Awhile back I asked about a problem with my factory installed car alarm. After a couple of minutes with the doors being locked the alarm will go off by itself. Almost everyone said that it was a faulty door switch. The problem is, is that when I brought it in to get fixed, the shop said there was no way to determine which switch wasn't working properly. There was nothing they said they could do. Does this sound right? Is there any way to figure out which switch is giving me problems? Any other help would be greatly appreciated. Thank-You.
2006-10-16 12:11:51 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
For all those who have asked. The dome light works fine for all the doors. The only problem is finding which switch is bad.
2006-10-18 15:05:43 · update #1
If it isn't a switch problem then what could it be? Everything else works fine.
2006-10-18 15:09:19 · update #2
From a mechanic
Thats bull it is verry easy to see what switch is not working. All you need is an ohm meter. Analog type.
You put one prob on the switch and the other on the wire and then push in on the switch. If the meter moves it is good. If not it is the defective one.
2006-10-16 12:21:31 · answer #1 · answered by goldwing127959 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Everbody has an answer,nobody thinks before they speak.
You took your problem to the dealer I gather from your question.
What does this tell you about dealers---never a dealer, except for warranty work, and then be careful.
First answer ? says nothing understandable
#2 answer takes it for granted you have, and know how to use, a vom, and that you know where the switches are located.
#3 here we have the typical, try this, approach. This can get expensive and frustrating. I take it your car starts and runs ok ? So it don't need no battery. A 98 should have a voltmeter on the dash to verify battery voltage.
I don"t know where your switches are located and they may use the same switch on the door that the dome lite etc. uses.
Does your dome lite work on all doors ? If not this may tell you a bad switch exists. also check any rear tail gates or doors that turn on the dome lite. You may have a separate switch for the alarm system. But I would think for simplicity they would use the door switch.
If you knew how to trace wires from the fuse panel we could continue. A qualified "mechanic" should be able to go to the fuse panel and locate the wire or wires that control uour door switches and do a continuity test .
I would think if the dome lite works from all places it should work from then you have a different problem. I would suggest a shop that installs alarms.
Worth a try
2006-10-16 20:30:26 · answer #2 · answered by tronary 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The factory never installed car alarms.. Ford only sold aftermarket kits that tied into the factory harness that's it.
You can have a panic feature on the factory keyless entry that is setting a Factory alarm off, or setting a aftermarket alarm off if tied into the factory harness.
Most car alarms have you add switches in the door frame. others tap into the factory door ajar switches that are on the door latch assy inside the door itself on this model... brains tells me also that it's either intermittant (in which you won't catch it with a DVOM unless it's messing up) or you've been suffereing with a door ajar light on for some time (if it's tapped into the factory harness... If you have a aftermarket door switches, other than the DVOM you are out of luck.
If it's a alarm hooked to the factory door ajar switches.. any real Ford tech can tell which one by montioring the module that controls the lights, when the sensor starts to act up, by running codes, it will nail which sensor (and 9/10 of the time it's the drivers door).. but not seeing what you have I can't be for certain on your exact problem)
And to the guy who posted about dealers... it ain't dealers but what tech you get to work on your vehicle... As I've seen some independants that are really good at electrical, and some that send me their cluster bombs... same as dealers who pass the buck to someone else...
2006-10-16 21:53:33 · answer #3 · answered by gearbox 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This may seem kind of stupid, but does it still have the original battery?
If so, it may not be holding voltage well enough. (ei voltage drop.)
Your alarm is set to monitor voltage in the eletrical system. When you open a door, the lights draw down the battery voltage and thus, the alarm goes off.
Try replacing the battery.
Added:
By the way, if you had a faulty door switch, your dome lights would stay on, or never turn on.
2006-10-16 19:24:06 · answer #4 · answered by Mr. KnowItAll 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Change the out 1 at a time.
2006-10-24 18:19:14 · answer #5 · answered by George K 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
When my durango did this, the alarm would just go off for no reason, the first time it was the battery. The second time a fuse in my fuse box was bad and it eventually caught on fire.
2006-10-24 13:47:28 · answer #6 · answered by Jennifer M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The problem started at the factory in Detroit... the Ford Motor Company
2006-10-22 15:03:45 · answer #7 · answered by LEO H 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
EVERY DOOR OR OPENING TO YOUR CAR SHOULD HAVE A SENSITIVITY SENSOR FOR YOUR ALARM EITHER YOUR DIRVER DOOR BECAUSE IT IS THE MOST USED OR YOUR TRUNK/HATCH BECAUSE IT IS RARELY USE (STICKING) GOOD LUCK
2006-10-16 19:16:36 · answer #8 · answered by marty 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋