2001 Beetle alarm going off at random

[Frankk]

Hi,
I wonder if anyone can help me please? My daughter has a 2001 Beetle. The alarm keeps going off intermittently. I have been looking in the forums and on the Web, and there are many appends that indicate that the problem is related to a problem with the driver's door lock module. However, the car isn't showing any of the symptoms discussed in those entries:
- The interior lights come on when the driver's door is opened.
- If the driver's door is open, the alarm won't arm.
- The trunk lights are not coming on.

The only thing I have found is that the alarm will arm if the passenger's door is open. I'm not sure if it is supposed to work this way or if that indicates a problem.

I don't really have $700 to spare at the moment to give to my local dealer to have a look at it. The only thing I can think of is to try to get the codes from the CCM, to see what it was that set off the alarm, but I don't have the equipment to do that myself, and I don't know if the dealer will do that for me, or how much they would charge for the pleasure.

Before I go down that road, I was wondering if anyone has any other suggestions about how I could narrow this down?

Any help you can offer would be most welcome. Thank you for your time.

Frank.

[Smileybug]

Do the lights come on when the passenger door is opened? That lock module can also cause alarm issues.

Is the trunk shut all the way? Could also be a trunk sensor.

[D2Beetle]

Off the top of my head, the problem is probably in the passenger door lock control module. The door lock modules had two distinct problems not related to each other. One, faulty micro switch and two, solder connection(s) separating from circuit board and/or wiring.

I am guessing that your problem is the second one and a replacement or repair of the control module is the only solution.

[Frankk]

Smileybug and D2Beetle,
Thank you both for your help and your suggestions.

To try to answer your questions:
- Yes, the interior lights come on when the passenger door is opened.
- You asked if the trunk is shut all the way. This happened twice the other night. The car was in the garage, and the alarm had been armed for hours before the alarm went off the first time. When I turned it off, it was a few hours before it went off again. So, it is possible that the trunk wasn't closed properly, but I don't think that is very likely.
- There were some other entries about the 3rd brake light leaking and setting it off. I had a look around that and it appears to be sealed OK. Also, on the night that it went off twice, it had not been in the rain for days before that.

Perhaps at this point the best course of action would be to try to find someone that can read the CCM and tell me what set the alarm off. My daughter goes back to college next Monday, so I'm running out of time here. And, unfortunately, I am not as handy as many of the people in this forum, so removing the door lock module and replacing or re-soldering it is likely to be a full day operation for me. Given my limited time, plus the fact that the alarm could go for days without going off, I think I don't really have many alternatives.

Oh, one other thing please. Does anyone know of a good set of instructions for removing the door lock module on a Beetle? There is an outstanding set of instructions at VWVortex.com - DIY - Replacing the front door window regulator clips and/or door lock module, however unfortunately, they are for a Jetta. If anyone knows of something similar for a Beetle, could you let me know please?

Anyway, I would like to thank you both again for all your help and advice. If I ever get to the bottom of this, I'll append the information here, along with any other useful information I can find.

Frank.

[Opelmania]

My alarm had been going off randomly for a while to and the other day it just kept going off. The PO of my car hit a deer in the front and the hood alarm switch was never hooked up. I taped the switch closed and now my alarm actually sets when I lock my car. Before it only would if it was locked and I opened the trunk and closed it again. Look under the hood in where the latch is and see if the switch is in the right place to make when the hood is closed. I'd try that first.

[Smileybug]

That DIY will work fine. I think about the only real difference is getting the actual door card off. But the inner workings should be extremely similar, if not the same.

[Frankk]

Opelmania and Smileybug,
Thank you both for your help. I checked the switch under the hood as you suggested, and that appears to be fine. Also, my daughter never had a problem getting the system to arm - her only problem was that it goes off randomly. I now have her setting the alarm all the time, to try to get it to go off again. Then I'll bring it to the dealer, see if they will read the CCM for me so I can identify what it is that is setting it off, and I'll take it from there. From what everyone has said, it sounds like I will be replacing the door lock module, but I want to make sure that I replace the correct one.

Thanks again to everyone for your help, it is greatly appreciated.

Frank.

[VWBubba]

There is an excellent thread on here regarding the removal of the inner and outer door panel, I will try to find it for you. It is located somewhere in the problems with interior lights section.

[RABBIT170]

^ Do you have a link to that DIY?