QuestionThanks Josh, the problem has narrowed down a bit since then. I have managed to unlock the doors finally by triggering the trunk lock several times with the key. And everything seemed to return normal until several minutes later it went bad again.
I have found that as long as i don't engage the double-lock position by turning the key at the driver's side to 90 degree, everything remains fine and the passenger side door can actually be unlocked by pulling the internal handle. So my conclusion is that the double-lock signal is wrong somewhere down the wire.
And further, many people have suspected the wire connector at the A pillar that is a bunch of wires going from the door to the car body. I have this same impression because the intermittent problem of locking/unlocking differs a lot when the door is at different "angle": wide open, the central lock reacts fine. If the door is close to being shut, the central lock doesn't function. Can i just pull out the connector and do some cleaning? Would it help and what are the special precautions and techniques? What if i simply want to disable the double-lock signal such that it never engage?
Glad that i am getting closer to the root cause! thx a lot!
-------------------------------------------
The text above is a follow-up to ...
-----Question-----
Dear Josh, thx in advance. The symtoms are found as follows:
1. When unlocking from the driver'side, the passenger side doesn't unlock. (This happens occassionally)
2. Now, while problem 1 above persists, i can't even unlock the passenger side from inside, or by key from outside.
3. The key turns but the lock doesn't move. There is no way to enter the passenger side then.
Is the lock electrically triggered? What would be the problem area to these issues?
Thanks a million
-----Answer-----
Frank,
The locks are both electrically and mechanically actuated. Its more like the door was designed to be mechanically opened, and as technology advanced to allow electronic locks, they just added them to the existing system.
Part of your problem (#1) is that the actuator is only sometimes working. This is an electrical issue. It could be a bad connection or a dirty connection. It could be wiring that is worn and is grounding out somewhere. it could be several things.
The other part (#3) is that the door will not open electrically, or mechanically. What you should do is try to get the door open the best you can, and pull the door panel off. Take note of all the internal movements of the lock/door handle mechanism. Try to unlock the doors electrically... see whats happening. Try to unlock the doors mechanically... also see whats happening. Unfortunately I cannot see what's going on in there to tell you what to do, so you'll have to do it yourself.
If I can help any further please ask,
Josh
AnswerFrank,
Yes you can clean the connection, but if your luck is like mine it will be a wire that has rubbed it's insulation off, and it's grounding out to the body of the vehicle. This also happens in a hard-to-reach place. So go ahead and clean the connector and wiggle the wires in the connector to see if any are loose. There isn't any risk of damage to you or the car, so dont worry about it. A car runs on 12 volts DC current, so you wont get shocked or anything. The only place I know of to get shocked is the spark plug wires, and the coil has stepped up the voltage considerably.
Good luck,
Josh
