Liquidnails

It all started in December. I left for a week of holidays around Christmas time, and returned home to many angry neighbours.. Soon after I left (by bus) my Max's stock alarm began going off unprovoked. It continued to blare until my brand new battery died, which apparently lasted well into the night. I'm very happy no one tried to take the matter into their own hands.

My car has been sitting since then. I recently had the spare time to go and give her a jump, air up the tires and get her back on the road.

As soon as the jumper cables were attached the alarm started going off again, and my car would not start. I closed the hood, the trunk and all the doors, locked them, unlocked them put the key in the ignition I tried every possible combination, and still the alarm continued. (It has never really worked properly)

I had my battery replaced under warranty, because it was fried and I thought that may have been my problem... it wasn't. I tried to troubleshoot the problem and came to the conclusion that the anti-theft must be holding my car hostage. I'd never heard of this, so naturally I went to the library, and then here.

I managed to get my hands on an FSM for a '94 (for about 15 minutes) and learned that the starter can be locked out by the alarm system, I did a lot of reading here and came to the conclusion that this problem is not uncommon, and either most of my alarm switches are bad, or the whole system is FUBAR. I learned that disconnecting the alarm module will usually solve the problem.

Here are my questions:

• as much as I'd LOVE to go through the tedious procedure of playing with switches and troubleshooting/diagnosing the whole system with my multimeter I won't have the time. Is it OK to assume the system is NFG and unplug it so I can get my car going?
  
  
• What if after I unplug it my Max still doesn't start? I'll be stranded an hour from home with no ride. Could it be something with my ignition switch? Sometimes my Max is a bit reluctant to give my back my key, and perhaps a year of jiggling and coxing has taken it's toll. Is this a possibility? If so what does fixing this entail?
  
  
• Could my whole electrical system be shot? One of my highbeams only works intermittently, my clock is temperamental, and I have to operate my climate control system by memory because the display doesn't work. The only thing that consistently works properly is the stereo I installed and the dome light.
  
  
• I know the American and Canadian Max's differ in a few ways. Is the location of the Anti-theft control box one of these differences? I got copies of the Diagnostic procedure for a '94 and memorized where it was for the US version. Is this the same for the Canadian Version? I don't really want to tear my whole dash out and go for a treasure hunt. It would put me in a bad mood.

So bascally what I'm asking in a very long winded way is "what are all the possible problems effecting my car's ability to start, and what can I do in advance to prepare for them, as I only have a couple hours in town with my car." My luck is never good, and the easy solution is never the one that works.

and my girlfriend swears it's out of gas.

Thanks a lot for answering another one of these alarm questions for a newbie.

BenStoked

iTrader: (7)

if you have a screwdriver, its pretty easy to get to, and IF it's in the US location. I haven't had any real problems with my alarm system(except when i found out it had one...) so I havent needed to disconnect mine. however as you have read, others disconnect theirs with no other problems. at the worst, you could try and have it not work, and it'd only be about 15 minutes, maybe, lost.

as for the headlight and clock, these are somewhat common problems. the clock can be fixed(search for "clock solder") and the headlamps seem to be the switch.
(and just go ahead and unplug the alarm, since time doesnt allow to test)

Wiking

Youre one of the luckiest guys on earth: have Maxima, have girlfriend ... what else ... a working computer etcetc.

User Guide, page1: Girls are by definition like that.

"Could my whole electrical system be shot?" Definitely at this age. Shoot back:
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/748507/14

Liquidnails

Thanks for the alternate outlook, Wiking. I guess my situation isn't so bad after all

Thanks also for that link I'll give that an in depth read. Looks informative.

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

Having a year and model listed somewhere in your profile or the thread would help. the 89s are different from the 92+.

anyway, here's the wiring diagrams for the car. you can use that to disarm the alarm and simply connect the disarm wire to ground forever to disable it permanently. (should work that way anyway).
http://mattblehm.com/faq/wiring_info/alarm_info/

Liquidnails

Thanks Matt. it's a Canadian '91 charcoal GXE

DBooker_93GXE

just a question, to avoid having to look for the the plug or wires for the anti-theft so u can disconnect it, couldnt you just pull the fuse, or relay for it and be done?

BenStoked

iTrader: (7)

no, I pulled the fuse, and the damned thing still goes off!

maxima-junky

iTrader: (8)

My alarm started acting crazy last week. I removed the screws and bolts out of the plate right under the steering wheel. You dont have to search for the box is't right there in the US version. I pulled tha plug out and never looked back. After market has some very good alarms with more up to date features. My philosophy is "Don't be afraid to upgrade"

shoult

iTrader: (1)

My philosophy is that if people don't know there's something worth stealing in your car, they won't.

But that's just me I guess.

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

people will steal cars just to steal cars. cars like ours are worth more in parts than they are for the car. and yes, people still steal them on a regular basis. especially if they're modded with wheels and brakes and stuff. body kits are car-speficis, but people can sell wheels and brake kits for all kinds of other cars- who cares if the brake kit doesn't fit.. they ebay it and move on.


now, giving them a reason to break into the car? that's a different story. leaving radar detectors, stereo stuff, high end TV screens and stereo stuff all out in the open? yeah, that's just asking to get broken into. don't do it.

vq35

rip the bull**** stock alarm out..disconnect brain and all ...problem solved