Dome Light Delay Off Interference

Greetings all---a newbie of sorts to The12Volt.com, was here a few years ago but lost my original login/password info..........anyway......

2005 Ford E350 van that's new to me, not sure if it was originally equipped with the Remote Keyless Entry as it did not arrive with any sort of factory remote. It does have factory PDL's.

I want to install an old school Crime Guard 350i5 alarm system that will be tied into the PDL system however this van has the dome light delay off feature which until it goes out the alarm cannot be armed. Is there a work around to the delay off, a way I can close the doors, activate the alarm immediately without waiting for the dome light to turn off?

I have enough experience with this type alarm installation, already have three of them in use but not on vehicles with this dome light delay off feature. The other vehicles all have PDL's, one has the factory RKE system but its never used, just the Crime Guard 350i5. Additionally I have full factory wiring schematics, more than enough tools to do any modifications correctly.

Thanks in advance for any help or direction!

You could go to each door individually instead of using the dome light.

Note: This vehicle has a door pin trigger for each door, the DRIVERS DOOR is a RED/PINK

(-) the PASSENGER DOOR is a BLACK/WHITE (-) and the SLIDING DOOR if equipped,

is a WHITE (-) use all 3 DOOR TRIGGER wires and DIODE ISOLATE when connecting

to an ALARM SYSTEM

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If i Can't Install it    I Don't need it   Joe

Yes, the door triggers are (-), but if the vans the same as the trucks in these years the door switch contacts are closed to ground when the door is closed and open when the door is open. You have to use the (+) door trigger input, and some vehicle / installations require the use of pull-up resistors to get the voltage high enough to trigger the system's (+) trigger input.
I'm not familiar with Crime Guard, but on a DEI you disable the notification chirps in programing, and the system waits for the dome lights to go out, and then arms normally. Nothing special needs to be done.

Thanks for the info guys---greatly appreciated.

I never thought to look at programming options for the Crime Guard 350i5 but there doesn't seem to be options to wait for the dome light to go out. What is the DEI unit mentioned? Perhaps that's one way to go for this installation.

This year Ford seems to use some portion of the instrument cluster's microprocessor to initiate the dome light off sequence so I'll poke around that wiring hoping to find a signal that acts in sympathy with the factory door triggers.

I only need the front doors to act as triggers because I'll be installing electronic dead bolt locks triggered by the alarm--once they're set there's no getting into the van.

Directed Electronics Inc. They do the "snake" names. Viper, Python, Avital, I think there's others. In programing, there's a way to turn off "notification chirps". When you arm the alarm, if the dome lights are on, a few seconds later you get an error chirp because the door is open. When the lughts go off, the system arms normally. With notification chirps off, use the light flashes to monitor system activity.

My experience is with the Super Duties. Beginning in 2001 the cluster controls several things like domelights, delayed accessory buss (radio and windows) and the chimes. The Econoline is a close cousin to the Super Duty, so it doesn't surprise me that the clusters' control of things is the same.

Hey DaveP--thanks for the info and about DEI too---naturally I'm familiar with the "snake" brands. CrimeGuard's parent company is Omega https://www.caralarm.com/en/ and they too have multiple brands.

FWIW the Econoline's tended to follow the F-Series pick ups in features a few years later---it seems the switch to the digital odometer display is when the respective vehicles incorporated feature controls through the cluster microprocessor.

I have a good amount of experience with the E-Series up to 2003 but have recently acquired a 2005 & 2006 so have to almost relearn everything I thought I once new. Even with factory schematics sorting through some things is a huge challenge.

Within the next few days I hope to dig into the actual cluster wiring for a way to bypass the dome light off delay---if successful I'll be glad to update this for anyone looking for the same sort of fix.

Thanks guys---really appreciate the input as it's very helpful.

Okay so if anyone's interested in this topic I've found a workable suitable solution, at least for myself. Following the factory schematics for my year van I see there are three separate wires to illuminate the dome or courtesy lighting; 2 for the door triggers and another from the main headlight switch for manual control of the dome/courtesy lighting. These wires are controlled directly by the door/manual switches, acting immediately when the triggers are engaged.

I'll be using three independent relays activated by the trigger/switches to avoid any possibility of interference with whatever microprocessor that comes into play when these circuits are activated as the vehicle was built, aka no dome light out delay. The relays will not only work to turn on and off the front only dome light but when my Crime Guard 350i5 is engaged opening any door will cause it to sound.

On the note of Omega Industries vs DEI I don't care one bit for what I've read about their lack of support in the form of installation diagrams, that one has to be a mega-seller in order to achieve it. My Crime Guard systems all come with complete installation and programming instructions and are dirt plain simple which is all I need or want. Often times the least complicated or "feature laden" devices are the best for a job.

So thanks all--believe it or not the replies here were very helpful with my coming to a solution. Great input and so very much appreciated!

J W