Sporadic Alarms and Alerts, XC 70

[RedTailedHawk]

Help! Our Volvo XC70, 2006 model (approx mileage is 140k) has a gremlin! We just had the vehicle battery replaced (the original was starting to fail after “only” 16 years!!!!) It seems like these issues started shortly after this repair.

While enroute, on smooth roads, with all vehicle doors shut tightly, we will get door ajar messages & alerts. It is usually the drivers door alert. Occasionally, it will say rear hatch or passenger door. We stop and close the doors, but I’m fairly confident that the doors were not ajar to begin with.

The message used to disappear after this procedure, but NOW the drivers door ajar message will continue on, despite stopping the vehicle and opening / re-closing the doors. It chimes and has the red triangle alert on the dash for minutes at a time! Very hard to ignore. Occasionally it will turn off magically. Occasionally it will stay on for a long long time.

It seems that using the vehicle brake, or the action of the vehicle slowing down will occasionally turn this “drivers door ajar” code on. Or off.

And just a few days ago, we had a NEW issue start up. This one is relating to the vehicle alarm.
We lock the door using the fob and walk away. Two to three minutes pass and the vehicle alarm goes off! Undisturbed! We unlock the doors using the FOB, open the doors, reshut the doors and lock again only to hear the alarm start back up later in the day!

What do you think is going on here?

I’ve been browsing the google-universe and have come across this issue in other questions / forums, but there doesnt’ seem to be a clear answer. HELP US! Please. And thank you.

[firstv70volvo]

There are two switches in the door lock assemblies, one switch is the locked/unlocked switch and the other is the door closed/opened switched. It sounds like you have a flaky switch or wiring that's opening the door opened/closed switch intermittently when it's shouldn't, which is giving you the door ajar message and this will also set off the alarm if the switch opens up after the anti-theft system (when all the doors are locked) is set. It's not uncommon for the switches in the door assemblies to become flaky, I've replaced 3 of 4 door assemblies over the years for this reason. Sometimes it just takes a rough road to cause one of these switches to open when it shouldn't and other times it can be cracked, broken wiring, such as in the left hinge area of the tailgate, which is a known problem.
In your case it sounds like the driver's door lock is the problem but you're also seeing messages for the rear doors and tailgate, which might indicate a different problem than just a single switch. I'm not sure what the problem is if this problem is coming for multiple doors, it's typically one door or the tailgate and one switch or wiring to one switch that's the problem.


picture of the two switches in the door lock assemblies, sealed in lock assembly case so not easily accessible to clean

Volvo door lock and closded sliding switches.jpg (226.74 KiB) Viewed 327 times

Cracked wiring in the left hinge area of the tailgate that can give you a tailgate open message or set off the alarm intermittently.

1-1.jpg (89.11 KiB) Viewed 327 times

[jonesg]

Help! Our Volvo XC70, 2006 model (approx mileage is 140k) has a gremlin! We just had the vehicle battery replaced (the original was starting to fail after “only” 16 years!!!!) It seems like these issues started shortly after this repair.

While enroute, on smooth roads, with all vehicle doors shut tightly, we will get door ajar messages & alerts. It is usually the drivers door alert. Occasionally, it will say rear hatch or passenger door. We stop and close the doors, but I’m fairly confident that the doors were not ajar to begin with.

The message used to disappear after this procedure, but NOW the drivers door ajar message will continue on, despite stopping the vehicle and opening / re-closing the doors. It chimes and has the red triangle alert on the dash for minutes at a time! Very hard to ignore. Occasionally it will turn off magically. Occasionally it will stay on for a long long time.

It seems that using the vehicle brake, or the action of the vehicle slowing down will occasionally turn this “drivers door ajar” code on. Or off.

And just a few days ago, we had a NEW issue start up. This one is relating to the vehicle alarm.
We lock the door using the fob and walk away. Two to three minutes pass and the vehicle alarm goes off! Undisturbed! We unlock the doors using the FOB, open the doors, reshut the doors and lock again only to hear the alarm start back up later in the day!

What do you think is going on here?

I’ve been browsing the google-universe and have come across this issue in other questions / forums, but there doesnt’ seem to be a clear answer. HELP US! Please. And thank you.

check the alarm nicad battery asap before it leaks acid all over the circuit board.
Its inside the pass side fender.

Also, might as well renew the fob battery too after a "mere" 16 years.