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1999 lincoln navigator electrical problem

16K views 8 replies 3 participants last post by  simonne 
#1 ·
Anyone here familiar with the expedition/navigator that would be able to help me? I have a 1999 lincoln navigator, and it's got a really bad electrical problem in it. I just had to replace the started and starting system because of it.

Whenever the battery is hooked up, there is constant voltage running out of it. The temperature control screen flashes on and off, the heat or ac turns on and off all the time, even with no key in the ignition. Whenever you start the car, every few seconds the start solenoid keeps trying to reengage and you can hear it grind.

do you have any idea what I could check for as what the problem is? I know there was a leak in the windshield that was fixed about a year ago, and it could have done some electrical damage, but what would you recommend checking for? It seems like the harness that goes under the steering column has gotten damaged or something.

The lights on the dashboard blink randomly too, either when driving or when just sitting.

All of the problems keep draining the battery in a matter of about 2 hours. If somebody could please help me diagnose the problem, it would be appreciated!

(When I was replacing the ignition switch, I visually inspected the wires I could see and didn't see any cut or broken, but I don't know where else to look at that would control all of those systems. do they all use the same harness?)
 
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#3 ·
Is it easy to take out? You can hear something under there clicking or grinding or whatever. Is there anything else you'd suggest and is that part replaceable if it is bad?

Also, does that GEM control the starting system too? As I stated in the other post, the starter solenoid keeps trying to engage even when the car is already on.
 
#5 ·
Okay, a few questions. The leak was on the passenger side. The clicking appearsti be coming from behind the radio.whether the key is in or not, the climate control keeps flashing on and off and the blower motor keeps coming on. When the car is started it does the same thing plus the starter keeps trying to reengage.
 
#7 ·
Alright, I got a wiring diagram of all the affected areas of the problem. The starting system doesn't go through the GEM at all, so wherever the problem is, i'm almost certain it's not the GEM.

I should add that the starter, the starter relay, and the ignition switch are all brand new.

Fuse #21, which is a 15amp fuse in the fuse panel, when removed, causes the starting system to not work from the ignition switch (You can still start the car by holding the key in start, and jumping the relay at the firewall), but once the fuse is put back in and the car is running, the starter keeps trying to engage. It comes from start on the ignition switch to the 15amp fuse at the fuse panel, which on the navigator, links fuse #20 and #21 together, than outputs it to the starter interrupt relay to be used with the remote anti-theft personality module, and down to the DTR (digital transmission range) sensor, so I am not sure what's causing the starter to keep wanting to engage. It appears that something in the starting system isn't getting the signal that the car is actually started, or two wires are shorted out together somewhere. As I stated, according to the wiring diagram, the starting system isn't used in the GEM at all, so I don't think that the problem lies with a faulty GEM. (Not to mention none of the other GEM systems are affected, like the power windows, the instrument cluster lights and the gauges). I am doing further investigating of the wiring diagrams to see what lines are shared commonly between the starting system and the rest of the electrical system that could be putting a constant feed into the system regardless of the key being in the ignition or not.
 
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