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Car alarm going off constantly

Tiny
HOPELEONNE
  • MEMBER
  • 2008 MAZDA 6
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 140,000 MILES
All hours of the day and night (went off 6 times last night alone!) I don't want to disable the alarm system or horn if I don't need to. My car alarm only goes off when I lock my car using the button on the inside of my car. I suspect it's an issue with the signals being sent about whether my car is locked, unlocked, or being touched.

I haven't had the alarm go off as much in the fall and winter, but it happened occasionally. With summer, it has been happening more often. Since my oil change yesterday, it's gone off more times in one day than it has in a week!

I've been keeping my car unlocked today and so far I haven't heard the alarm go off and I've done a bunch of research on possible reasons this occurs. Seems to me like I could do 50 things and I could only hope it would solve the issue.
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Tuesday, July 21st, 2020 AT 10:27 AM

3 Replies

Tiny
STEVE W.
  • MECHANIC
  • 13,577 POSTS
The most common reason for the alarm to go off on it's own is a bad or misadjusted switch. Now as you say the alarm has gotten worse after an oil change the first one I would look at would be the hood switch. In your case the switch is part of the hood latch itself.

Open the hood.
Remove the radiator grille.
Disconnect the hood switch connector from the latch. Now test the system. The switch closes when the hood opens, so if you unplug the switch the system will think the hood is closed and locked correctly. Replace the grille and set the alarm, if it doesn't go off and stays quiet, the switch is faulty. Replacing it means you replace the latch itself.
This method of testing costs nothing but some time. The other option would be to visit a dealer and have them scan the alarm module for the events that are causing it to go off.

To get the correct latch you would need to buy it from a dealer as the aftermarket versions don't include the alarm switch.
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Tuesday, July 21st, 2020 AT 2:03 PM
Tiny
HOPELEONNE
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
Is it possible that I can disable the sensor or buy an aftermarket latch without one so I don't have to worry about my alarm system going off because of any hood-related issue?
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Tuesday, July 21st, 2020 AT 4:21 PM
Tiny
STEVE W.
  • MECHANIC
  • 13,577 POSTS
Just unplugging it would do that. That is why I suggested it as a test as it would disable the switch from triggering the alarm if it is the cause. There are similar switches in each door lock as well as the rear, any could be the problem but as you say it got worse after the oil change you can start by testing the hood latch. If it stops the alarm going off with it unhooked then it's your choice, the alarm should still work for the rest of the vehicle.
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Tuesday, July 21st, 2020 AT 4:34 PM

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