park avenue alarm

Use the remote?

Aftermarket or factory equipped ?

It's factory. And until we learn (the whole family) to adjust from the van to the auto, we'll probably set it off another time or two.

It triggers when, for example, I get out to pick up the pizza and lock the door with the button on my way out. Of course when I return, my arms are full of pizza and whoever is inside will unlock the doors with the button. This is a mistake. The doors should be unlocked with the key.

The saying we have come up with is that 'he who locks, unlocks.' ] The alarm will cycle two or three times for two or three minutes each. I've tried starting and driving and turning the key on and off and such to no avail....it's either wait it out or disconnect the battery.

john

On our Blazer we just put the key in and start it up to turn off the factory alarm. We have an aftermarket one (Viper, the biggest PITA...it came with it) on there too though that does exactly what you describe.

That doesn't sound like a stock system, or there's a malfunction somewhere. Generally, the stock system will be disarmed when the doors are unlocked with the remote or with the unlock button. It also will be disarmed whten the engine is started.

You got that right, our family buys nothing but GMs and their alarm systems are not finicky, sometimes they're even hard to get to go off. The only one I've had it happen to is our 99 Blazer.

Forgot about this before but if you're trying to start the car and it won't start it has to have an immobilizer in it and GM didn't use those that year I believe. Can you look at the key fob and see if it has a number/make on the back side and also if it has a light somewhere on the fob?

Are you sure that the engine has to be started? I thought the key has to go to the ON position, but not necessarily to START.

---Bob Gross---

I dunno about that. My 94 Grand prix has that secure entry stuff (the VERY expensive key with the little diode in it .. ) lose that diode .. off to the dealer to get a new key... otherwise it won't start, it just sits there and does nutin..

Is it a little diode, or is it a chip resistor with one of about 16 possible resistance values?

---Bob Gross---

I always thought that the chip was embedded into the key? And if it is the chip I'm under the assumption that the car would not start come hell or high water. Is that right ?

That was what I had in mind about the original posting. The chip is a chip resistor with a specific value. The ignition switch reads that value and allows the engine to start. If the chip gets dirty or wet, it will inhibit the starting. On one of mine, the key turned, but the security light came on. I finally figured out that it might have something to do with the key, so I tried a backup key, which worked correctly. I went to the GM dealer to order a new key blank (with the correct chip resistor) as compared to the backup key. While I was there, I had them test the failing key. Somehow, the chip resistor had changed its value by about two notches, and nobody can explain how that could happen, even on a key that had been used over 100,000 miles of car use.

---Bob Gross---

Isn't it in the owners manual?

no manual, bought it used...you would think Buick would post older manuals online, but they don't

Did you go to the GM Owners website ? (I forget what the address is but it's at the top of gm.com) They had a manual for my 93 GP there.

This is where you get em: