1996 Grand Prix front doors will randomly lock..sometimes not allowing me to use the door to get out of the car. other times it will not unlock from the outside.. waht could be the problem? BTW, I call the car Christine. If ur a Stephen King fan you knw what I mean by that name. :-)
what is a possible cause of the problem mentioned above.
You can try doing this: 1- Spray WD 40 solvent through the key opening from the outside of you car door (try to put the straw that comes with the WD 40 through the opening of the key slot, see image attached) , also do the same on the inside lock (also see attached image). 2- Spray the same onto the power door lock from the inside on both driver and passenger doors.
There has to be a sensor in Christine (red 56? Plymouth, awesome car) for making the doors to lock since when you put it into drive and go the doors are suppose to lock, and unlock when in park. I just don't know where it is...
I've been researching and I'm thinking it might possibly be the door actuator??
I think it would be in the door lock switch then more than anything. My door lock switch in my truck I have to be careful of to make sure it is off. You got to figure, the actuator gets its power from the switch.
Sounds like an actuator issue to me too. I don't believe the actuator gets power from anywhere. I believe it receives a wireless signal from the car, or the remote if you are locking/unlocking with your key fob. Replacing it may fix the problem, but you might want to consult a technician before spending time and money on it. Good diagnosis by someone with experience will usually save you money in the end. You may even be able to just disable the system and lock/unlock manually. Its an old car and not worth spending much money on.
There is a wire plugin that runs to the door actuator. So the thing gets power from somewhere. It is not battery operated. From the FOB the signal goes to the Body Control Module which in turn controls the door actuator.
Thanks. I don't pretend to know all that much about these things... well, I pretend, but that's all. I forgot about the control module. And yes, there's a basic power supply, but all the signalling and controlling happens wirelessly, right??
How about my idea of disabling the system on an older car, would that work or would it create other problems.
