First, Hi all. Second, just to let you know, I have done a several hour search of these forums for an answer to my question/problem. Okay, I have owned the Avenger for about a year now and so far the one thing that I cannot get fixed are the power door locks. The car has power locks and I believe at one time had a remote, however when we bought it we did not get any original keys or remotes. In fact when the last time the external passenger door handle was changed they did not even change the lock cylinder so that door has to be unlocked from the inside. The guy we bought the car from said that the power locks did not work and that he had taken the fuse out because with the fuse in the battery would drain and he figured there must be a short someplace. So I have taken the doors apart, checked the wires in the doors and replaced the little sensor thingy on the lock cylinders (both had fallen off), and I replaced the power lock relay. When the fuse is inserted the doors lock themselves and stay locked, you cannot physically unlock them, when you push the button you can hear the relay click but neither lock will unlock. I did resort to having the dealer look at it and they "think" it might be the ETACS controller ($400-500). They have already charged me $80.00 just to do this "maybe" diagnosis. I have tried to do some research on the ETACS controller but as of yet have not been able to find a diagram or repair manual that tells me where it is on our cars so I can maybe get one from a junk yard or something. Any thoughts or help would be appreciated.
I wish I wasn't the first to post on this, but i don't want you to think we don't care
Bad Venge is our local super awesome electrical expert. lol. You could probably send him a PM if he hasn't read the thread yet.
I'll go ahead and be truthful: I don't know the answer to the problem. lol.
But all that aside.
I'm just thinking out loud. Electical is not my forte yet... so... I DO expect [and request] to be corrected on my thinking. If the PDL stay engaged when you put the fuse back in, that means that constant power is going to the lock [when it shouldn't be] and thus keeps it from unlocking. I know that a stereo has a remote wire that tells it to power down when the switch is turned to OFF. Therefore, I'm wondering if the PDL has a remote wire of sorts that tells it to stop sending power to the cylinder?
OR
Is it like my drawing [yes i drew this. stop laughing] and there are 2 power wires that move the cylinder one way when current is introduced [locked], and then another [unlocked] when it's introduced on the other power wire?
Like i said, i'm just thinking out loud. I'm not saying this is it.
Do you know if it has remote keyless If it does is it factory or aftermarket AS a guess I'd guess the factory keyless brain (located in the drivers side rearby the seatbelt retractor) might be bad ... If it's an aftermarket it might just be a relay or a bad brain...
1 - Get in. 2 - Close the door. 3 - Lock the doors. 4 - Look for a green 'Security' light to come on in the dash. 5 - If it does, unlock the doors before the light goes out. 6 - Go grab a Mt Dew and enjoy the rest of your day.
Shiano, I would never laugh at something that I couldn't do myself...well maybe chuckle a little bit.
As far as I know there is no aftermarket alarm or anything on it, haven't run across anything that looks like it anyway. I also haven't noticed a green security light on the dash, but could that be a result of not having any power to the door locks due to having the fuse out?
I did a search for Bad Venge's short finding method and learned that they make a "short finder" might have to see how much that costs. Also found a couple posts about cutting a wire and trying to isolate a voltage drop to locate the short. I'm guessing that I would cut the wires as they exit the PDL relay? Then I'll have to find a good wiring diagram and try to figure out what wires to check on the other end for both the switches and the locks themselves right?
what u can do is find a voltage tester, strip a bit of the wire along the wiring diagram from the relay, and test that area, move along in the easiest sections first that way u dont do too much work..it would actually work better to work from the lock towards the relay.
I was thinking more about BV's method, aftermy second cup of coffee, and realized that I should probably test/cut at the end closest to the button/lock first then move toward the PDL module. Keeping your suggestion in mind BringIt, I have a multi-meter with very sharp, almost needle like, probes that I could probably use to penetrate the insulation without having to strip any of the wires, I think... While I think I understand at least the basics of electricity and have re-wired portions of my house and shop without difficulty, auto wiring with it's different voltages, inaccessible wire bundles, and various fuse blocks, etc. frustrates the Hell out of me. So, anyone know what the voltages are supposed to be at the switches and at the locking mechanism, will it be 12 volts?
hmm, sorry about the bold on my previous post didn't mean for that to happen. Anyway, was going to look at the factory keyless brain, as suggested by BV earlier. I don't see any visible fasteners on that interior panel, do you have any suggestions or tricks or do I just start by taking off the door sill and the molding and will I then find some fasteners?
the voltage will be 12, as far as i know all the parts are adapted to work on 12 volts since it is a 12 volt system...too many issues and complexities trying to convert..its easier to just convert the amperage. take off the door panel on the inside, you'll be able to work from there.
Ok, just wanted to finish this thread out, and maybe my mistake will save someone some frustration and money. I finally had some time again today to play with my lock problem. The plan was to tear both doors down as well as access the relay and "the brain" then start running all of the wires for shorts. (sounds like fun huh?) Well, much to my surprise, when I opened up the passenger door the little sensor thingy that is supposed to be clipped the back of the lock cylinder was just hanging there! Keep in mind that I had attached this sensor as one of my first steps, before taking it to the dealership, to fix this problem. The only thing that I can figure is that the first time I did not remove the external handle and I did not get the sensor completely clipped on the lock cylinder and it just fell off right after I put the door back together. So this time I removed the external door handle and made sure that the sensor was completely and securely clipped to the lock cylinder. So far after putting it all back together and some test runs it seems to work fine, now I just need to find a remote or two for it. Thank you all for your help with this.
I just got my Sebring home today, and I'm having a problem with the door locks on it. Much like the problem Stan described, but my doors won't lock, like the "signal" to unlock is constantly being sent; it's draining the battery. You can't even lock them manually if the battery has any juice. I know it's an electrical problem, b/c when I went to pick the car up today the battery was completely dead, and the doors would lock/unlock manually. I would like to know how to disconnect the power to the pdl's: I've already looked in the fuse block under the dash, and taken out the fuses marked anti-theft system and door locks, but the doors still will not lock. I'd like to know where the pdl relay is located; I just want to disconnect it so the locks will quit killing my battery, and I'll worry about fixing the problem later. As of right now, this Sebring will probably see action as a beater, as it will have to play second fiddle to my only other car, my Camaro.
as mwntioned above the brain unit is located in the rear panel behind the drivers seat... unplug the connecter there should kill both doors , or open the interior door panels and unplug the actuators
Author
Logged
If it does is it factory or aftermarket 
So, anyone know what the voltages are supposed to be at the switches and at the locking mechanism, will it be 12 volts?
