Question:
My car is a 2003 Ford Taures SES. Every other week , I get a hiccup in the electrical system, everything flicks out and comes back on, a few random warning lights will light up, go out and the car keeps running. There is no common denominator, like turning on the AC, when this happens. To make it even weirder, Ive gone out to my car to start it, put in the key, and when I turn it to the start position, I completely lose all electrical power, lights, radio, dashlights, the 1st time this happened, I turned the key to off, and then back to start and it restarted. The second time, I left the key in the ignition, and popped the hood to see if there was a loose battery cable, as I was lifting the hood, I heard the key in the ignition/door ajar chime start up, and I went back in and the car started fine. The 3rd time (this evening) I got the weird power flicker, but this time the car stalled, and when I went to restart it, I lost all electrical when I turned the key to start. it did finally restart after sitting for a minute or two. Ive checked the battery cable and the connectors to the fuse boxs but they are tight and wiggling them does not replicate the problem.
Answer:
It sounds like a hidden problem in the ignition switch or the wiring harness. These types of problems can be very tough to figure out, and as much as I hate to say it, take it to a Ford dealer (one you trust) and have them diagnose. They may recommend changing out the ignition switch, which would be my first guess to the problem, but they may also have a TSB on your car which spells out common causes for this issue. TSB stands for Technical Service Bulletin, and is communications that the factory gives out to their dealership mechanics about common problems and procedures for fixing them. Not quite a recall, but similar in that there is an offical number, and procedures documented for the mechanics to follow. If you are curious about TSBs you can check out www.autoeducation.com/alldata.htm where you can get a subscription for your vehicle. Along with the TSBs you get Recalls, Labor Guides and Repair Procedures for your vehicle.
