Erratic alarm behavior

[andyman32]

Normal behavior is: press "lock" once on the key, it locks. Press it again, the alarm arms. Press "unlock" once and it both unlocks and disarms.

In the past few days, I have found that I can lock the car and arm the alarm as usual, but somewhat randomly, I can't unlock the car from the keyless entry with either my key or my wife's, whether i'm standing 20 feet from the car or right next to it. What I have to do is open the locks with the key (which trips the alarm) then close the door again, lock it with the remote again (which always works as usual), then unlock it from the remote (which invariably works on this second try). This disarms the alarm.

This has happened 3 times out of perhaps the last 10 or so times I've locked/unlocked the car, and there does not appear to be any one particular environmental condition that covaries with the problem. The only commonality is that each time, I drove the car somewhere, parked it and left it for at least an hour, but that should be totally irrelevant.

I believe the key remote is working fine because 1) it worked flawlessly prior to about a week ago, and 2) the LED blinks on the key as it always has.

Any ideas as to why the alarm sensor would randomly stop reading signals from the key?

[Unregistered]

Open up the remote and make sure that the chip is seated all the way in the slot. I had this happen to me and sometimes the remote worked and sometimes it didn't. Good luck. Change the battery while you are at it if you don't remember the last time that was done.


Normal behavior is: press "lock" once on the key, it locks. Press it again, the alarm arms. Press "unlock" once and it both unlocks and disarms.

In the past few days, I have found that I can lock the car and arm the alarm as usual, but somewhat randomly, I can't unlock the car from the keyless entry with either my key or my wife's, whether i'm standing 20 feet from the car or right next to it. What I have to do is open the locks with the key (which trips the alarm) then close the door again, lock it with the remote again (which always works as usual), then unlock it from the remote (which invariably works on this second try). This disarms the alarm.

This has happened 3 times out of perhaps the last 10 or so times I've locked/unlocked the car, and there does not appear to be any one particular environmental condition that covaries with the problem. The only commonality is that each time, I drove the car somewhere, parked it and left it for at least an hour, but that should be totally irrelevant.

I believe the key remote is working fine because 1) it worked flawlessly prior to about a week ago, and 2) the LED blinks on the key as it always has.

Any ideas as to why the alarm sensor would randomly stop reading signals from the key?

[tim s]

i noticed a pattern. such as this one chinese resturant my father-in-law likes. every time i park there i have to stand with 4ft. of the car for my remote to work. this has happened several times at different places, & the next time i stop i have no problem. i have new batteries & the remotes work up to 60ft when i am at home or work. i am wondering if it is "RF" interferance causing the problem. it only happens when i am in a parking lot with multiple cars around me.
tim s.

[andyman32]

Tim... come to think of it, you're exactly right. This only occurs when it's parked around a lot of other cars. It doesn't happen any of the places I park where there aren't a ton of cars around.

Also, bizarre that it sounds like several people on the message board are having this same problem just now. I wonder if it could have to do with hotter weather - some problem with the wiring, or perhaps solar radiation?

I have no idea... anyhow, I changed the battery this morning and at the moment it appears to be working correctly. I almost want to take it out to a crowded parking lot tomorrow just to find out if it'll work...

[tim s]

this weekend it happened again at the same chinese resturant. i do not think it would be solar. it does not happen at home parked in the sun. just when i am in a larger city.
tim s.