98 T5 Door Chim Relay and Car alarm

Post by **mecheng** » 30 Sep 2015, 08:11

I removed the blue door chim relay because I would have to slam my door for it to stop. I read this is a bad microswitch in the latch. Seeing that I don't need this useless reminder, removing the relay made sense.

Do I need the relay for the car alarm to work. I didn't make note if the alarm stopped working when I removed it but the alarm doesn't work at all.

If so, is there some kind of work around for this? Thanks in advance

Post by **v-45magna** » 30 Sep 2015, 14:55

It's the switch. Did you ever try and lock/set the alarm with the hood or trunk open or ajar?

The micro-switch is how the alarm system knows the door status is open or closed. If you want the alarm to work you could take out the door lock actuator and bridge those contacts (assuming the circuit is normally closed when the door is closed. But then you'd be in a good position to just replace the microswitch at that point. Your only other way would be to trace the electrical diagram to find that circuit somewhere that's easier to get to and modify it there.

Personally, I'd pull the actuator and the replace the microswitch and pull the BS resistor from the motor while I was at it.

Post by **kallekula** » 30 Sep 2015, 14:59

I think u pull fuse 18 to get rid of the annoying door chime.

Post by **mecheng** » 30 Sep 2015, 15:42

Ok so I should plug the relay back, and remove fuse 18.

What resistor are you referring to?

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 30 Sep 2015, 16:05

The chime has no bearing on the alarm but the microswitch does. Removing the blue chime relay doesn't hurt anything at all but the bad switch can cause the footwell and door end courtesy lights to not turn off and it can also cause the alarm to not arm.

Even worse it can cause the alarm to arm and then falsely sense an attempted theft - the latter usually occurs between 2:00 AM and 3:00 AM when you are sound asleep.

...Lee

Post by **v-45magna** » 30 Sep 2015, 17:27

mecheng wrote:What resistor are you referring to?

It's a small chip, about 4x9mm inside the actual motor of each door lock actuator. It's supposed to heat up and briefly stop the motor from working if, for instance , a child were playing with your power locks. They get old and build resistance to the point that the locks cannot hardly get enough current to operate or they operate weakly. Especially in hot weather. They can be accessed and the chip swapped for a simple conductive material of your choice. Romex (sp?) sourced copper wire seems to be popular.

Ozark Lee wrote:...the bad switch can cause the footwell and door end courtesy lights to not turn off and it can also cause the alarm to not arm.

I forgot about those lights. The good news is both those bulbs are pretty easy to pull if you had to live with that situation temporarily. Like while waiting for an actuator to be shipped to you. Unless you want to get deeper into it and replace that microswitch, I'd do the whole thing since it is the most often used door on the car. Good luck. Hollar if you need help.

Post by **mecheng** » 30 Sep 2015, 17:51

Ahh that makes sense. I disabled my footwell lights some time ago. Is there a diy for the micros switch and door lock????

Yes pw locks are weak on hot days in summer. I keep pushing until they work. Never had any of these issues on the 850, interior quality on s70 took a dive

Post by **v-45magna** » 30 Sep 2015, 21:56

mecheng wrote:Is there a diy for the micros switch and door lock????

Take a look at this link:

If you need more info, just google ' door lock actuator fix volvo '

Post by **mecheng** » 02 Oct 2015, 15:56

Thanks for the video. Is there one for the microsswitch because I have to slam my door. I disconnected the footwell lights but would like them to work.

Post by **v-45magna** » 03 Oct 2015, 22:34

There's not a video that I know of. I'm sure that there are some folks out there who could successfully replace that switch but, for the vast majority of us it is not replaceable. For edification, here is a link to a UK site that has pics that point out the micro-switches. It talks about essentially shimming the switch to make it work. I would run some DeOxit or other electrical switch cleaner through it with some compressed air while working that switch also. Good luck and please let us know how it goes.

http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=124280