Doors unlock but won't lock (1 Viewer)

[Gnarwgn]

I'm experiencing some version of this issue, driver's door only. And I've also noticed it only happens when the outside temp is around or about 70F.

Quite simply - as I'm walking away from the rig and hit lock on the remote, driver door half locks, all other doors lock, and then about 5 seconds later everything unlocks.

I've watched this closely from inside the rig as well, and the driver's side lock by the door handle that you could manually push doesn't 'throw' all the way, it makes it about 50% and then everything unlocks.

Again, only above 70 degrees F and only the driver's side. So its been business as usual all winter but I'm running into the issue again with the weather warming up. Sounds like an actuator motor burned out @archerwolf ? And what is the correlation between outdoor temperature and this issue?

 

[gregnash]

I'm experiencing some version of this issue, driver's door only. And I've also noticed it only happens when the outside temp is around or about 70F.

Quite simply - as I'm walking away from the rig and hit lock on the remote, driver door half locks, all other doors lock, and then about 5 seconds later everything unlocks.

I've watched this closely from inside the rig as well, and the driver's side lock by the door handle that you could manually push doesn't 'throw' all the way, it makes it about 50% and then everything unlocks.

Again, only above 70 degrees F and only the driver's side. So its been business as usual all winter but I'm running into the issue again with the weather warming up. Sounds like an actuator motor burned out @archerwolf ? And what is the correlation between outdoor temperature and this issue?

Anemic electrical system that when temps get warmer causes more electrical resistance from what I read. This then causes the other locks to fail. Basically, it sounds like if you are replacing one, just replace the main three and see if the issue is fixed. A good 40% of the people end up replacing all the lock motors within about 5yrs from what I gather.

 

[archerwolf]

I'm experiencing some version of this issue, driver's door only. And I've also noticed it only happens when the outside temp is around or about 70F.

Quite simply - as I'm walking away from the rig and hit lock on the remote, driver door half locks, all other doors lock, and then about 5 seconds later everything unlocks.

I've watched this closely from inside the rig as well, and the driver's side lock by the door handle that you could manually push doesn't 'throw' all the way, it makes it about 50% and then everything unlocks.

Again, only above 70 degrees F and only the driver's side. So its been business as usual all winter but I'm running into the issue again with the weather warming up. Sounds like an actuator motor burned out @archerwolf ? And what is the correlation between outdoor temperature and this issue?

Yes, most likely the driver's door lock actuator motor. You can replace the whole locking assembly with the AISIN part or open up the actuator and just replace the motor. Since your driver's door lock is having problems and unlocking, it triggers the relay for unlocking all the doors.

 

[Gnarwgn]

Got it - appreciate the explanation!

For those of you experiencing my specific issue (a specific actuator motor failing) - found a great repair video from The Land Cruiser Project. Is this guy a Mud member, he makes great stuff?

 

[gregnash]

Got it - appreciate the explanation!

For those of you experiencing my specific issue (a specific actuator motor failing) - found a great repair video from The Land Cruiser Project. Is this guy a Mud member, he makes great stuff?

Yeah he is a member on here, can't remember what his handle is though.

 

[Lonegrasshopper]

I too had a similar issue this past winter. The fix? I opened and closed the tailgate. It took me a minute to think what would cause the issue, and I came to the conclusion I must not have a door all the way closed. The tailgate felt closed, but I guess it wasn't. If you haven't already, I would open and close all your doors.

 

[gregnash]

I too had a similar issue this past winter. The fix? I opened and closed the tailgate. It took me a minute to think what would cause the issue, and I came to the conclusion I must not have a door all the way closed. The tailgate felt closed, but I guess it wasn't. If you haven't already, I would open and close all your doors.

I have tried that in my case, but to no avail. In some cases the door lock sensors get jacked up. I know that my passenger front door lock cylinder was jacked up where it would LOCK with the key but physically wouldn't unlock. With some cleaning and whatnot I was able to get it to function properly, but I think between the cleaning and other issues (possible dying motor) that the entire system is out of sync.

I wish there was a way to "reset" the lock system, at least in the earlier years.

 

[Gnarwgn]

Ok - bringing this full circle - I took the replace actuator motor only route and here's the field report (I'm also not a legendary mechanic):

1. First, kudos to @clayinho aka @TheLandCruiserProject on YouTube. Great write up video!
2. Time - replacing driver door actuator motor only, I spent 2-3 easy going hours start to finish. This also included joining a family zoom call, , eating dinner, and doing part of the job with my 6 year old son. There are not much time savings to be had by buying the entire actuator replacement unit vs buying the actuator motor and swapping out. The majority of my 2-3 hours was spent either uninstalling the actuator unit out of the door or reinstalling into the door. If you are intimidated by the motor replacement part (I was), that actually turned out to be the easiest/fastest part thanks to the video.
3. Cost - Total cost of the job other than time was $5 (1 motor out of my 4 for $20 pack) + $7 (JB Weld, see video) = $12.

Hope it helps those with similar issues!

 

[TheLCProject]

Thanks for the shout out and I'm glad it was helpful. Definitely not much time to be saved by replacing the actuator instead of just the motor.

 

[gregnash]

Thanks for the shout out and I'm glad it was helpful. Definitely not much time to be saved by replacing the actuator instead of just the motor.

@clayinho Your inbox is full and I need to send you a pic!

 

[gregnash]

So I have determined mine is definitely heat related. Last couple of days has been fairly cool and had not issues with the locks working. For the last two days it has been bliss unlocking the doors without having the alarm go off. But then after lunch today (about 30 mins ago) it happened again, looked at the temp display inside and it said it was 77* outside. So looks like around 70-75* my locks start to have issues.

Good thing is that I ordered 4 new motors and they should be here this week sometime. Which means I will have a new project along with the towing harness troubleshooting going on.

 

[Gnarwgn]

So I have determined mine is definitely heat related. Last couple of days has been fairly cool and had not issues with the locks working. For the last two days it has been bliss unlocking the doors without having the alarm go off. But then after lunch today (about 30 mins ago) it happened again, looked at the temp display inside and it said it was 77* outside. So looks like around 70-75* my locks start to have issues.

Good thing is that I ordered 4 new motors and they should be here this week sometime. Which means I will have a new project along with the towing harness troubleshooting going on.

good luck! Thats the same temp where mine was starting to fail. Don't forget the heat gun and JB Weld

 

[gregnash]

good luck! Thats the same temp where mine was starting to fail. Don't forget the heat gun and JB Weld

Yeah trying to figure out which will be best epoxy for the plastic. I did on drivers door and seems to be working great but I also ziptied around it. Would like to find another way to ensure it is nice and secure but that is best I can come up with for the time being.

 

[perryazevedo]

There are several components in the whole door lock/unlock system, so before you start replacing things, try to narrow down where exactly the problem is.

Does the problem happen with the power lock button, key in the door, keyless remote, or all?
Does it happen with every door lock or just specific ones?

About the noise you heard, did you hear the relay click in the driver's footwell? Did you hear the door lock motors whining?

The most common issue is the door lock actuator motors going bad. Usually this affects some doors first and not others. This also gets worse with heat or hot weather. There are several previous threads about how to replace the motor themselves or replace the whole door lock assembly.

A less common issue is the door lock / unlock relays going bad. If you can hear the relays click in the driver's footwell, but the door lock motors don't make any noise, then you may need to replace the 3 door lock related relays in the driver's footwell fuse/junction box.

I have been troubleshooting this issue with my '99 LX 470 this week.
It started with the lock button sometimes working sometime not. The unlock button always works. Starting yesterday, the lock button now doesn't work 100% of the time (on both the key fob and door switch).

Here's the current issue:

• Unlock works on everything (key fob, electronic switches)
• Key fob lock & Driver side electronic lock do not work
  • There is an audible click in the driver's footwell when trying to engage the lock button electronically
  • There are no lock motors whining

Here's the troubleshooting I've done so far:

• Opened and closed all doors to make sure they are actually closed.
• Tried resetting the lock system via Driver Side door (hold unlock / lock for 5 seconds)
• Tested fuses for lock system (and any other possibly related ones)

At this point it sounds like my most likely culprits are either:

• Actuator motors in ALL doors
• 3x Relays in footwell
• Wiring harness between footwell and driver side door

Locking the car worked on all doors before this happened. How on earth could all actuators go bad at the same time? That leads me to wonder about the wiring harness? Is the signal from the footwell to the driver side door for locking not working? Would that also prevent the signal from going to the rest of the doors? Or would the relays be the choke point in the signal?

 

[Privateer383]

There are several components in the whole door lock/unlock system, so before you start replacing things, try to narrow down where exactly the problem is.

Does the problem happen with the power lock button, key in the door, keyless remote, or all?
Does it happen with every door lock or just specific ones?

About the noise you heard, did you hear the relay click in the driver's footwell? Did you hear the door lock motors whining?

The most common issue is the door lock actuator motors going bad. Usually this affects some doors first and not others. This also gets worse with heat or hot weather. There are several previous threads about how to replace the motor themselves or replace the whole door lock assembly.

A less common issue is the door lock / unlock relays going bad. If you can hear the relays click in the driver's footwell, but the door lock motors don't make any noise, then you may need to replace the 3 door lock related relays in the driver's footwell fuse/junction box.

My locks will unlock, but not lock. I've replaced the actuator motors, my switches are good, and I have confirmed good continuity between driver's door switches to front passenger door switches. No change to symptoms. I am seeking the relays in the driver's footwell, but am unable to locate them. The clicking sound seems to be coming from behind the fuse box. Do I need to remove the entire fuse panel to access the relays? Please advise.

 

[TheLCProject]

Yes, I believe the relays are on the back side of that. Might not need to pull it all the way out, but at least loosen in up to get a look at them other side.

Do you know exactly which relay it will be once you get access to it?

 

[geargarcon]

I had a crazy fix to this… I manually locked and unlocked the doors repeatedly and that seemed to loosen up whatever was physically sticking and now everything works fine. I might take the panels off and try to oil the moving parts to see if that helps.

File this under “better to be lucky than good”.

 

[Privateer383]

Yes, I believe the relays are on the back side of that. Might not need to pull it all the way out, but at least loosen in up to get a look at them other side.

Do you know exactly which relay it will be once you get access to it?

I do not. I'm hoping they are the three red ones.

Here's a pic my relay panel, taken from lower rear, looking up and forward.

 

[Privateer383]

I found it!

I do not. I'm hoping they are the three red ones. View attachment 3041950Here's a pic my relay panel, taken from lower rear, looking up and forward.

Thank you, Partsouq.com!

 

[tseck73]

Privateer - please let me know the outcome of this. My situation is similar on my '02 LX

1. Doors will lock and unlock with the key fob - no sticking of locks in any temps
2. Doors will unlock with both the driver and passenger door switches
3. Doors will NOT lock by depressing lock button on either driver or passenger door switch.

The door switches are fine, haven't checked wiring harness yet, but this problem seems like it isn't a one off out there.

Thanks!