Strange Electrical Problem
 

I'll probably answer my own question in this, but every now and then my truck won't crank, not even click or turn over or anything, and a clicking noise will start up from the sliding rear glass. It is the automatic rear glass and it sounds like the motor is trying to move it but won't go anywhere. This problem started shortly after I installed the system in my truck and I thought it was just a grounding issue but it keeps coming back. For a quick fix I removed the inline fuse for the amp and the clicking would stop and my truck would start back up, but I could put the fuse back in and it will run for several weeks before doing it again. I think it might just be coincidence that it cranks up when I remove the fuse and have a feeling it has something to do with my battery terminals as the positive gets jiggled when removing the fuse. I am already going to replace the terminals and I have a feeling that this might solve the problem but wanted to see if anyone else might have had this trouble and hear some solutions or ideas.
Thanks guys. My truck is a 2004 FX4.

suggestions and even stranger electrical problems...
 

I think you're on the right track there, I would inspect all the new connections for your system to double check they are all tight and secure and hopefully you used appropriately gauged wire. Make sure your battery is healthy and corrosion free. After you're sure everything is wired perfectly I would inspect that inline fuse…its either hooked up incorrectly, the actual fuse might needs replacement, the fuse's amperage could be insanely high and needs to be adjusted or the whole inline fuse is garbage and needs to be replaced with a different design.

Where is the fuse? There two popular places to put them usually inline with the positive term feed or closer to the amp. You usually only need one so if you happen to have two perhaps ditching one will fix you up.

Or you could just install a bypass switch to take what you know already works to a whole other level.:blink:

:help:
Is that the strangest your electrical problem gets? :boxing: I was hoping it was similar to the one I am having…and instead of creating a new thread I'm going to poach off of yours:D Perhaps this could become the "What's the strangest electrical problem you've had?" thread…

:jester:

I also have a 2004 F-150 albeit my truck is an XLT short-cab non-heritage. First issue I had was the truck died on me while driving to work one morning, no power steering, brakes…nothing. I managed to get to the right shoulder from the leftmost lane.Took it into the dealer, actually had it towed and they maybe replaced the battery but couldn't find anything explicitly wrong. Since then it has only died two additional times while I was driving.

More recently I started noticing that depending on how far the drivers door was open the electricity in the truck would work or not…completely. For instance the truck was off, keys removed from the ignition and swinging the door open to its natural resting place would kill the over head lights and dashboard…

Now that doesn't happen so much however none of the power windows or locks work, the side mirror adjust doesn't work anymore and the radio doesn't turn off like normal even when the truck is turned off and my alarm activated…

I've replaced fuses, cleaned switches, everything I can think of except re-wiring the whole mess which I wouldn't mind attempting if I knew where to begin. Any help would be appreciated

I would also try cleaning the posts on the battery with a wire brush. How old is your battery?

Start easy and clean your battery terminals. I can't tell you have many times I have bailed buddies out by just cleaning their battery terminals haha. It can do some weird things to trucks.

Edwin beat me to it haha

Sorry I have been off of here for a while and haven't replied back. This issue was purely the stock terminal, I replaced them and (knock on wood) haven't had this issue pop up again but thanks for all of your help.

It did get even stranger though. What started happening was every now and then, 1 out of every 2 or 3 times I'd get out my truck, my driving lights would come on and stay on, regardless of if I had been driving with them on or not. I thought I might have had a bad switch but I actually unplugged it, walked around to the front of my truck, and the lights were still on. That told me I had a short but I have yet to be able to find it. Luckily it hasn't happened in the past week or so(knock on wood again) because I got tired of having to unplug my battery every time I parked my truck and haven't had a chance to investigate any more. Any help on this issue would be much appreciated.

Sorry to hear about your issue Jatuttle. If they replaced the battery and it fixed your shutting off problem then i would say your battery terminals just needed cleaning and the new one fixed it.
I would start checking out the wires running through the drivers door for any places where they could be grounding to the frame or could be catching and pulling out from the wire harnesses.
You've probably already fixed this issue since you posted and if so I would like to know what it was.

the driving lights should stay on for like a minute after you close the doors until you lock the doors. Is that your issue? Other than that, check your door switches because maybe the truck thinks a door is open.

OK I will check the door switches and see if that could be the issue. The problem is that I can be driving with the switch off and the driving lights are on and when I park with the ignition off the lights stay on until I unplug the battery. That is why I'm thinking it is a short somewhere. Does anyone have the wiring diagram from behind the light switch or know where all the driving lights could be getting power from?

Retained accessory power relay failure maybe. It will power the lights mentioned. Timer could be shot.

Without going to look at my trucks wiring... and my apology to the OP... I had a similar issue on my Jeep. What it was found to be after countless hours of tracing wires was a fraying black wire in the boot between the drivers door and cab. The Mopar geniuses used too heavy gauge of wire in there and the opening/closing of the door was snapping a strand at a time once the sheathing cracked. I've never seen this before and since harnesses are so co-mingled any more it was affecting locks, windows, lights, dash etc... probably doesn't address truck dieing but that was my winter wiring enjoyment this past year haha. Sounds like a bad connection somewhere...