Automatic Locking of Doors

It's supposed to be a safety feature, that is, the doors lock automagically when car starts moving. But others here have reported the doors locking when the car is sitting, idling.

When I leave my car running, I always open the driver's side window enough so I can reach in and open it. Pain in the rear in a Michigan winter.

I have a 1990 Camry. It has power locks. You can't lock the keys in the car when the engine running. My son found out by accidentally locking the hitting the door lock button while getting out with the keys in the ignition. He shut the door and the Camry auto-unlocked.

I love by Focus (just crossed 109,000 miles this weekend) but this is one feature that makes me shake my head.

My 2001 used to do it to me on occasion. What I do now in the winters is use my key chain that separates. That was I can easily take off the key fob while the key is in the ignition. If the car locks, I can unlock it.

I think it's something screwy with Ford's wiring, though they couldn't "recreate the problem" one time when I asked them to take a look at it.

T>

I cannot unlock my car with the key fob when the keys are in the ignition.

This, I believe, is another "safety feature".

Really? You know what, I don't know if I've ever actually tried it myself. I guess I always assumed it would work......... hmmmm....

One fine wintery morning I also realized that the fob will not open the locks when the car is running wiht the key. (01 wagon - Canada)

my solution. auto starter installed and never scrap ice / snow with the key in the ignition... always have a key to open the door with.

"Aaron Menchions" wrote

There's another way around this. Take your key into a hardware store and get a copy made. If they tell you it's got a chip in it and won't start the car, tell them to copy it anyway. Then keep the key in your wallet. It won't start the car but it will open the door. I haven't lost a key in 4 1/2 decades of driving but once or twice a year I lock my keys in the car and this saves my buns.

Turn off the *!Z#@*& auto-lock. The manual shows you the procedure; it involves turning the ignition on and off while hitting the lock/unlock buttons in a certain sequence. It was the very first thing I did when I got my new car home. I hate the autolock with a passion!

The autolock isn't supposed to operate until you reach a certain speed. If it locked while standing still, then it was more than likely an electronic malfunction that would have happened whether you had autolock operational or not. My Dodge did that last year in the same situation, and that doesn't autolock until a higher speed than my Focus. Like someone else suggested, the best thing is get a key copy made so when it does happen, you can still get in. I personally like the autolock, but not when I'm outside scraping ice off the windshield on a cold day. I don't think disabling autolock will prevent the situation, unless you disable the power locks completely.

John

Hmmm, i tested it tonight. The fob doesn't work if the engine is running. However, turn it off and it works even if the key is still in the ignition. Course, that doesn't help us anyway.........

I think I'll get a key made.