Sudden weak performance from keyless entry

[Dwilds]

Hello all. Noticed over the last couple days that the keyless entry range has weakened significantly on my 2003 Expedition XLT. The range had already been less for the last few years than when we bought new but now most of the time the key fobs won’t work at all. Just recently in the last 3 days I purchased some additional keyfobs off amazon and they worked just as well as the older ones for a couple days. Now they work only once in awhile. Does anyone know how to troubleshoot this issue? Is there an antenna I can check or a connection that may have gone bad?

 

[Trainmaster]

My experience is that the remotes, especially counterfeit ones, degrade. At times changing the battery helps, but more often it does nothing. Replacement remotes are often Chinese knockoffs that work poorly. I was so fed up with poor range, undependable operation and buttons that sometimes didn't quite work that I ordered a Ford OEM replacement at ten times the price of the knock offs. It solved my problem and the thing works as it should again.

 

[Habbibie]

My previous employer's issued 2014 F150 suffered from this, it pissed me off that I had to be within 10ft of the truck maximum for the key fob to work, an OEM reciever module and a new programmed key (key fob is part of the switch) did not even remotely improve it,

 

[Plati]

Hello all. Noticed over the last couple days that the keyless entry range has weakened significantly on my 2003 Expedition XLT. The range had already been less for the last few years than when we bought new but now most of the time the key fobs won’t work at all. Just recently in the last 3 days I purchased some additional keyfobs off amazon and they worked just as well as the older ones for a couple days. Now they work only once in awhile. Does anyone know how to troubleshoot this issue? Is there an antenna I can check or a connection that may have gone bad?

Did you check that (keyfob) battery?
When battery gets weak, range decreases.

 

[Dwilds]

The new remotes and the remaining older remote all have new batteries. I figured out that the remotes after working, and suddenly stopping, all had to be reprogrammed to the truck again. Now they all work but the range is still horrible and unchanged.

 

[Plati]

Thats weird. Its just a radio signal. Mine (factory, 2003) range starting dropping and I checked the battery and it was low, replaced battery and fixed problem. Sometimes with old remotes the contacts need to be cleaned but thats more of a work/not work problem. You have multiple remotes with short range, no ideas sorry.

if you have all those transponders doing the same thing, must be the sensitivity of the receiver in the vehicle is degraded .... electronics break