Hello,

Could nyone shed som light into what might be my problem. I have a 1998 F150 and i take the key out and the radio turns off however you come back shortly later and the radio is on and playing. A few months ago it did the smae thing with the blower motor blowing air thru the vents without the ke yin the ignition. Now my interior lights no longer work when you open the door but you can switch them on manually. Also since this has started with the Radio i now have the airbacg light on flashing 5 times then pause then 2 more times. It has an aftermarket Stereo that has been in it since early 2000's. If anyone has any thoughts that would be great. Was told it could be the ignition switch but trying to get info before i spend money on diagnostics. Thanks

 

Sounds to me like a possible wet GEM module. Has it rained lately?

 

Yes we got a few inches yesterday. I have also noticed that there was a little puddle of water in my driver's floorboard just left of the brake pettle. What is the part you just listed and would that be something easy to fix or would a mechanic need to replace this?

 

Yep, your GEM module is wet. First, you need to find the source of water.... most likely it is a leaky windshield. The other thing you can do is remove the GEM module and put it in a bucket of rice for 24-48 hours. Sounds crazy, but it is a proven method. The rice will draw the moisture out of the module much faster than just letting it dry out. Replacing the GEM is no fun, especially if your truck has PATS (passive anti-theft system) with the chipped key. Much easier to just let it dry out, and fix the water source.

 

Here is mine (a few years ago) drying out....

 

I have removed the fuse box and GEM modual. I have them in rice and we will see what happens. Looked online and if I have to get another one it's only around $100.

 

You cant just get one and throw it in there. Numbers have to match, and if you have PATS you will be more than likely needing to have it programmed to your key.

 

Is that something that the dealer would have to do or would a smaller repair shop be able to handle the programming?

 

Some repair shops can do it, provided they have the correct equipment. Ford IDS used to be the only way to do it, but some of the SNAP-ON and other high end scanners have the capabilities now.

 

Forscan will also resync the modules and reinitialize PATS. It's surprisingly cheap and easy.