Alarm going mental....even when turned off!!

[Pepsi_x]

Hi,

Bit of a strange one, at about 11:55pm tonight I heard the Chimaera (1998 S-reg) making an odd noise, not the usual alarm going off sound but more of a "Beep, Beep, Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep" over and over... ran outside and tried to turn the alarm off, not a great ideaas it turns out, as then it started "BEEP, BEEP, BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP"ing very loudly along with a few high pitched screaches thrown in too...(neightbours start looking out of windows, its midnight and im there in boxers and a t-shirt looking puzzled!)

Even when i turned the alarm/immob off, it was still making the loud noises, but I know its not the usual alarm, and plus none of the hazard lights are flashing either...even gave up turning it on and off after a while and started the engine, which fired up ok, but then the Beeping, just when higher pitched!

The only thing I can think of is that its been on the drive all night with no problems but we did have a massive down pour afew hours ago, I suspect water may have got into something somewhere... but what?

Called the RAC, but (a) they may be up to 2 hours and (b) Bugger knows what they will actually be able to tell me...

Just tried one last time (after 20 mins - felt like hours!) to arm/disarm/arm/disarm the alarm, and its stopped...well..for now at least, but may start again in 5 mins time....

Any ideas what's happened? Any suggestions on what to do if it happens again?

Cheers

[ymwoods]

Its most definatly going to be the rain that has caused a short circuit, since you say the alarm was going high pitched etc thats exactly what most speakers will do if you get them damp and start playing sound through them. check the speaker and the control unit for the alarm. another thing to check may be the wiring where it comes through from the engine bay to under the dash, these are usually sealed with rubber and wont let water in but they do deteriate.

[scotty_d]

Unplug the siren if you do it from the siren side make sure you seal the plug up as it could cause a short if water get at it. Ideally unplug it from the control side under the dash.

[Pepsi_x]

Interestingly, it all kicked off again 30 mins later, only this time it was the proper alarm. Managed to turn that off via the keyfob, and took it for a drive to hopefully dry things out a bit, but whilst going up to motorway I got a couple of miles of "Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeppppp!!" lol ....

So, probably was down to the rain, seemed ok this morning, will see if I get a call from security at work today telling me its gone off again...but hopefully not...

If I did have to disconnect the siren from inside, how and where is it, as I am not sure what I'd be looking for. Please email me if thats sensitive info...

ta

Edited by Pepsi_x on Thursday 30th July 08:38

[Roy C]

Different car and alarm, but I had a similar thing happen recently to my S2. Alarm making weird irregular noises, etc. It turned out to be caused by a dying battery. Worth checking, as it's cheaper than getting your alarm system checked over.

[Pepsi_x]

Very true, but already thought of that, as I've had that issue in the past, the battery is fairly new and the cars been used a lot recently, so its nicely charged. In fact by the time the alarm goes off due to a weak battery, you won't be able to start it, and you'd be lucky if you can still get into the thing via the keyfob lol

[sparkesp]

HI, had fun with my alarm too.

Last year, we had several occasions where the hazards would just randonmly start, and the only way to stop them was to lock, arm and then unlock the car.

Long story, took it to Carl Baker http://www.tvruk.tv/ and diagnosed with a knackered siren, causing a short on the imbobiliser.

Morning spent with him, new siren, and 2 fobs later all sorted.

What Carl doesnt know isnt worth knowing on these alarms. Nice tea too!

Hope it helps.

[grahamw48]

Why not just disconnect the battery to save driving your unfortunate neighbours nuts.

[Pepsi_x]

Yeah did think about that, but couldnt see a thing in the dark lol... but today so far so good, maybe I managed to dry it out with the long drive last night....

Edited by Pepsi_x on Thursday 30th July 12:32

[Roo]

Used to get it a fair bit at work with the sirens that have their own battery in them. When that starts to go dead there wasn't a lot you could do.

Even taking them off and chucking them in a bucket of water doesn't help as they carry on screeching away when you take them out again.

[LordGrover]

^^ There was a thread here recently about a geezer who went to Le Mans (I think) - he had a similar issue and the siren is now at the bottom of a lake or river somewhere in France.

[5yearstobuyatvr]

I would suggest your battery is on its way out.

[rev-erend]

I had the same issue with my 'Meta' alarm on my 97 Griffith..

The siren unit cal be unplugged and still keeps going off.. guess the eventually break / get too much moisture etc..

Mine was replaced under warrenty.

[Invisible man]

I ended up shutting ours in the freezer cabinet

[bubblebobble]

Can I ask why 2 new key fobs?

[rev-erend]

Invisible man said:

I ended up shutting ours in the freezer cabinet

Mine did that at 3am ..

I took the screaming alarm unit off and it was still ear splitting..


So I hit it several times with a lump hammer.. and it was still going off.

Then I had a new plan.

I just dropped it in a bucket of water

That shut it up.. and I got a good nights sleep after that and I guess my neighbours did too..