Any info on a fix for this would be greatly appreciated....all this stuff happened at once.

Problems:
1. Car not receiving data from either Key Fob, not one button one either fob will make anything work.(trunk button inside car works fine)
2. Dome light quit working when opening door (manual switch works).
3. When car is off drivers door lock switch does not work (works when car is running)
4. I couple times when warming up the car and brushing off snow (I live in MN) i noticed that my reverse lights will randomly go on and off even though car is in park.
5. Factory Security is not activating(no blinky light.)

All windows still go up and down.

Help please anyone....throw me a bone.

Thanks!

 

Go have your battery charged then load tested. Also check all the cables & connections for tightness & clean off any corrosion.

 

I have not done this, and I guess it never crossed my mind since the Battery is fairly new. I will try it and I hope it is that easy of a fix.


Thank you for your response.

 

got to have clean terminals and connections to starter and ground or the system cant push power
New cables may be in order- these are a decade old

warming up with anything running is not a good plan- seat heat- defrost--lots of power draw at near idle speed= so alt cant replace juice to the battery as needed

even brand new parts can fail- always have the last work inspected first~

radio shack can test and replace the remote battery,
mine has quit before and acts up when low, or just open it up and go buy a new battery for good measure

 

acura says no need to let the car sit and warm up more than 1-2 minutes

once it has good oil pressure and the window is defrosted enough to see-
go for it at low speed
that gets it off the full rich warm up fuel mode, and driving with rpm over 1500 lets the alt recharge the batt quickly
In cold- a minimum 15 minute drive is needed to recharge batt after afternight cold drain and cold start amp draw

ck your door switch for overhead light issue- clogged with crud-slush or just loose?
or the switch at the light may be bad

Spray lube the door lock mechanism at end of door

tip for cold weather ziners:
clean the door sill and window frame edges where door rubber meets car when closed.
apply `QD` quick detailer spray or wax to freshly cleaned painted areas

apply Silicone Spray to all rubber seals- NOW the doors/trunk wont freeze shut on you!!!

 

I have not been doing anyting different than I always done when these symptoms started.

I typically turn everythg off...seat heat, AC, rear defrost, etc. before I shut any vehilcle off, so it does not have to start up right when teh car is started. I try to get my wife to do this...to no avail.

I did replace the fob battery, that did no help.

I wax the car(including door jams) at least twice a year and towel dry after after every wash (including door jams) - no exceptions. There is no crud anywhere no switches are impeded and there switch movement is silky smooth.

And I dont warm up the car for the car's sake. With the winchill tomorrow morning forcast feel like temp -25*F. I warm up the car so I don't die.

 

You ever live where its -20 outside and you will laugh at whoever says 1-2 min is enough. There are times where i will let the car run 20 min and the temp gauge is JUST coming off of cold.

 

As for the issues, have the battery and alt tested to make sure they are working properly and all the battery connections are clean. Another thing is check the door switches (in the door jambs) to make sure they are actually functioning. They may be why its not allowing the functions on the fob to work and why the dome light isnt. Also check the fuses. May be something as simple as a fuse. The TL has 3 fuse panels so dont over look any fuse. IF all that checks out it may be possible you have a bad ground somewhere or a multiplex (fuse panel) is bad.

 

Thank you for your advice, I will check all contacts to be sure they are clean.

What's the best way to check the door switch? Replace it?

Where is the third fuse box? Under the column left side, and under the hood in front of the passenger dash, and the third?

 

passenger end of dash- open the door to see
that one has the CLOCK fuse= which forces a master ECU reset when removed

swap the door switches to test operation or use multimeter

If its not batt. related it does sound like the multiplex-ck auto recycle yard for one vs dealer price

WHO has a recent replacement of that unit- cost?- pita factor in DIY?

the best way to get the engine warm and therefor allow the heater to warm you,
(especially those hard cores like kris who dont use the seat heat in sub20 temps)
IS get the car moving- the combustion chamber temps rise and spread out to heat the coolant,, which is the heater system for the cabin...

Opening the heater core by asking for Hot right away, that just adds more cold coolant to the system flow, (which doesnt FLOW until thermostat opens from hot water in the engine)
doesnt actually `make heat` because the dial says to

Its like my Honda bike- wait 5-10 minutes to get indication of temp, or wait a minute or two until it will rev cleanly without hesitation to 2000-3000 rpm
Then proceed- in a few blocks or miles it will have real temp

My tips on silicone and wax were meant for anyone who lives where it freezes overnight

 

tip from the 01 owner book:

do NOT run BOTH seat heaters on HIGH with the car at idle when left running warming up.
Alt isnt producing enough at that rpm to cover their high amp draw and all the electronics for everything else

It made no cautionary remarks about driver seat heat
Also- operational: use High for a few minutes until butt warm
switch to Low for rest of trip
that allows the built in thermostat system to cycle the heat in a few degree range, and give the wires a needed rest
Constant high runs until it reaches a temp over limit switch and shuts off the power until cooled, then turns on again

opinion- this may lead to leather dryness and potential heater wire breakage

 

Thanks for all the info and the great advice. -33*F wind-chill this morning and super cold last night. It is supposed to be cold all week so I may wait until the weekend to work on the car.

I am not much of a seat warmer person, I never use the high setting and even this morning only ran it on low for 5min until it reached skin temp. I would MUCH rather have a car with cooled seats than heated seats - even in MN.

I understand how most components on vehicles work and the physics behind their operation. I am not too conserned on fastest most efficeint way to heat the cabin all I want is warmth when I go out there before I get in and the car ever moves especially when its below 0*. I never tried silicon on the seals I am so anal about car cleanliness that I vacuum out and dirt, sand, salt, etc out of every nook and cranny including any folds that are in door/trunk seals. (like on a GM P-U) I wax the door jams on my vehicles, that - along with my normal anal restiveness there is no chance of my doors sticking shut.

 

New this morning:

The radio started to change stations on it's own, just one click on the dial, but did it 3 times.

The dome light worked again when opening the door, then stopped working. The dome light not working is with all doors not just the driver's so it makes me believe the door-jam switch is fine.

 

Still need battery condition- sure sounds like a low voltage problem. Static voltage reading (car off, no load or disconnected from car)?

 

glad you keep the car so clean!!

still- silicone spray on rubber seals will improve their action- a ~liquid~ between two solids,,reduces wind noise too- and conditions the rubber seals

Much of what I write is for general sharing- not always specific to the OP.
when it starts with Tip: or Note: thats general info for all

how far is your drive- time-miles, rpm? more than 30 minutes each way?
assuming lights on, heater cranked and low setting on seat heat,
its a while to fully recharge the battery-- as its also feeding all those things

anyone in cold temps like that:
Have you tried to slip some insulation in the battery box to keep it a bit warmer?
cold sucks juice from them

as totl'd says- we need battery voltage
static-off, running, loaded/with rpm, and especially-- before you start in the morning

Are you starting the car yourself, or with a special remote device?
so you would know how its doing on cranking speed am vs drive home

 

about a 20min drive,15 miles each way, mostly at 65-75mph on the freeway in top gear, so about 2-2200rpm.

I start the car myself, it seems to crank over without much difficulty on the cold, it may crank over slightly easier after work but it is really a negligible difference. The bearings whine a little in the cold until the belt spins a minute.

I have not tried to insulate the battery in any way.

I did just order a used Multiplex drivers side control box just to eliminate variables, they had more than one and will replace it if the first one does not work. It was just under $60 shipped, so not too bad.

I am intrigued by the whole idea of the proper way to treat the car for max battery performance. so what is the best case scenario for start-up/the cars RPMs for my drive/optimum accessory run time durations/door seal life/whats best for the seats.

....and at what level of volt drop do these sporadic elec. issues start? and are my symptoms typical of a low battery trying to run a car that is asking for more power than it has?

 

Has this car ever had a non factory security system or remote starter installed?

 

I bought the car used, but as far as I can tell there has never been any after-market starters or security systems installed. I don't think there has been any after market parts on this car.

 

how long have you had this car? private sale- dealer- used car place?
done any history ck with acura care? 1 800 382 2238x5

 

I bought it Aug 2008 from a Nissan new car dealership with 133,000mi on it, it now has almost 170,000mi (but it looks like it has about 60,000mi). The car until this point has really not given me any issues and I do enjoy driving it.

I have not heard of the Acura Care...call then give/enter a VIN#?

 

1 800 382 2238x5 gets a human, need cars VIN and your name and address
so they have it if any future recalls
they are the main place for info abut your car- past warranty work- all recalls completed etc
Canada ziners use 1-888- 9acura9

you had the car long enough to know when its not being the same,,so its a real problem= not imagined by new owner needing operating instructions

lets hope its the multiplex!!

 

I agree lets hope its the multiplex!! Thanks for all the great info. I may even silicon the door/trunk seals this weekend. This is truly a great forum. I will be sure I give an update on the results of the multiplex replacement and if that fixed the problem. I should have the part by the end of the week and will replace it Saturday evening after I'm done snowmobiling for the day.

My water pump needs replacement, any suggestions on the best brand of pump? I will be ding the repair myself. Does a guy do the crank seal while it is that far apart?

 

Multiplex unit did NOT fix the problem.....CRAP!!!

 

Battery terminals were clean, all fuses are good, new multiplex control unit in place and still the same problems.

Most all functions return when car is running so I don't think it is any broken wires or switches.

The key fobs and security system are the only thing that does not work 100% of the time.

Now that it is warmer I have tried opening the windows I notice that the windows work intermittently also, except for drivers door window that seems to work all the time.

any other suggestions?

 

? ?

 

I have no excuse I even have a DVM, I just forgot. I will try to do that tonight.

 

Battery is the first area I would look at. Make sure terminals are clean and securely connected to the battery. Car off, check for battery voltage around 12V. Positive on the battery, Negative on the chassis or block. Car on, look for around 14V, or at least 13V. But what you really wanna do is get the full charging system tested. Takes 5 minutes if you drive up to AutoZone or Advance Auto; don't even have to take the battery out the car. You mentioned the battery is fairly new; did these problems occur prior to the new battery?

Sounds like the issues you have are too many to be caused by individual parts failing or being faulty...suspecting voltage fluctuations. Loose connections, bad grounds, burnt/decayed/corroded wires are the first culprits I would look for. Alternator and voltage regulator next.

 

Sorry took so long to test the battery, we have had a 15+ inch snow storm and I am a snowmobiler so I have had snowmobiling priorities....

Anyway, car off battery voltage is 12V+ with car running it is 14.51V steady reading.

All connections look clean, I used di-electric grease on the battery terminals when I replaced the battery, and they had zero corrosion.

The problems happened quite a while after the new battery. Still not sure what is going on. some of the problems go away when the car is running (dome light and drivers door lock switch) but both fobs do not work no matter what.

I've had the car 3+ years with everything working, so I know when things aren't right.

So any suggestions on the next step?

 

I'm thinkin' about partin'er-out....this no key fob and no working drivers side lock switch is getting old. The other random stuff I can live with.

Hopefully will figure this $h!t out this weekend.

 

Have you looked under the dash to see if there are any remnants of an aftermarket security system or remite starter?

 

I have been under the dash (replacing the multiplex control unit) but was not looking for any alterations or old wires hacked up from previous electronics. The radio was never tampered with or factory speakers removed, so I doubt anything else was done. The car is in tip-top shape, the last owner had to of taken good care of it for the car to be this nice still. I bought it with 135K on it and it now has 165K, inside ant out looks more like 60K miles. I drove it for a good 2+ years before any of this stuff happened.