When I purchased my RL the seller told me the passenger side front door didn't unlock by grabbing the handle...

Imagine my surprise when after owning the car a month it started working again...

Then all of a sudden it stopped working again...

Bottom line is sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't and I can't find any rhyme or reason to this....

Any ideas??

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

scrim

 

well known and well documented problem on this forum
only fix is to replace handle

 

I don't think it's worth the expense.....I'm just curious as to why it'll work sometimes and sometimes not.....

 

you can search google and find the technology used. Has to do with the coating on the handle. Acura got a bad batch of handles in the early RL models.

 

Moisture gets inside the handle and causes intermittent failure...Once it gets bad enough, they will short out and blow a fuse, sometimes the actual handle will start to melt or smoke...better off replacing it or at least leaving the faulty handle disconnected so you can still use your key fob

 

I think that is a separate problem. May have similar symptoms, but the majority of the handle working intemittently was not a moisture issue.

 

Does it beep when you touch the handle and the key FOB is close by? Mine still beeps, but the actuator inside the door is dead. All other doors do unlock (I have it set that way). Of course it's the drivers door actuator that failed for me. I have yet to own an Acura that doesn't have at least one actuator fail. My TL had two actuators fail and Integra before that had one fail. Now the drivers side passenger door actuator is whining, no doubt about to fail soon too. Whatever...I'll swap them out when it's warmer.

 

yes....I can still lock the doors from the passenger side by touching the handle

 

Sounds like the latch actuator rather than the handle. They start to fail intermittently, then stop altogether.

http://www.acuraoemparts.com/delray/...1=&inputstate=

 

I'm not convinced. On my bad driver side handle, it would always unlock, but intermittent lock. Handle was replaced. This was within months of buying car.
Now passenger side is doing same thing, but I'm way out of warranty. It could have been that way all along, as I rarely lock from passenger side.

Doesn't actuator both lock/unlock?

 

The last bulletin that i am aware of was from july 2011 and it covered all rl models from 2005-2010 wich was to replace the handle IF water leaked past the door handle seal which damaged the sensor circuit or if the circuit board was damaged during the manufacturing process.

Touch sensor troubleshooting can be done with a data link reader to see the inputs and outputs. Without a HDS or scanner you can try these steps. I'm not sure that i would rule out a loose or bad connection from your prior comments.

1. disconnect the outer handle touch sensor 8 pin connector
2. check for continuity between body ground and the outer handle touch sensor at terminals # 5 and # 8 individually.

Is there continuity ?

Yes got to step 3
No repair an open in the wire or poor ground

3. measure the voltage between outer door handle touch sensor 8 pin connector terminal # 1 and body ground.

Is there battery voltage ?

YES go to step 4

No - Blown # 7 ( 10 amp ) fuse in the drivers under dash fuse/relay box. If the fuse is OK check the wire between the touch sensor and the drivers area fuse box.

4. Check for continuity between keyless access contol unit connector A ( 31 pin ) terminals # 19 and # 20 and body ground ( for passanger door senor ) or between keyless access control unit connector B ( 24 pin ) terminals # 22 and # 23 and body ground ( for drivers door touch sensor )

Is there continuity ?

YES go to step 5
NO - repair an open in the wire

5. remove jumper wires from the touch sensors
6. check for continuity again exactly like step # 4

Is there continuity ?

YES - repair a short or ground in the wire
NO- subsititute the touch sensor with a known good one and recheck. If there still is a malfunction , replace the keyless access control unit.

the keyless access control unit is under the left side of the dash it has 3 connectors on it

connector A is black with 31 pins
connector B is white with 24 pins
connector C is white with 17 pins

 

For mine, while the actuator was at least still partially working, there were times when it would only lock or unlock, and not always both so I would resort to using the key. I think it's the just one of the ways the actuator can begin to fail. I've been through three other failed actuators, they all just started doing strange things before they flat out stopped working. Some would toggle lock/unlock on their own, some would only work after trying a few times.

Also, on my RL, the actuator motor would make a distinctive sound as if the latch motor was struggling to engage. Normally it should just pop open or closed, no motor sound being heard.

I agree though, given the number of people who have had door handle problems, that could still be the source. As posted just before, there are steps to see if the handle is the source.

 

Was the distinct sound you are referring to like a slow squeak? My passenger side door won't open at all now, even though I get the double beep when I grab the handle. I am bringing it in tomorrow to have the actuator replaced. Do you think it is the handle too?

 

Yes. Not a high-pitched squeak though. Almost sounds like the lock motor is whining for an extra second. Every failed acturator I've ever had made the same sound until they finally stop working completely. I still have a bad one in my RL drivers door now. Just waiting for warmer weather to take on that replacement job.

 

Some explain it as the noise a dying cat would make. My driver's side just started about a month ago, happens rarely, and only happens when it unlocks from a shift to park (which is probably just coincidence).

A whine or whir is a good explanation of the sound.

 

I am starting to get that whining sound out of the drivers side door, but the driver's side door has never malfunctioned. Is the whine usually the first sign that the actuator is starting to die? When the actuator is replaced does that include the actuator motor?

 

I'm starting to get the sound from one of the rear doors when I lock the car. Got me to thinking - if the actuator goes out, is it possible that the door would not lock and I would not know it?

 

I've had this happen. If the door doesn't actually lock, you won't hear a beep after pressing lock button on the FOB. Once you manually lock the door, you'll get the beep.

 

Thanks for that news. I assume same situation if I use the door dimple, i.e., no beep unless all doors lock

 

Update,

Dealer under warranty replaced front passenger side actuator and when checking the other 4 replaced the rear driver's side actuator too (The passenger rear was the one that you could hear the "whine" when closing) so apparently that whine was enough for them to be able to replace it under warranty, that tells me they know that it is failing.

Would have cost about $700 if not under warranty...ouch.