Power locks and showing your mechanic

Advances in technology have made the automotive experience more pleasant and convenient. How was power steering not a wonderful invention? If you have driven without it, you know the main difference is tremendous, akin to the strenuous workout of steering a huge, old farm tractor. What is the significance of having power door locks? We rely on the convenience of these relatively simple mechanisms every single day, and hence we miss them when they aren’t working. You can help your mechanic by giving him details found on DenLors Tools Auto Blog about fixing power locks. Post resource – Power locks- Know how to give your mechanic the heads up by Car Deal Expert.

Causes of failing power locks

If only one side of the has doors that won’t work, chances are it is door lock solenoid, aka malfunctioning actuator, reports DenLors. So you should make that suggestion to your mechanic with that symtom. Fixing an actuator will even fix an attached door latch. The switch could be the real problem. As automotive computer systems themselves are generally reliable, they typically aren’t the culprit when difficulties with power locks occur. Bundled data transmission wires, also called the BUS sometimes, don’t have problems generally either. A security system can connect with your car and tell you what is wrong. Error codes will display and be connected to a certain part of the computer.

High-tech not an issue?

Sometimes the problem, as outlined by DenLors, was caused by the owner of the car as they were trying to get their door open with a slim jim or coat hanger. The door-unlocking implement can catch the rod and disconnect its link within the power locks system. The rod that is damaged can be changed. Plastic parts are only inside your car because of price cuts automakers have had to make.

Checklist if having power lock problems

DenLors suggests these things when figuring out your power lock problem:

• Is one lock malfunctioning? Only that door is going to have issues
• If one switch only unlocks doors on one side, the problem is likely that switch
• The actuator is going to be where you’ll find the answer to your problem if the power locks will only either lock or unlock the car
• If one direction of power locks works and not the other way, bad door lock switches are the place to look

Discover more details

DenLors Tools Auto Blog
denlorstools.com/autoblog/2009/07/power-door-locks-not-working-diagnose-and-repair/
Wikipedia (definition of solenoid)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solenoid
Fixing the power door lock actuator on a Ford Explorer lift gate
youtube.com/watch?v=zobdWXnDeyY