Security Alarm Problem

[kr236rk@bt]

Hi,

Been driving my 5 door GS for about 15 years with no problem. Other day neighbour turned up and asked me if my alarm had gone off in my garage? We both had a listen and could hear nothing. I said I didn't think so, and he went away again.

Several hours ago I had the garage open to do a bit of tidying up around the house, I heard a car alarm go off so I popped my head to the window and could clearly see my lights were not flashing, so it must be someone else. But as I walked round the garden I could hear the alarm getting louder the nearer the garage I got: it was my car, and still the alarm flashing lights were not going off, only the sound-alarm.

I had the electric key with me so unlocked then locked the car with it and the alarm went off.

Two minutes later my other neighbour's electric garage door opened and he backed his car out, turned round, and drove off down the road.

So I am wondering - is my other neighbour using an electric door key for his car or garage which is triggering my car alarm please?

a) I have never noticed this effect before, I have been suspicious a couple of times that the alarm has quietly activated in public car parks - again without any flashing lights - is it possible the signal from other keys - there must be tens of thousands - is setting my car off please? If the alarm has gone off in the past it has always switched itself off before I've got back inside the vehicle - never gone off this loudly and for so long before.

b) Could anything else trigger it inside a garage?

c) What on earth do I do about it? No garage servicing my car has ever reported on a defective door alarm incident.

Thanks,

Richard

 

Ps. I am not a new member, I just changed my ISP.

[Mooly]

Very hard to say what is happening. The transmitted signal strength field from a wireless key is so small that its hard to see how it could directly effect your alarm. What could affect it is much higher field strengths such as from a mobile phone or even a poorly screened microwave oven. Unless you can link the occurrences to some definite outside action occurring then its going to be difficult to diagnose.

Could it be coincidence ? and that the problem is something like a misadjusted bonnet switch. You had the garage doors open, the drop in temperature could cause the bonnet to contract and 'move' triggering the switch. This was actually the number one problem on the later Corollas (I had this happen to me) and I didn't make the connection for quite some time.  

[oldcodger]

The Toyota alarm systems always seems a bit of a mystery to me , but on one occassion when I was trying out a different remote control on something else, it had a fault that meant it was transmitting all the time.  It did not set anything off in the car, but I was unable to open the car door remotely as the other remote control was blocking the cars remote signal.

Like Mooly says, I think it could be a switch on your car, have you checked all the door courtesy switches ?  - they can work loose in the frame or become internally faulty.  A simple way to check them is how do they operate  / turn on the interior light.

Cannot say why your alarm lights do not flash when the siren sounds ; have you got your original handbook which explains how you models alarm system works ?

[kr236rk@bt]

Thanks Mooly & O/C,

 

Saw a thing on YouTube last night about drowning the rear hatch lock in WD40, I am going to try that.

 

Will update

 

Richard

[kr236rk@bt]

Update. The WD40 trick worked for a while, but the issue has resurfaced. Have called the AA.

The first sign of trouble is bleeping after you close and lock the boot, quiet bleeping from the alarm system. After several instances of this, the full alarm triggers on closing then locking the car on remote - as soon as you press 'lock' all the bells and whistles go off. Sometimes the lights flash, sometimes they don't, it is definitely a system which has gone haywire.

Thank gosh this happened in the middle of the afternoon - can you imagine this happening late at night with all the neighbours in bed :-o

Fingers crossed for the AA.