Automatic door locks acting real funny

[steppinthrax]

I'm not quite sure how to describe this. When I'm sitting in the car (regardless if the engine is running or not) I push the door lock button to lock the doors. I find during the FIRST push all the doors latch. When push to OPEN doors the doors unlock (but SLOWLY; almost like the battery is dead). When I go to lock the doors a SECOND time not all the lock engage and some of them engage HALF way. I find if I keep doing this OPEN/CLOSE again and again, eventualy all I will hear is the clicking noise of the relay but the locks won't even budge.

I find this to be worse on some days and on others. It's noticble when I use the keyless entry on some days and my driver door lock will be half/half (not fully open) and I have to use my manual key. It's almost like a capacitor is bad or it's not getting enought power. Does anybody understand this

[BamZipPow]

Yer motors/linkage is probably gummed up. What year is yer Camry?

You'll need to take the door apart and service the motors/linkage or replace them.

[steppinthrax]

Originally Posted by BamZipPow

Yer motors/linkage is probably gummed up. What year is yer Camry?

You'll need to take the door apart and service the motors/linkage or replace them.

Sorry, 1999 Camry. It's happening at all doors and at the same time (it seems). Is this common....

[73sport]

Originally Posted by steppinthrax

It's almost like a capacitor is bad or it's not getting enought power. Does anybody understand this

From what you said it sounds like you nailed it. Well except the capacitor statement. It sound like the system is not getting enough current to actuate properly. The more you do it, the higher the heat goes (think more resistance) and the more the voltage/current applied to operate, DROPS!

I suspect that somewhere you have either A) a bad wire or connection or B a bad relay.

Now the trick is to find out where it is! Start with applicable relays and trade them for ones with an equal current rating. It could be as simple as a bad set of contacts. Pull relays from the fuse panels and look for signs of heat or corrosion.

Because the doors open and flex the wires, these are likely places for failures of wires. next would be the switch itself. Does it work from the passenger side?

- bad relay
- bad switch
- open wire(s)
- bad ground(s)

Was the car ever wrecked, smashed, had a door repalced, windows left down in the rain? Think about what is the first thing that could weaken or jeopardize the sytem and go from there.

Do you own a hand held meter of any kind?

[LynchburgCSI]

edit: 73sport beat me to it. Do all that.