm system one guy as i said something kept popping the fuse.. and then the boss guy came out and said it was my BCM. I was only interested in the remote start part of the system anyway. Had i known it was going to do this that's just what i would have had install instead of the alarm system part as well. Also, today i tested the original key fob again and press the panic button and only the horn sounded this time. no flashing lights of any kind happened. went by each door and heard nothing. Using the remote start system's remote. I got the horn to blow, the head lights to flash and the tail lights to flash But no dome lights or locks on none of the doors. Do you think calling tech support would help out any? Because the last time i tried it, they just gave me the number to the local installer where i had it installed at lol Hey if buying a new system( Remote start only) will help i might consider doing that as well.