QuestionQUESTION: While driving my doors will ding (like they are open), my interior lights will go on and off with the dinging of the doors and my automatic locks will keep locking. This has increased over the past few weeks. Although it has happened while I am idle, it seems as they it happens a lot more when I am on a bumby road. I had my dad check the fuses and all seems okay. Please help it is driving me CRAZY!!!
Also, my milage is digital. The only thing is it only comes on when I have been driving for over an hour or when my heat and cruise are being used. And, I am not sure what it is called but the thing on my dash that shows the temp outside and my trip miles, etc... is not working. It was working then about 2 months ago there were just lines on the screen and the screen was really hot and then about two weeks later the screen just went blank.
ANSWER: Hi Wanda,
On the door ding/lights/locks problem: that is simple. The door latch on either the driver or the passenger door is too loose so the switch that has to be pushed in fully to prevent the alarm is not so. All you need to do is push outward on either front door when you are not moving and see which one will begin to ding. That is the one which needs to have the striker plate on the door frame moved in-board a bit so that the door is secured more firmly to the body when it is closed. Loosen the screws, move the plate in-board, re-tighten the screws and try the test again. If it won't ding, then you have solved the problem.
On the other dislays: do you mean the odometer is not working or the speedometer?
Om the monitor: the fact that the screen got hot and went blank suggests that it has failed entirely.
Roland
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: The odometer. Oh, and when it is not working the RPM is not working but when it kicks in the RPM kicks in.
AnswerAll the gauges and dials get their readings from a pair of wires called the digital data bus. If only part of the readings are missing at any time (and those missing reading are not related, like the odometer and the rpm) that means that there is a loose connection on the instrument cluster board itself. Probably one of the solder points has cracked. If you take out the cluster and look over the solder points for those readouts you will probably find which one(s) need to be reheated to resurrect the connection firmly. Use a soldering pencil available from an electronics supply store to reheat the solder until it is soft, then let it cool.
Roland
