Headlights and starting issue.

[Con9]

Hey guys. I’ve had my Maverick since July and love it. Been working 99% perfectly. Just now I got back from the store turned it off and went inside. 20 minutes later i notice the head and tail lights are on. Then, they turn off for a minute or so, then they turn back off. Over and over. The truck is off. I went out and got in the got the truck, foot on the brake, pressed the button to start. When I did, the truck instantly starting honking, one long honk until I let go of the button. I tried it twice and both time it did this. I cannot get it to turn on and not do its horn freak out. I am inside the house now watching the lights switch on and off. Please tell me someone has any idea what’s going on and how to fix it.

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[Montana]

I know you said you checked the vehicle to be on/off and had the horn issue, but did you check to make sure the headlight switch is not in the "on" position. I don't think it matters though as it should shut off anyways after a certain amount of time.

Any work done to any kind of electronics on the vehicle previously?

 

[Con9]

So yes the headlights are switched off. It’s very strange. It’s sitting there and will go 5 minutes with nothing, then the head and tail lights will turn on for several minutes. Then switch off. I should say, my wife was driving it earlier and split a full seltzer water over the steering wheel/speedometer screen. The car worked just fine when she drove it after we cleaned the spill, and to and from the store. But now, maybe 4 hours later, this is happening. When I lock or unlock it with the key fab, it turns the headlights off if they are on. I’m less worried about the headlights, and more about the fact that it won’t start and has that weird reaction where the horn goes off and constant if I try to start the car.

 

[bighap]

So yes the headlights are switched off. It’s very strange. It’s sitting there and will go 5 minutes with nothing, then the head and tail lights will turn on for several minutes. Then switch off. I should say, my wife was driving it earlier and split a full seltzer water over the steering wheel/speedometer screen. The car worked just fine when she drove it after we cleaned the spill, and to and from the store. But now, maybe 4 hours later, this is happening. When I lock or unlock it with the key fab, it turns the headlights off if they are on. I’m less worried about the headlights, and more about the fact that it won’t start and has that weird reaction where the horn goes off and constant if I try to start the car.

Yikes. That would explain the electrical gremlins. I'd get a small space heater in there ASAP.

 

[Con9]

I know.

Yikes. That would explain the electrical gremlins. I'd get a small space heater in there ASAP.

I know. Why would the car function normally for several hours and then begin acting this way?

 

[hdave]

The soul of that seltzer is now haunting the Mav.

 

[Montana]

That stuff is acidic and got onto a circuit board somewhere, now it's corroding connections needed for functionality. It could also be causing a bridge between connections. It could have been a slow drip into something that was not sealed or into a connector that was open. Time to take it all apart and get that stuff out of there and hope it didn't cause further damage.

 

[Con9]

That stuff is acidic and got onto a circuit board somewhere, now it's corroding connections needed for functionality. It could also be causing a bridge between connections. It could have been a slow drip into something that was not sealed or into a connector that was open. Time to take it all apart and get that stuff out of there and hope it didn't cause further damage.

That’s what I am I am afraid of. It’s parked and my garage and won’t start. I unplugged the battery so that it won’t randomly honk in the middle of the night. I will have to get it towed in the morning.

 

[Montana]

That’s what I am I am afraid of. It’s parked and my garage and won’t start. I unplugged the battery so that it won’t randomly honk in the middle of the night. I will have to get it towed in the morning.

Yea, water with any kind of mineral content can short circuit boards and/or leave deposits that hinder the board's ability to function, and can even cause heat build up. If you've ever seen what it takes to replace components on a PCB, the only thing protecting the PCB to component contacts itself is whatever silicon sealer applied to the outside container unless the entire board is covered in silicon (which adds heat and is not usually the case for interior vehicle components). If the mineral deposits get under chips and inside capacitors or on bare copper and it's lines, it's pretty much done for. Sometimes things will dry well enough if it's a small enough amount where that doesn't happen, but doesn't sound like the case for your truck. I honestly would not risk trying to let it dry and restarting it as it could just do further damage. Especially considering you don't know what actually got damaged. If it was a single part and you could trace it early on and identify it, heat gun it until it's dry, alcohol to clean it, and then it's worth a shot.

 

[The Real Maverick]

That’s what I am I am afraid of. It’s parked and my garage and won’t start. I unplugged the battery so that it won’t randomly honk in the middle of the night. I will have to get it towed in the morning.

I was gonna say; disconnect the 12v (you did) let it dry out, charge the 12v with a trickle charge while disconnected, then try again.

Weird stuff will happen when your 12v drops under 11.5 volts.

It's probably low now from all the shenanegans

 

[Con9]

Yea, water with any kind of mineral content can short circuit boards and/or leave deposits that hinder the board's ability to function, and can even cause heat build up. If you've ever seen what it takes to replace components on a PCB, the only thing protecting the PCB to component contacts itself is whatever silicon sealer applied to the outside container unless the entire board is covered in silicon (which adds heat and is not usually the case for interior vehicle components). If the mineral deposits get under chips and inside capacitors or on bare copper, it's pretty much done for. Sometimes things will dry well enough if it's a small enough amount where that doesn't happen, but doesn't sound like the case for your truck. I honestly would not risk trying to let it dry and restarting it as it could just do further damage.

When you say it’s pretty much done for, do you mean the parts or the whole truck? I am freaking out that we killed my under a year old car with fucking lime juice and tonic water. I could not figure out how to un plug the battery under the hood (it’s a hybrid). I removed the black casing over the top of where the ‘battery’ is under the hood and, I am not sure how to describe this, “clicked back” the gray clasps that were fastened on the top. I realize the battery is under the back seat but I assumed the one under the hood would have the same effect if I unconnected the right thing. My ford pass app says the car is in deep sleep mode now.

 

[Con9]

I was gonna say; disconnect the 12v (you did) let it dry out, charge the 12v with a trickle charge while disconnected, then try again.

Weird stuff will happen when your 12v drops under 11.5 volts.

It's probably low now from all the shenanegans

I was gonna say; disconnect the 12v (you did) let it dry out, charge the 12v with a trickle charge while disconnected, then try again.

Weird stuff will happen when your 12v drops under 11.5 volts.

It's probably low now from all the shenanegans

is this the battery under the seat in the back? If so how do I disconnect it? I was stressed as hell trying to figure it out earlier because the horn would randomly just come on, like someone is holding it down and it would stay on for minutes at a time. I have a sleeping 1 year old inside and it’s 10:00 at night in a neighborhood so I was trying to do literally anything to make it stop. My app says it’s in deep sleep mode now. I would love to disconnect the under the seat battery but could not figure out how under the stressful conditions. What does the “battery” under the hood do? Did I even do anything by popping back the clasps on it? As soon as I did that the horn stopped and the lights just turned on for 30 seconds and then went off. It has not made any noise sense thankfully.

 

[Montana]

When you say it’s pretty much done for, do you mean the parts or the whole truck? I am freaking out that we killed my under a year old car with fucking lime juice and tonic water. I could not figure out how to un plug the battery under the hood (it’s a hybrid). I removed the black casing over the top of where the ‘battery’ is under the hood and, I am not sure how to describe this, “clicked back” the gray clasps that were fastened on the top. I realize the battery is under the back seat but I assumed the one under the hood would have the same effect if I unconnected the right thing. My ford pass app says the car is in deep sleep mode now.

No way to know without further diagnosis. That's just worst case scenario stuff and what happens when electronics get soaked. Best bet is keep the batteries unplugged and let the shop further diagnose it since it's still under warranty.

 

[Con9]

Theses are the clasps that I unclamped, for reference. The are made to be clamped forward, or moved back into this position, which is what I did in my panic just trying to get the horn to stop screaming non stop so it would not wake up the entire neighborhood. Whether or not this did literally a thing at all I have no idea. As soon as I moved them into this position the horn stopped, the head lights came on for probably a minute, then the car went dark and quiet. Ever since then it has made no noises and no lights have come on. My app says it is in deep sleep mode. I don’t care what mode it is in as long as it doesn’t go off in the middle of the night.

 

[peeturd]

Wow! Talk about weird - okay, believe it or not - it was an accident, hopefully your insurance (minus deductible) will pay this . Let us know!

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