Smell of electronic gadget burning inside the car, should i take it to a mechanic?

[Leee]

hey everyone, recently there has been a problem with locking the car with door lock remote control

the car is equipped with aftermarket (autowatch) alarm and the problem was the lock on the driver's side door didn't move as smoothly and it will always get stuck in the middle of the way so that it doesnt get completely locked..

So i was inside the car manually forcing the lock on drivers side to lock all they way and trying with remote control as well for about 3 times

then suddenly the smell of burning electronics flowed in from, i assume, near the steering wheel (over to the dashboard to be more specific) sorry if my explanation was incomprehensible but i tried my best to describe it :S

should i be concerned with this smell? should I take it to a mechanic to rip out the interior to see whats going on? i cannot understand how manually forcing a lock to 'lock' could cause such thing?!

any suggestions/knowledge and personal opinions would help a lot as I have no clue!

[dorikin]

your alarm smoked it

[Leee]

so do you think its an alram problem??

[dorikin]

most likely mate.

does your alarm and central locking still work

what about electronics in the car

[Leee]

yeah other electronics like the head unit, power window and central locking function as normal but again the car wont lock completely

do you know where i could get it fixed? mechanics or call autowatch?

[dorikin]

the reason why your aftermarket central locking system wasn't fully locking the door is because the actuator (inside the door) wears out over time and needs either adjustment or replacing.

by trying to force the lock closed while pressing the remote you probably overloaded the circuit frying the alarm

you need an auto electrician, where are you located

[Leee]

im located in north shore around gordon and thanks a lot with the explanation!

do u know any good auto electrician around sydney?

[XB-16-AX]

did you touch or fiddled with the alarm module? if not, - your case would be that the central locking motor has fried itself due to forcing it to close.

if not the central locking motor then the central locking module is fried. - it will only be one of the two culprits. The alarm unit/module will be the very last thing.

check to see if you alarm unit is still working - arm/disarm/siren?

does the centra locking still lock/unlock the other doors?

let us know how you go.

[dc2r-0636]

The reason why ur door half locks With remote is because there is this nut that holds connects these two rods together that, these rods are moved by the door actuator. the nut is too big and rubs on a groove inside the door that doesn't allow it to fully lock by remote, hence when u use a key to lock it it feels harder to Lock but does lock.

Now, what u do is open up your door trim and replace the lil nut with two screws in it that joins the two metel rods, With a smaller nut

[Leee]

Thanks for the input guys much appreciated!

what should i do to get rid of the smell of burning electronics? should i replace the motor? currently that is the most concerning thing as Im getting nauseous while driving


did you touch or fiddled with the alarm module? if not, - your case would be that the central locking motor has fried itself due to forcing it to close.

if not the central locking motor then the central locking module is fried. - it will only be one of the two culprits. The alarm unit/module will be the very last thing.

check to see if you alarm unit is still working - arm/disarm/siren?

does the centra locking still lock/unlock the other doors?

let us know how you go.

nah i didnt touch alarm module at all and according to your info i guess the central locking motor fried :( I haven tried whether the alarm works but the central locking locks the other door

whats happening now is that somehow the driver side door locks normally after that burning smell incident so thats a relief BUT there is constantly that burning smell in the cabin and its making me dizzy



The reason why ur door half locks With remote is because there is this nut that holds connects these two rods together that, these rods are moved by the door actuator. the nut is too big and rubs on a groove inside the door that doesn't allow it to fully lock by remote, hence when u use a key to lock it it feels harder to Lock but does lock.

Now, what u do is open up your door trim and replace the lil nut with two screws in it that joins the two metel rods, With a smaller nut

hmm I will let a mechanic do it this time to learn how to replace the nuts or actuator cuz i might screw up even more :(

[dorikin]

you shouldn't be driving it at all if there's a short and it's still burning/shorting out

[Leee]

could you elaborate on that? then i assume i should immediately find an auto electrician like u suggested..

[dorikin]

you mentioned there's a constant burning smell, IF it's still burning there's a chance there was no fuse to protect that circuit that burnt out which means the short is still live and a big chance of an electrical fire

If you can see or smell strong fumes coming out from under your dash DO NOT drive it

[Leee]

big thanks for the advice and ill get it fixed after anzac day and let you know what happened/ got fixed