My neighbor bought a new Ridgeline a couple of years ago. The stupid alarm goes off at all hours of the night. He's had it in several times and it apparently can't be fixed because it's 5:14 AM and I'm awake because I got jolted out of a nice REM sleep by that stupid Honda a few minutes ago. Again. I feel for the guy. He's tired of it too but apparently it's working as it was designed to do. Anybody have experience with this problem --- especially if you've got a cure for it (short of disabling the system)?
I had a faulty alarm in my Accord. It would go off all the time for no apparent reason. To avoid a costly fix I unhooked the hood switch and joined the two wires together. No more alarm. Unfortunately the alarm is disabled but I don't care. By doing this you are tricking the system into thinking the hood is up and the car is being worked on. Beautiful.
Thanks jrl. I'm not sure that's what he wants to hear but I'll pass it on. By the way on his last trip to the dealership to fix the problem the guy on the write-up desk told him they'd thoroughly checked it out on previous visits and found everything to be optimal and within specs. The guy agreed that the system was ultra-sensitive but that's the way it was designed - and then he added "What would you rather be, safe or sorry?" And then he added "Are you sure it's not somebody trying to break into your car?" A ridiculous suggestion. Our zip code is one of the lowest crime zones in the US and there are lots of more attractive targets for a car thief on our street including my own Mercedes-Benz/AMG. Apparently this Honda alarm is so "sensitive" it goes off if somebody in the next county begins thinking about stealing the car. I know. I'm one of the people it wakes up 3 or 4 times a week. Anyway, thanks again. I'm trying to find out it this issue is pretty wide-spread and if anybody else has dealt with it.
Doesn't seem widespread, did a Google search and turned up one issue. How are the lemon laws in your state?? Dan D '07 Ody EX Central NJ USA
Doesn't seem widespread, did a Google search and turned up one issue. How are the lemon laws in your state?? Well they're certainly there but frankly I doubt that a lemon law would apply in this case. True - he's had it back for repair several times but I don't know if it's a total of 30 days out-of-service yet and in all fairness to Honda the truck runs okay. It's just this one thing that is disruptive - but it seems like a kind of a bear to fix once and for all - especially when the service guy is telling him everything's within specs & nothing's wrong. I don't think they're going to open any more warranty tickets on the vehicl- at least not on this issue. And yet the stupid alarm continues to go off for no apparent reason. It's driving me nuts.
The problem is one of the door, hood, etc switches is sensitive. Any one of these switches could cause the problem. Goes off over night because temperature changes cause expansion/contraction of the switches. Each switch needs to be checked/bypassed until the defective one is found. An earlier post mentioned bypassing the hood switch. This does not disable the alarm, only the hood switch. The door switches still work. As a DIY bypassing the switches one at a time until the bad one is found is one way to approach the problem. I prefer using an ohmmeter to check the switches. It is a difficult problem to find and takes perseverance
He bought this vehicle "A couple of years ago"? Does this not mean the car is still under the three year factory powertrain warranty? Your neighbor must do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING on his own regarding this matter. If the factory warranty is still in effect, this is HONDA's problem, not his. If his franchised Honda dealer tries time and again to fix this and fails, your neighbor MUST insist that a Honda zone rep be called in. Remember that your local Honda dealer is NOT part of the "American Honda Motor Company Inc.", or its Japanese parent "Honda Motor Company Ltd.". American Honda only gets involved if one of their independently-owned franchised dealers can't solve an issue. If the dealer won't call Honda in, then you should be suspicious of them in the first place. Why are they avoiding calling Honda? Are they a shitty dealer? Do they have a bad reputation with Honda? Are they scared? Lazy? In bad financial shape? Your worst enemy here is TIME. Tackle this issue before the warranty runs out, and tackle it (politely but) aggressively. If the dealer refuses to call Honda, then your neighbor must do it himself. American Honda's number: 1-800-999-1009 If you live near Torrance CA, you can just drive there. They're at 1919 Torrance Blvd. Just look for the familiar blue sign and a really blocky- looking building. Honda is basically just down the road from Toyota. The last time I was there, Toyota had a guard booth on the way in, but Honda didn't. Repeat: Do NOT monkey with the car if the factory warranty is still valid!
I actually had this issue with my '96 VW Jetta (although it was later in the car's life) - the alarm would go off - generally at night - it actually happened one night at Boy Scout camp. Happened at about 3:00 am on a cold October night. It was only about 1/4 mile away as the crow flies from where I was but because of a lake and several streams, it would have been about a mile walk. So I lay in bed hoping that the car battery would die! The alarm stoped after about 5 minutes, then started up again a couple minutes later, for another minute. Then it stopped. Turns out it was the battery for the alarm system - it was a factory system, and it apparently had a little battery tucked away in the rear of the car. It was replaced and that stopped it. The next morning, we were all wondering who the idiot was whose alarm kept going off...... 'The nerve of that person tpo not get up and shut it off!', I said..... ;-) Dan D '07 Ody EX Central NJ USA
