Electrical Difficulties. Things are starting to break.

[doobieinmyscoobie]

Both of my power lock switches gave out at the same time yesterday.
Also my side mirrors move very slow. I thought it was just the batttery but it is probably not. I replaced the alternator 6 months ago..dont really know where to look now. Its my 97 Legacy the one made in Illinois..

Also, a few months back I tried to use an AC adaptor through the 12V outlet and ended up killing the radio somehow. The new radio I put in is working OK. IM uninformed when it comes to wiring/electronics. Any advice is appreciated.

[Huffer]

Clean up your grounding system, and augment it with a DIY grounding kit or buy a generic one.

The power switches giving out could be coincidence, and the side mirror motors might just finally be wearing out or maybe some lube on the mechanism might help.

AC adaptors through the ciggie or 12v outlet are a bad idea generally, unless the electrical system is properly grounded.

[doobieinmyscoobie]

How should I go about fixing the power locks on each door , What needs to be replaced?

[racingking951]

Have you checked the fuse for the door locks? also does your car have the actual door lock/unlock switch below the window switches or is it the manual kind where it only locks/unlocks your doors via the drivers door? The more information you can give the better

[doobieinmyscoobie]

I havent checked the fuse. I dont know where it is or how I would go about checking it. There is a lock/unlock switch on each front door and the car has factory keyless entry.

[racingking951]

The fuse is located underneath the dashboard to right. There will be a small square black lid the covers the fuses, the lid will have the name and corresponding location of each fuse along with a nifty little tool to pull the fuse out. If i remember correctly the door lock fuse is in the center row. I would check to see if the alarm, door locks, and mirrors, and cig light fuse are all good. Im assuming you know how to tell if the fuse is blown, there is a small strip of metal that connects the two metal tabs together if it is broken it needs to be replaced.

[doobieinmyscoobie]

The fuse is located underneath the dashboard to right. There will be a small square black lid the covers the fuses, the lid will have the name and corresponding location of each fuse along with a nifty little tool to pull the fuse out. If i remember correctly the door lock fuse is in the center row. I would check to see if the alarm, door locks, and mirrors, and cig light fuse are all good. Im assuming you know how to tell if the fuse is blown, there is a small strip of metal that connects the two metal tabs together if it is broken it needs to be replaced.
Wow ! Helpful response. I am very hopeful now---mirrors door locks cig plug and alarm are all malfunctioning! I would be happy if it all came down to that one fuse.

Your assumption turns out to be wrong; this is my first car/experience with fuses.




:smt006

[doobieinmyscoobie]

never have i been so happy to find something that is broken...

thanks again for the help , gonna get this replaced tomorrow .

[racingking951]

Your welcome that's what we're here for lol. Im glad you got everything fixed

[doobieinmyscoobie]

Im glad you got everything fixed
Almost! That one blown fuse has been replaced. The mirrors are now working and it even seems like the windows move faster as well. The power lock on/off switch still isn't working on either side though. Any ideas of where to look? Both sides went out randomly one day, at the same time.

[racingking951]

well the fact that both stopped at the same time leads me to think that its one component that deals with both. I dont have the same door locks as you but im pretty sure that there is a "door lock timer" that tends to go out sometimes.
http://compare.ebay.com/like/2905651257 ... r&_lwgsi=y (http://compare.ebay.com/like/290565125742?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&_lwgsi=y)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/98-02-su ... _500wt_956 (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/98-02-subaru-forester-RELAY-timer-door-lock-OEM-pv17-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQitemZ190502977655#ht_500wt_956)
Its located near the fuse panel and you should be able to see it by taking off that lower kick panel under the steering wheel. the kick panel is held on by 2 screws and 2 clips, pop it off and start looking to see what style door lock timer you have. you might be going to the junk yard to find one for cheap just to test if this is the problem

[doobieinmyscoobie]

The Door locks came down to a seperate fuse..

but Im noticing a clicking in the "Keyless entry" unit that sits near the floor. It gives off a two toned on/off click kinda like turn signals but slower and it flashes the parking lights along with it. I have it unplugged just now. Who knows maybe there is a whole other fuse for this thing but maybe I will have to end up replacing it?

[Huffer]

You have to reset your keyless entry unit.

[doobieinmyscoobie]

How is this done?

[doobieinmyscoobie]

I guess every possible problem on this car has been discussed before,,,.
I found an old thread that suggested I lock all the doors, unplug negative battery terminal, turn ignition then reconnect battery; it worked.