Has anyone had this happen? Fix options?
I swear it's a problem with my alarm,
thread here, but the shop told me today they think it's a problem with the stock actuators. I'm really not convinced that's the problem because of the symptoms that are happening, but has anyone had this happen? Do they freeze when they get older? My car is a '99 and I've never had a problem before.
I'm going to the shop tomorrow with my stock keychain to unlock the door and show them it's the alarm, not the stock actuator (hopefully!) I've had locks freeze before, but I'd hear it trying to unlock. If the actuator would be frozen, it wouldn't try to unlock at all, right?
Have you tried some lithium grease? Sometimes that's where it's at. Also, if they open up, check and see if there's any loose connections or if anything looks burnt. As things get older, and since they're plastic, they wear out.
Lanman31337 - Cavfire wrote:Have you tried some lithium grease? Sometimes that's where it's at. Also, if they open up, check and see if there's any loose connections or if anything looks burnt. As things get older, and since they're plastic, they wear out.
I don't have my car now, the shop does. I talked to them Thursday afternoon and they said that everything appears normal. The problem is only when it's really cold, as it says in my other thread. I swear it's a problem with the alarm, not the actuator. But just in case, I thought I'd post here to see if it's a common problem.
Brad - is your problem all the time or when it's really cold? Mine usually has the problem when it's in the mid to lower 30's. Also, does it happen any time you try it, or just the first time of the day? I only seem to have the problem when I leave work at 8am after it's been sitting overnight. I can drive about 3 miles, grocery shop for 45 minutes and come out and they'll work fine. It continues to work fine the rest of the day up until the next time it sits overnight.
Also, if it was a problem with the alarm, it would still disarm, just not unlock. The alarm goes off when the door is opened, not when the lock is unlocked. So, I'm thinking that it's definitely not the actuator? Plus, what are the chances they both fail at the same time?
Guess I'll find out when I go to the shop tomorrow morning & try to unlock it with the OEM fob!
When you had the alarm put in did you get the 531n or whatever the door lock relay is put in? The alarm brain doesnt usually put out a very strong pulse for the door lock. Couple that with a low battery from sitting in the cold all night and you may have found your problem . Also on some gm models(usually the trans am i think) the car was equipped with "sleeping door locks" after ten minutes or so the door would quit responding to an aftermarket pulse to open it. a major PITA to work with. I dont think that is your problem though because its the sunfire you are working on and you said after coming out of the store it works so i dont believe it is that. .hope that helps im getting rusty at my alarm/remote starts.
Thank you for your response n8ball2013! After stopping by the shop this morning, I proved that I don't have an actuator problem. I'll put the new info in the other thread I started since I've ruled out the actuator!
Other Thread Here
Nate - great point. You might wanna put some relays in the mix if your brain module does not have internal relays.
its a 791 so it has an asston of relays. Just not the one for the door locks. that one costs more money. after reading your other post i wanna say they did not install the door lock relay I believe the part number i gave is correct. ok just checked its the 451m. goes about 15 bucks tops and shoudl take about ten minutes to do since all the wires have been found already. super simple and provides a stronger pulse to your door. its worth a shot at least.
