DC2 Central Locking

[shebangs]

Hi

When I bought my 100% stock DC2 (95 VTi-R) first thing I did was put my new alarm into it. Viper 1000. I also added [remote] central locking (which from what I was told it required a little motor in the doors).

I'm just wondering, it seems as if my installer is having a really *really* hard time getting the central locking working. The alarm itself is awesome, however, I've had to take the car back 3 times now for them to "fix" the central locking issue. I'm not mentioning any vendor names as typically these guys are great (from what i've heard). The problem is, with the central locking not working, my doors are literally always open.

The switch on the drivers door controls itself and the passenger door, but to 'flick' the switch it requires alot of force so it seems as if the little motor they put in to do this isn't capable. When I first got the alarm, to flick the switch was able to be done with ease, hence the little motor worked like a charm. However it quickly started requiring alot of force to flick the switch, and at one point wasn't actually able to be flicked to locked.

I just want to know, is this always a drama on a DC2? Or is my installer just a retard? For a $800 alarm system I'm pretty pissed off considering it's made my car more vunerable. Is the way the installer has done my doors correct? (small motor etc) Do I have another option? I'm slightly annoyed as it means anyone can steal my rather expensive sound system, I can't leave my car anywhere and this whole thing is making me look like a whinger to the installer, but worst of all, my insurance is void at the moment so I'd love to know what the deal is before I ocne again ask the installer wtf is going on :)

Cheers
Matt

[destrukshn]

the central locking motor has rods that connect to the original locking rods from the lock.
if the central locking motor rod is misaligned it will cause it to jam, and will be very difficult to lock and unlock. the dc2s, are very easy, since it's horizontal, and the central locking motor cn just go parrallel to it, i've never had a problem with em before.

[Max Power]

Correct, it sounds like they have put the motor in the wrong spot

It has happened on one of my previous cars and eventually lead to the motor burning out

[shebangs]

Correct, it sounds like they have put the motor in the wrong spot

It has happened on one of my previous cars and eventually lead to the motor burning out

Can I ask who you took it to to fix? (PM me if you like) I wouldn't mind getting them to have a look at it to confirm it's done properly, and even fix it if it's not to expensive.

[destrukshn]

you can give it a go yourself.
just open up the door trim.
and see if everything is in place and straight, sometimes the rod can go wonky sometimes becuase the rods are tight enough, or just bent wrong, not aligned properly, you should be able to do it.
it's not that hard.

[haiz]

ive had the same problem as SheBangs back then when i bought my car. the locks on the doors required alot of force just to lock and even sometimes wudnt budge. its not the central locking motor, the problem lies within the rods connected to the actualy door lock itself. u have to replace this little metal bridge piece that connects both the central locking rod to the actual door lock rod(just make the rods more stable). the problem was that the stock rods in the door werent stable enough and would just jam every time u try to lock it. its a pretty easy job to do urself. all i did was replace the stock metal bridge with a double bridge for more stability. it worked a treat.

if u need some instructions dont hesitate to pm me

[shebangs]

ive had the same problem as SheBangs back then when i bought my car. the locks on the doors required alot of force just to lock and even sometimes wudnt budge. its not the central locking motor, the problem lies within the rods connected to the actualy door lock itself. u have to replace this little metal bridge piece that connects both the central locking rod to the actual door lock rod(just make the rods more stable). the problem was that the stock rods in the door werent stable enough and would just jam every time u try to lock it. its a pretty easy job to do urself. all i did was replace the stock metal bridge with a double bridge for more stability. it worked a treat.

if u need some instructions dont hesitate to pm me

Thanks buddy, check PM. :)

Oh, and repped :)

[Max Power]

I took it to Northfield at Macgregor to get fixed (they didnt fit it) and it only cost 20 or so bucks i think.

They are awesome there, highly recommend them

[shebangs]

Oooooooooooooookay. Hopefully this will help some people out, including ones who don't have central locking.

I ripped her all apart that to hai's advice (and help). The actually install was really, really good. It had nothing to do with the door skin at all. The actual switch was hard to flick on/off, and with the door panel off it was easier to troubleshoot.

I removed the connection to the actuator (motor) so the car was back to being non-central locking, and I still had the inability to to lock/unlock the car. Which meant it was the car's stock assembly which was causing the stress.

Long story short, it needed WD40 (lol). 100% perfect now.

So...anyone finding there lock inside the car doesnt freely want to flick on/off - give it a dose of WD40. Unsure of whether you need to do the inside (behind the skin) and the outter visible part, but I did both :)

Matt

[BeeH]

yeah happened to my DC2 and still does....when i alarm it, the passenger side doesnt lock, so i unlcok the car and lock it just using the key until it works, Then when i try alarming it and finally it locks when i activate the alarm....dunno....mayb its just a DC2 thing lolz

[haiz]

WD40 should only be used temporarily. the WD40 gets rid of all the build up of dust and grime in the lock...in the end its gonna come back. might not be soon but it will come back

[Ironfist]

Yeah i've got this same problem.

One time it fixed itself but now it's stuffed and i have to keep using the key to lock the doors. The remote unlocks the doors ok but locking it, it just seems like it doesn't have enough power to lock.

I'll try the wd40 trick, been putting this off for over 3 months to fix it cos i thought i may stuff it up more.

[shebangs]

WD40 should only be used temporarily. the WD40 gets rid of all the build up of dust and grime in the lock...in the end its gonna come back. might not be soon but it will come back

Whats the permanent fix?

[T-onedc2]

It is common in DC's my brother's and my car have both had one or both of the OEM actuators replaced.

[marcs]

I'm having this problem now also. It will unlock, but just doesn't lock. But in my case, i haven't used remote central/alarm for maybe a year coz i was too lazy to change the battery. Will have to give the WD40 thing a try and just check the rods like people have suggested.

[flipmods]

If your installer actually knew what they were doing they wouldn't need the extra motor as they can tap into the existing Central locking on the car.

Good luck.

[weeman]

I'm having this problem now also. It will unlock, but just doesn't lock. But in my case, i haven't used remote central/alarm for maybe a year coz i was too lazy to change the battery. Will have to give the WD40 thing a try and just check the rods like people have suggested.

i fixed mine the other day, turned out it was just the little rod from the central locking had slipped on the original rod, the screws holding it in place were a little loose,

to fix it you have to take the door panel off.

1. fist you loosen the screws and put the door lock in the lock position,

2. retighten screws so it doesn't slip anymore.

3. unlock your door

4. replace door panel, shut door and your done

5. crack open a beer to complement yourself on a job well done


cheers
mitch

[Ironfist]

I've had a go and now it will lock with the alarm but sometimes the passenger side door doesn't lock so to lock it i have to actually lift up the drivers door handle and then the passenger door will lock?

I'm also having trouble putting the door trim on, the side near the hinge doesn't seem to want to sit properly so there is now a bit of a gap between the window and the trim.
any help?

[weeman]

yeh the same thing happened to me, just make sure the black strip that sits up against the window hasn't come away from the door trim (do this with the trim off), if it has just push it back into place and bend the little metal bits to hold it in place.

when you put the trim back on make sure you window is down (it makes it heaps easier). put the front corner in first then just ease the rest in, if you still have problems i need to learn how to explain things better.

if you live in nsw i might be able to come and give you a hand

cheers
mitch

[Chronos]

If your installer actually knew what they were doing they wouldn't need the extra motor as they can tap into the existing Central locking on the car.

Good luck.

Not true for the DC2. the drivers door has a slave controller only - no motor. The passenger side has a master controller - with motor. You can check this by locking the passenger door of a stock DC2; the drivers door will NOT lock. When you lock the drivers door, the passengers door DOES lock.

Installation of remote central locking requires the use of an aftermarket motor, as described in the above posts.

i have a similar intermittant fault with my DC2. i have tried all of the above mentioned suggestions, but im yet to find the true cause.

[Ironfist]

Well good news on this end.

When i had my window down i noticed how the part near the hinge wasn't hooked on. On the inside it had broken in 2 so that's why the rear was on but the front wasn't (if that makes any sense). So with that added help of having the window down when re-installing the door trim, it's all on properly.
I would have had it down the first time when i did it but because my windows wind up when you arm the car, we just didn't bother.

thx

[marcs]

I took my door off to have a look and then it decided to work. I put my door back on and it decided it didn't want to work. Now it works whenever it feels like it.