Electrical starting issue

[jmyallen]

Hey guys need some opinions. I really hope raptor sees this he seems to be the electrical genius
My truck is an 02 f150 with the 5.4
Ive had this problem for a yr now.
Every time I start my truck (cold) all the gauges sweep.
After I drive it and shut it off somewhere I get back in turn the key and gauges do nothing and if you start it it will stall and just crank

I forget our I figured this out but if you wiggle the key back and forth a few times the gauges sweep and then it will start.

I've been driving like this for a yr now its just getting irritating. The first few times it did this I just let it sit for 15 minutes got back in and the gauges would sweep and it would start. Also my trip meter doesn't work every time you shut the truck off it looses your miles and starts from zero
the only thing ive tried is an ignition switch with no help

Any ideas? Thanks guys




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[RhinoZ24]

It sounds like either the instrument cluster has gone bad, or there's a wiring issue somewhere around the cluster. But you said sometimes it causes your vehicle to stall/not start?

[zavaral]

Could be something with the instrument cluster. Could also be part of PATS. If your pats sensor is messed up it wouldn't recognize your key and turn the truck off or not start.

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If you have another programmed key try it see if it makes a difference.

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[jmyallen]

The only time it stalls/ doesn't start is after I drive it, shut it off, go to turn it on and the gauges don't sweep. If I giggle the key back and forth and the gauges sweep then it starts. Its never stalled in traffic or anything like.

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If I turn the key on and the gauges don't move and I start it it will stall after 3 seconds and then just crank until I get the gauges to do a sweep. And as far as I know the gauges shouldn't sweep at all correct?

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[zavaral]

Gauges shouldn't sweep, I believe a sweep is doing a memory reset. When your driving or starting it, does your theft light flash

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[jmyallen]

Didn't think so. I've noticed it flashing when starting it before but never while driving

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Is the pats external or in the cluster?

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[RhinoZ24]

The theft light is supposed to remain off while driving, it only flashes when the truck is off and stays solid during start-up.

[zavaral]

I was only asking to narrow down if PATS was obviously wrong.

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[jmyallen]

Then that must be working properly.. hmm lol

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[Raptor05121]

I'm not familiar with PATS. I'm going to refer my friend to help me out. But IIRC the gauges should not sweep. Last I heard of that, it was an electrical/voltage issue, but the starting issue sounds like PATS. Do you have a second key to test it out?

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OP, how old is your battery? How are your connections?

[jmyallen]

Yeah iv only ever seen semis do a sweep everytime they start Battery is 2 years I believe. I check my connections and grease the terminals every oil change so they should be good. I do not have another key but I could get one made and programmed pretty cheap because my cousin is the parts manager at the dealer. Think it would be worth it at this point?

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[Raptor05121]

I would use a friends battery and try it out. Two of my friends are saying not PATS related.

[jmyallen]

Ok I'll try my parents batteries tomorrow. Even if my battery that's in it has never showed a sign of being bad this could still be the problem? Just curious. I've never had it die and I've jumped other people with dead batteries

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[zavaral]

Have you check the main grounds? I don't recall how many there are but they cause some wonky stuff. It made my door ajar light come on with the driver window up switch pressed. And almost every component in the truck is a ground seeking component.
It's worth a shot to find them and replace if necessary.

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[jmyallen]

No I haven't but that's a good point. I'll start searching for a diagram

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[Raptor05121]

My friend confirms this isnt a PATS issue, its an electrical issue

[jmyallen]

Any ideas raptor?

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[Raptor05121]

Have you tried another battery?

[Raptor05121]

OP, from my friend:

PATS has nothing to do with the cluster loosing power/ground and doing the sweep on startup. PATS just authorizes fuel system, everything else is done through its normal venue. Check the ignition harness in the column. Theres a possibility the pins are pulling out of the connector. Here's a recent post about pins on the MFS

http://www.f150online.com/forums/1997-2003-f-150/494925-how-repair-turn-signals-97-03-f-150-a.html

[jmyallen]

Hey thanks rapotor I'll try that. The battery didn't do change anything. I'll let ya know what I find

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When I get apart which one should I be looking at?

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[Raptor05121]

jm, im not sure. you should join the forum and ask. I'm quite busy to keep cross-posting.