2004 Escape Electrical/Radio Problems

[meghanp23]

My 2004 Ford Escape has been in for service 3 times over the past month. The radio continues to play after the car has been turned off, key removed from the ignition and exit from the car. Some mornings I come down, and the radio is playing all on its own without me even opening the door.

The car is under warranty, and so far, the iginition and alternator have been replaced. When that didn't work, the dealer claimed there was an electrical short due to a leak. That appeared to do the trick, and the car was fine for 3 weeks. Now the problem has resurfaced.

Any thoughts as to how to proceed? I feel like I am at the mercy of the dealer, and this problem will never go away.

[bworld1]

Originally Posted by meghanp23

My 2004 Ford Escape has been in for service 3 times over the past month. The radio continues to play after the car has been turned off, key removed from the ignition and exit from the car. Some mornings I come down, and the radio is playing all on its own without me even opening the door.

The car is under warranty, and so far, the iginition and alternator have been replaced. When that didn't work, the dealer claimed there was an electrical short due to a leak. That appeared to do the trick, and the car was fine for 3 weeks. Now the problem has resurfaced.

Any thoughts as to how to proceed? I feel like I am at the mercy of the dealer, and this problem will never go away.

i just bought a 2004 escape and the same thing is happening, as well as the horn and lights not flashing when the car is locked with the keyless remote. Where did they tell you the leak came from. Why won't they just replace the radio. I can update you on what my dealer says after i bring it in in a few days.

[bourbondog]

I am having these exact same problems. What happened? Did you get this resolved?

[65comet]

They both only did one post eight years ago. You might try to private message them to see if it goes to their email, but I wouldn't count on it. Let me do some checking and get back to you.

[bourbondog]

Thank you. I already tried the private message and it didn't work. I would appreciate any help you can provide. I see a lot of people are having this same problem but the threads never provide a solution.

[65comet]

I found references to a leak into the cabin causing the ACC relay to fail or the panel it plugs into corrodes and shorts over the relay, though the relay may be ok. Here's the text from one on testing the relay.
"Locate and pull the accessory power relay. It's in the inside cabin fuse box. Your manual labels it ACC in the diagram. In a 2003 Escape, it's right in the center of the fuse panel. Use a multimeter, set to measure ohms, to look for a closed circuit on the non-energized relay crossing pins 3 & 5. You SHOULD see NO connection. IF you DO see a connection across 3 and 5, then your relay is stuck "closed" and this is why your radio stays on. Cheap, easy part to replace, but causes major headaches when it is bad."

[bourbondog]

I replaced the Accessory Relay and all is working so far (three days). It was Standard V13081 RY 612. It cost me $15.61 with tax. Definitely worth trying to see if it helps with anyone's radio coming on by itself.

[65comet]

Glad to hear it. I still have my 2002 that I bought new, so I've done most everything for one of these. Since you are close, let me know if you have something else later that needs to be physically looked at.

[bourbondog]

Wow, you are close. Didn't even see that. Thanks. My Dad left me this 2004 Escape when he passed. It's been a struggle. A lot of things going wrong. Hopefully, we're on the right track now.

[bourbondog]

"I found references to a leak into the cabin causing the ACC relay to fail or the panel it plugs into corrodes and shorts over the relay." Any ideas on how to fix the leak into the cabin?

[65comet]

The link on the relay repair didn't say where the leak came from. I think the best thing it to try and locate it yourself. Many items come up on searches that go from one side of the interior to the other. Here's what I would do. Get some of that tissue that is used to fill space in gift bags. Preferably a dark color. Then put it in any spot you can access under the dash. Run a water hose wide open for 10 minutes then inspect the paper with a flashlight to find any spots. Once you've found a location, try and follow it back to the source. You may need to fit more of the paper into that area to get at the prime origin.

[bourbondog]

so it's been about a year and I need to replace the ACC relay again. I found one post on repairpal.com EddieE of Coloma, MI says: Found out it was a relay that had filled with water, because the water drain had clogged up, backflowing the water behind the fuse box, filling the relay with water. When it overheated, the lights went out! $230 repair.

This makes sense. I can't find any other way that water could be getting behind the fuse box.

It does look like the relay is wet. I cleaned the cowls and everything looks good. No water at all on the floor mats or anything. The only other thing I found on the internet was windshield leaks would cause this but I have not found a leak in my windshield.

It does always seem to happen in the fall with the leaves blocking the cowls.

Thanks for responding! I was hoping you were still on this board!