Hello! the alarm on my 1997 town car will randomly go off. it is running my battery down. sometimes it will go for months (not unless it goes off at night and then i dont know if it does) and not go off. then there are times that when i turn the key in the lock it will go off and then not a second later the alarm goes off again! sometimes it will do this up to 5 or more times!! i took the fuse out for the horn but you dont realize how much you use your horn until you dont have it. so how do i shut the alarm off? thank you! janet

First, Have your Battery tested. The Alarm systems in Ford made Products are very sensitive to Voltage. There are 3 systems in the car which interrupt power, the Alarm system (horn honking) and the Battery saver and finally the starter interlock system.

The Alarm system will do several things to disable the car from starting. It will reduce the voltage to the starter to prevent the engine from turning over. Some will even kill the ignition system so that if the starter is jumped, the car still won't start.

The Battery saver will disconnect any system to prevent discharge below a minimum threshold. Unfortunately, when the Alternator is working extra hard to charge a really bad battery: it will disconnect the charging circuit because it reads the Draw going to the Alternator to produce the power as a parasitic drain. Even at 70mph I have seen the charging disconnected and the vehicle coast to a stop when the electric runs out.

The last system worth mentioning is the Starter interlock. Under the dash and at the top of the Brake pedal lever is a switch. When you press the brake pedal, the switch allows the starter to crank provided the shifter is not in D or R. Drivers feet routinely hit this switch and either move it or break it. When it breaks it can short and drain the battery.

As you mentioned a Random problem, the Brake switch can shake to create a random problem if it is loose or broken. Your rear brake lights can be affected.

With the horn honking, at least part of your problem is the Alarm system. You can have a bad ignition switch too, which reads the keychip to disable the alarm. Your keychip may be bad and setting off the Alarm.

I had a new Lincoln myself which set off the Alarm randomly. I actually slept inside the car one night so I could turn off the alarm in the Apartment complex parking lot. Did'nt know if it would start again if the battery was disconnected and then reconnected. The Battery was shorted with less than 1000 miles on the car. It was a factory defective battery less than 3 months old.

But your car has many years and miles on it so it was worth mentioning the wear items. I hope my solution is helpful.

Hello, I had the same problem when my Lincoln was new. Sometimes the battery starts to short out internally and it triggers the alarm. The Dealer put in a new battery and the car was fine from then on.

You also could be having a problem with the AirRide. Some will compensate to keep the suspension from bottoming out and when the battery gets low enough, it will trigger the car Alarm.
You could leave yourself a note on the car seat and open the trunk and shut off the AirRide when it is parked as a test.

If you come out and the suspension has dropped, you will know the AirRide is to blame and act accordingly. Use your reminder note to avoid driving without the suspension being turned on.

Have your battery tested in the meantime. Autozone, Oreillys, and Advance will test it free and scan your car free too!

If the actuator is locking and unlocking ( I take it randomly, on its own?) then actuator must be o.k. but power going to it, is problem, such as relay etc, that may be in the system. It shouldn't be trying to lock and unlock itself, unless signal coming from elsewhere. You might want do a little more investigation before replacing a part unnecessarily. Get back with more details, symptoms, and we can help you figure this out.

There can be many things causing this. In my experience a bad battery can short while the vehicle is parked. Its easy to have tested and Autozone or Oreillys will test your whole vehicle free.

Next possibility would be dirty Battery cables or loose battery connections to the Ground wire. Of course, some vehicles have additional triggers for Glass breakage and motion. Sometimes on cars with Autoload leveling, the Air pump will work to level the car and the Alarm will sense the current draw and vibration and go off.

These Alarms are not foolproof. You have a "Panic" button on your remote. If another person has a device casting this signal your Alarm will pick it up and activate. Your Dealer may have testing equipment for your system to correct the sensitivity of the unit. I hope it is simply a bad battery and your problem will go away with a new one.

Over a period of time most cars will drain battery. Clocks ,alarms and other bells and whistles that the new car have all need power.

you got some electrical problems

but it is likely they are not related unless stereo has remote stereo check remote bateries
alarm same thing but it is likely you will require a trip to the dealer

You should be able to unplug the control unit under the drivers seat to disable the alarm.

Seems like a problem with the Alarm. First disconnect the Alarm and if problem still persists then will have to trace step by step for a loose connection or relay malfunction.

I’m happy to assist further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/uttamjeet_2f3adc18600f8ede

I have a similiar problem occasionally. In my 97 vw, it usually happens when the battery terminals are loose. I just take them off, clean them and reconnect and the problem goes away for several months.

I have a 97 Chrysler Town & Country Van with 104000 miles on it. The past two months the van will not start and run after driving for a while. Let it set for about an hour and it will start and run fine. When it does not want to run it will start and run for about 5 seconds then quit. During this time the dash instruments will not display but the radio, windows, and lights work just fine. The battery was replaced with in the past month so I don' t think that is the problem. Any seggestions?