Greetings everyone. I'd like to share some issues I'm having with my car and I can't help but think I must be the only one ever to have these problems. I have a 2002 LS Cavalier with the 2200 and 4 speed auto with less than 30,000 miles on it. I have noticed 3 peculiar things that have started recently. First, whenever my speedometer hits 75 mph or above, my door chime starts going off. It stops once I slow down to under 70. This has never happened to me for as long as I've owned my car and I've had it more than 5 years now. Has anyone else ever experienced or heard of anything like this? My second issue arises whenever I hit the unlock button on my keychain. Normally when you park the car and hit the lock button, the doors lock and the headlights flash once. When you hit the unlock button, the driver's side door unlocks and the headlights are supposed to flash twice. In my case, the doors lock as normal when I hit the lock button but the headlights don't flash. When I hit the unlock button, the door unlocks but instead of the headlights flashing, my horn beeps twice. Weird. My 3rd, and probably most important issue, is with my traction assist. Normally on slippery road conditions, the traction assist automatically kicks in when the wheels start to slip and the "low trac" dashboard light comes on. I have recently noticed that when the wheels slip, the traction assist does not kick in and no dash light comes on. I'm wondering if all 3 of these issues are related somehow. The car itself still starts up fine and runs fine and I have had no kind of dashboard warning lights accompanying these issues. Has anyone ever heard of this and does anyone have any suggestions on what could be causing this? Any ideas would be appreciated.
2002 2.2 auto Cav LS Coupe
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My second issue arises whenever I hit the unlock button on my keychain. Normally when you park the car and hit the lock button, the doors lock and the headlights flash once. When you hit the unlock button, the driver's side door unlocks and the headlights are supposed to flash twice. In my case, the doors lock as normal when I hit the lock button but the headlights don't flash. When I hit the unlock button, the door unlocks but instead of the headlights flashing, my horn beeps twice. Weird.
the factory setting for the keyless is push lock or unlock or trunk release the headlamps flash twice. if you push lock twice within 5 seconds the headlamps will flash twice again and the horn will beep once. if you hit unlock and the horn beeps 3 times that means the alarm was set off while you where away (a door or trunk was opened)
the setting can be changed by a dealer, so your was probably changed before you got the car.
mine was changed i hit lock or unlock and the lights flash and the horn beeps twice. the dealer can change it in 5 min. if they say they can't show them the page in the owners manual.
for the traction control id say maybe a bad wheel speed sensor, but other then that im not sure.
the traction control will not detect sideways slide. trust be i did 3 donuts down the highway once and it never kicked in.
as for the door chimes going off at high speed ive never heard of that before.
http://registry.gmenthusiast.com/images/my2005cav/my%20car%20the%20bash.jpg
I used to drive Chev pickups abroad and these models had a speed indicator/reminder that chimed when a certain speed was exceeded. This operated exactly as you have described---why you hear it beats me.
Sorry I can't be more help
Alont
Another possessed Cav. Occasionally, my key fob will not work. When that happens, and I use the key, it sets the alarm off. This with a good battery. Maybe it has something to do with being near an airport each time (powerful radars.)
How is your battery and terminal connections? Computer controlled cars depend upon a strong battery with good current paths. If your battery is weak or there is a lot of corrosion built up on the terminals (the powdery white stuff that builds and covers everything) you may not be getting all the amperage needed to properly run your systems. Clean the terminals, cover them in a light coat of grease and have your battery checked. After five years even a long life battery may be near the end of that long life. That's the good news.
The bad news. If this doesn't fix your problems you'll have to find a reputable shop to troubleshoot your issues, which usually costs about $80 and hour on average. Electrical gripes are notoriously hard to find in these cars. It could be something as simple as a little corrosion or dirt on a ground or a loose wire in a pin connector. Worst case scenario you have a harness that's shorting out somewhere.
A bit of good news, though, is that these cars have been around for over a decade and most of these issues have been encountered by others. A good source of self help is alldata.com. They list many TSBs (Technical Service Bulletins) for these cars (WAY too may to list here, check the site.) You may luck out and find what you need there. A dealer should also be able to tell you if there is a TSB for your problems. Good luck!
Thanks everyone for the input. My battery was replaced less than a year ago and all other electrical systems (CD player, radio, rear defog, wiper motor, headlights, etc.) seem to be working normally. The only thing I can think of is that I had a friend clear a code for me with a code reader when my CEL came on a few months back. Maybe when she read and cleared the code with the reader, maybe something inadvertently got reprogrammed in the computer. My next step is to try to reset the computer using the old reliable method of disconnecting the negative battery cable, waiting about 15 minutes, then reconnect and see if that does anything. Otherwise I was planning a visit to the dealer within the next month or so for my 30,000 mile service anyway and we'll see what they have to say.
2002 2.2 auto Cav LS Coupe
you ay want refer to my sig... lol
OK Here's an update. Good news. I disconnected the negative battery cable to reset the computer and then reconnected it after a little while. I tried my keychain lock/unlock and everything worked normally again. The following day when I was on the road, I did the 75 mph test and sure enough, no more door chimes (woohoo!!!). Looks like everything is back to normal. I guess my previous hunch was right about something inadvertently getting reprogrammed with the code reader. I'm just glad it didn't turn out to be something major with the wiring harness or other systems. Alls well that ends well I guess. Thanks again everyone for your input and suggestions.
2002 2.2 auto Cav LS Coupe
