#@$! auto doors

"Why do the auto doors try to open when they are locked? You hear the groan, then the warning beep. Why not just beep? Seem like unnecessary wear and tear. Why can't be the system be sophisticated enough to detect whether the doors are locked?"

I couldn't agree more! I don't understand some of Honda's blind spots. Such a great vehicle and then there are things like this that seem to have been designed to be stupid or at least confusing and annoying.

I rewired my doors for just these reasons. No matter whether your passenger is young or old, familiar with the vehicle or not, it's natural to try to open a door when the van comes to a stop. We've all been doing it from the time we were old enough to open car doors for ourselves. Sometimes you may have been stopped for some time but haven't shifted to "Park" yet. Then comes the dreaded groan and beep. And to a passenger who doesn't know what happened, the three or four seconds wait time for the system to reset seems like forever.

I understand Honda being driven by the lawyers because we are such a litigous society, but as you point out, why the attempt to open when they're locked? Why not shut down the door motors in the locked position? C'mon, Honda! This ain't brain surgery!

Whew! I feel better now. Thanx.

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Chuck
Ody Pictures and Projects on FotoTime

[This message has been edited by ckonarske (edited 03-15-2001).]

When you unlock the doors using the key fob, it automatically disables the alarm system.

Using that logic, wouldn't it make sense that the auto-door button on the same key fob should automatically unlock the appropriate door and open it? Nope. Groan-beep-beep-beep.

This is the most asinine and ludicrous thing about the Ody. Not that there's much to complain about, but what was Honda thinking here?

I'd be willing to bet BIG money that they figure this out in their focus groups and get it changed for the next model.


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'01 SS Honda Odyssey EX
'99 F150 XL Supercab
'00 Kawasaki ZR-7

I didn't come up with this myself, but I found it on one of the forums many months ago. I don't even remember where it came from, but I tried it, it works, and here it is:


********#118 of 125: Mod to open power doors on gear (gleamc) Wed 13 Dec '00 (08:32 AM)

Someone earlier had expressed their annoyance that the power sliding doors in the EX would not open
unless the transmission was in Park and asked if anyone knew a way around it.
This too inconvenienced me. I found directions many posts ago in this form on how to modify the
power door wiring to be able to open them in any gear as long as the van is NOT moving.
It may not be for everyone, but I was able to do the modification to our 2000 van without any
problems and I'm happy with the results.

I recall several responses "chastising" the original requester for even thinking about such a
modification. Some may still feel the same way. Before a safety debate is started, let me say the
same as the original poster, the power sliding door control unit also has an input from the vehicle
speed sensor, so even with this modification, the sliding doors can NOT be opened if the vehicle is
in motion.

There is input from the gear position switch on each sliding door's control unit. The doors can be
opened when this input is grounded, which normally only occurs when the transmission is in Park. A
snip to a wire and it's attachment to ground causes the input to be permanently grounded, and thus
making the door think the van is in park, regardless of the gear position.

How to:
Rather than taking off the door panel(s) to expose the sliding door control unit, you can tap into
the wire at a more convenient location. For the left side door, remove the driver's side kick panel
(where the hood release is) and you'll see two gray and one light blue connector all next to each
other. In the middle connector, (I don't remember it's color but it is the one in the middle of the
three) look for the wire that is black with a blue stripe (also has 2 silver bands on it). Cut it at a
convenient location. Use electrical tape and wrap the end that comes from the gear position
indicator. (This will not be used, although you may wish to test its "continuity to ground" when in
Park to make sure you're using the right end.) I attached a second wire and soldered them together
to add length then grounded the other side of the wire to the large bolt nearby, which holds
everything in place and the sensor will be permanently grounded.

Similarly for the right side door, remove the front passenger kick panel (it contains a little
door that opens to a bunch of fuses). At the bottom of the fuse box you'll see two connectors, one
gray the other light blue. In the light blue connector look for the black wire with a blue
stripe (also has 2 silver bands on it) and do the same thing as above.

Prior to the surgery, the doors could only be opened in Park. If the driver shifted into gear
while a door remained open, the buzzer would sound. The doors can be closed, even in Drive.
After the surgery, the doors can be opened in any gear position, provided the vehicle is NOT moving.
No buzzer sounds if you shift into Drive while the door is open. However, once you start moving, the
buzzer goes off. As before, the doors can be closed at any time.
Good luck. *********

I CAN attest to the fact that it caused me NO problems and solves some of the most common; especially having someone in the van who isn't aware that you have to be in park, and, c'mon, what OTHER vehicle have you ever ridden in that the gearshift had to be moved to park before a passenger could open the door?

I don't really blame Honda for erring on the side of super caution, as sue happy as this country is, but since you still can't open a door when the vehicle is moving, I couldn't see any reason NOT to make the change.

Good luck.



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Chuck
Ody Pics and Projects

[This message has been edited by ckonarske (edited 04-06-2001).]