Security/door locks goin crazy

[bunnywp]

Hi there - I have a problem with my security system lately. It will not work unless I open and close the passenger side door. I have replaced the battery in both of my fobs and reset the system many times.....it just refuses to lock and set the security unless I open the passenger door!! It's driving me nuts...any ideas?

 

[Rabbit]

Howdy Bunnywp,
Sounds as if you have a bad door ajar switch. Suggest a little contact cleaner & some exercise , pushing in & out may help?

 

[bunnywp]

not to sound uneducated, although I am (lol), where would the door switch be located? I see the little black push button type thing on the inside of the door jam....is that it? I think the whole switch is messed up because when I open the door the radio doesn't go off anymore, nor do the inside lights come on at night.

 

[Rabbit]

The switch is located on the rear of the door. There is a small plastic disc the size of a dime where the switch makes contact with the "B" pillar, which is the portion of the roof support next to your right shoulder. If the contact cleaner doesn't work try taping a dime onto the plastic disc & close the door gently.
Can't say exactly if this is the problem, but it fits the pattern. Don't forget the pass/door. Some guys say you can pull the switch center out with pliers, but be very careful, apparently they break easily.

 

[caddy]

Sounds like the same type of problem I'm having, I have a 94' LT1 Coupe w/6 speed and every now and then I can hear the door lock device on the drivers side going nuts, I lock it and it unlocks itself, it's really noticable at night sometimes it starts going nuts and the interior lights start going off and on and the "Door Ajar" light on the dash comes on, but if I open the passenger door and then shut it everything goes back to normal and then a little later it might just start all over again. At first I thought it might be the security system but when I bought the vehicle the dude didn't give me anything with it................SPOOKY!:confused

 

[bunnywp]

I KNOW! Seriously spooky!! I tried rabbit's suggestion this weekend (thanks rabbit) and it seems to have worked with a few minor relapses. My Dad and I put a penny on the disc, only cause I couldn't find a dime, and it seems to have made the "B" pillar stick now. So when I get out of the car, I push that in a couple of times, then close the door and it works. I need to put a dime on there and then pull the little switch center out again. I wonder if a little WD40 would help with that sticking?

 

[caddy]

I read somewhere on here where someone had pulled out the little metal plunger and stuck a O-Ring behind it and he said that worked, you might try that, heck I'm open to any suggestion if I can get this thing to quit freaking out on me!!!!!!!!

:crazy :cry

 

[Rabbit]

I KNOW! Seriously spooky!! I tried rabbit's suggestion this weekend (thanks rabbit) and it seems to have worked with a few minor relapses. My Dad and I put a penny on the disc, only cause I couldn't find a dime, and it seems to have made the "B" pillar stick now. So when I get out of the car, I push that in a couple of times, then close the door and it works. I need to put a dime on there and then pull the little switch center out again. I wonder if a little WD40 would help with that sticking?

The switches are pretty easy to change. Let me know if you decide to swap em'
out & I can send you the info from the fact. manual.

 

[caddy]

Rabbit, please send me the fact manual, I'd love to have it because if my problem continues I will replace them.
thanks ;worship

 

[Rabbit]

Rabbit, please send me the fact manual, I'd love to have it because if my problem continues I will replace them.
thanks ;worship

What's your e-mail address?

 

[bunnywp]

I'll take that too if you don't mind = bunnywp@yahoo.com

thank you!

 

[Tuna]

Howdy,

I'm the 'o-ring' poster guy.

The post in the center of the switch can be pulled out some to extend its length. Mine would not stay extended so I got a very small o-ring and slipped it over the end of the post. It keeps the post extended and has some give to it that the penny does not have. I checked it recently and the o-ring is showing some wear so I probably need to put on another one.

 

[caddy]

Rabbit my email is agp@ev1.net

thanks!

 

[caddy]

Tuna,
Where your locks and interior lights doing the same thing?
and was the "Door Ajar" light on?

 

[Tuna]

Initially, I got a momentary flash of the door ajar light and the interior lights would flash on if it was dark enough when I went over some uneven road surfaces. I would stop and reclose the passenger door and it seemed to work okay for a few days.

Then one day at the office, with the car parked and the alarm set, something upset the door switch and the alarm went off and kept going off. Of course everyone ignored the alarm since no one was around.

I came out to a dead battery and had to boost the car. Then the door ajar light showed. After an annoying drive home, I did the o-ring trick. Seems to have fixed my door ajar problem and flashing interior lights. It only cost me a battery and a small o-ring.

 

[theadmiral94]

we had some odd problems with our 94 LT1.

PKE and alarm wasn't working and the radio and windows continued to work even after removing the key and opening the door.

One of the problems was the door 'ajar' switches. if they don't work, nothing else seems to work correctly (including the alarm). Both door 'ajar' switches died on our 94 (never 'closed' the circuit to simulate a door open situation).

The easy way to decide if they are working is to see if the radio/time display goes off/out consistently after removing the key and opening the door (and if the 'door ajar' light goes on in the dash). If not, then your 'door ajar' switch(es) might be bad.

The door 'ajar' switches in the 94 are in the door and hit the little plastic cover on the body (only to prevent paint damage). These switches are a 'normally closed' switch, in that when the door is open, they make contact, and when the door is closed, they 'open' the circuit. The metal contacts are near the exposed end of the switch and apparently subject to weather and damage from freezing. The amount of depression of the switch really doesn't matter, as long as it is depressed even a little bit, it should 'open' the circuit and allow for everything to operate normally.

Based on everyone's feedback so far, it sounds like some of your switches are bad (don't make contact when the door is opened -- i.e. the alarm and PKE not working), and some of your have water in your swithes causing them to periodically short out -- simulating a door open situation (i.e. alarm going off for no reason).

By the way, they can be replaced right through their hole without taking apart the door, see the manual for the procedure. They are about $12 from Eckler's and $20 from the dealer (for our 94).

P.S.S. ACDelco/GM has a problem with their manufactor of these 'door ajar' switches, we've gone through 5 bad ones from Eckler's and already 1 bad one from the dealer. The 'new' ones have either stuck, or are not correctly 'glued' to their mounting bracket (the lubricant (vasoline) escapes along with possibly letting in water).

good luck and hope this helps..

 

[caddy]

Thanks

 

[bunnywp]

Excellent info...thank you!

 

[vettn94]

Same thing happened with my 94. Still did it even after replacing door switch so I pulled the PKE fuse and no more problems since. Of course the alarm dosent set now but it was worth not having the headaches for as little as I drive the car.