Faulty alarm

Hi,

I wonder if anyone has experienced this problem and knows of a quick fix? Just last week the battery died in my 1999 95 SE Estate (Wagon), 44000 miles, bought from a Saab dealer (Droitwich Saab, UK) just 2 months ago, and the AA man sent by Saab Assistance fitted a new one (cost = 107 pounds!!!) after testing the old one and pronouncing it dead. I had little choice but to buy the replacement as I needed the car for work the next day.

This may be unrelated, but three days later, the alarm sounded unexpectedly after being locked about one hour previously (the first time its come on since I've owned the car. Now, every time I lock the car the alarm sounds after a minute or so and the only way around the problem is to switch to 'Door Alarm Only' mode on the SID before locking (a nuisance as I keep forgetting and have to go back and re-set it each time).

I've checked and double-checked all doors, windows, bonnet, etc. and can find no obvious fault. I suspect this requires a trip to the dealer, which is a real inconvenience and could be expensive, as Saabs invariably are, though it is still under warranty.

This is my first Saab and don't know if this is a common problem - perhaps I'm missing something obvious? Any ideas from my fellow Saabers would be appreciated!

Thanks in advance, John

PS - would it be unreasonable of me to be angry at having to replace a battery so soon in a Saab-prepared car? I've owned some quite ropey cars in my time but never had to replace a battery this quickly. I bought a quality car from a dealer for peace-of-mind; have I been stitched-up or is it just bad luck?

Reply to
John Dawson
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I've discovered that Saabs do odd things when the battery dies. And Saab knows they do. Check your owners manual and see if it tells you how to reset it. The 1995 9000 I recently bought had a dead battery when I tried to test drive it. The dealer replaced it and reset some of the codes but didn't get all of them. I had an awful time with the key fob not locking or unlocking all the doors all the time. It would set the alarm but the doors wouldn't lock. Had the same problem if I tried to use the power locking button on the console. Checked the manual and it said to reset the locks by holding the key fob close to the driver side door lock and click the left button 5 times rapidly. Felt like a fool doing it but it worked. Now it locks and unlocks perfectly from the fob and the central control.

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Reply to
LauraK

The previous owner probably mistreated the battery by not keeping the levels up, or left the lights on until it died, etc. The battery probably recovered enough to carry on, but the life was shortened. Batteries usually go about 5 years. It would be difficult for the dealer to know the battery was marginal - unless they found it near to empty, filled it up, and then just let it go. There would be no way to know at this point.

It might be worth having a mechanic check the charging system to see if it is working properly, just to be sure you are charging properly.

Bob

Reply to
'nuther Bob

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