I bought 2001 Camry LE certified two weeks ago.
Can't lock car door by turning key counter-clockwise; the key won't turn in that direction.
To lock the door, I must either lock it from the inside before closing the door or use the "keyless" remote lock button.
Is that normal for this model?
No, get it fixed under warranty. They must have missed that one in their 160 point inspection.
Thanks for your response.
Related question. Since the lock mechanism appears to be actuated by an electrical impulse, would I be locked out of the car if the battery goes completely dead?
Would I then have to break the window to get in?
This is strictly off the top of my head, so don't take it as gospel, but I believe that the "clunk" you hear when you turn the key in the door lock is simply to activate the locks on the other doors, and the one you're opening operates mechanically. (I have a similar car, so I hope that's correct!) So most likely the individual door lock will work whether there's a battery attached or not. (Of course, if you want to find out for sure, you could disconnect the battery and try the key, but then you'd have to reset the radio buttons and clock when you reattach the battery.)
I agree with Mack, but did not want to post first and sound like a fool....LOL. I can "feel" the key turning the lock mechanism when I use it in the door. Much different than when I turn it a second time to "unlock" the other doors, which are obviously being done by electronic wizards zipping through car.
But it won't set the odometer back to zero now, will it?
I'd hate to see that happen.
Then, how DO electronic odometers retain their value?
Umm, a digital watch doesn't reset to 12:00 when you remove the battery ....does it? I'm quite sure removing the battery won't do a thing to the odometer....otherwise we'd all be driving "new" cars every time we replaced the battery.
They use an electronic device called an EEPROM. It uses Fowler-Nordheim tunnelling to implant a charge in a floating-gate transistor. When the power goes off, the memory is still retained. It's the same principle that USB keys or thumb drives work off of.
Note that because it's just a value in a memory, an arbitrary number can be written by someone who wants to deceive you about the true mileage. I saw a device to do that for $500 on the internet once.
Thanks for the info.
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