Solution or Shop recommendation - Issue with power windows / central locking
 

Firstly, mods please feel free to move thread to different forum it's deemed that I've posted in the incorrect place. Issue doesn't seem like a manufacturer specific resource issue nor did it fall under a specific technical discussion. (Plus I'm also looking for a Vancouver / Burnaby shop recommendation and traffic here seems high).

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1998 Nissan 240sx with Compustar security / remote start.

Long story short, I was driving to work this morning and rolled my driver's and passenger's side power windows down to get some fresh air.

After I parked my car at work I realized that both windows would not roll back up and my central locking button stopped working on BOTH doors. To make this clear, the window buttons on both doors and central locking buttons on both doors stopped working. My windows are now stuck at the open / down position.

I also have a Compustar security system installed, and usually when I lock / unlock my car the central locking would unlock / lock my doors automatically. This has stopped working as well. The car simply engages / disengages the alarm system.

I highly doubt that the window motors / switches / amps / locking switches all failed on both doors at the exact same time, leading me to believe that it is an electrical issue. I drove to Lordco and replaced all the related fuses with new ones and the issue is unfixed / unchanged.



Does anyone know what I should proceed with next, or can anyone recommend me a shop to bring my car into to have this fixed that deals well with electrical issues? I spent countless hours on Google today with little success on what the issue could be, or what shops in the lower mainland that could really help me with this.


Thanks Revscene!

Go to a car audio and security store. Soundsgood auto is a revscene sponsor.

Being that your car is a 98, could be broken wires in the door from opening and closing. Do you notice a difference if you try the function with the door open vs closed?

Before you try anything else, did you bump the window lock button?

No difference in door open vs door closed. And thanks i'll give Soundsgood auto a call!

Window lock button is not pushed, I also don't think window lock affects the central locking .. however, when I do push the window lock button / mash the window switch sometimes I get some beeping noises from my dash. The same beeping noises that I get if I were to open the drivers side door when I have my key in the ignition or left my headlights on. Not sure if this gives anymore insight into the issue, the car never did this before.

check your fuses?

sometimes fuses does weird things, burnt but not completely burnt. It happened on my X3 where the fuse did not completely burnt through.

Because BMW :badpokerface:

All related fuses were replaced with new ones and nothing changed unfortunately :(

what the other user said...for an 98 the pinch point where the door meets the car body might've gone short after opening and closing the doors so many times after all these years.


how good are you at spicing in in new wires or would any experts chime in and say buying a whole new harness would be a better idea?...maybe????

That sounds like you've got some wires shorting in the body harness, my guess would be either in the footwell or under the dash area. Reason being that the door switches are usually mounted in the jam and the lighting circuits shouldn't be going into the door either.

How handy are you with a multimeter and schematics? You should be able to find the wiring diagrams for your car online somewhere and be able to poke around a little to find the problem.

Am I safe to assume there's going to be a wiring loom going from my door into the car which is accessible when the door is open? What should I be looking for there?

I have a multimeter at home somewhere, and i'm sure I can quickly learn how to use it via youtube. Where / what should I be checking? Under the footwell / behind the dash?



Thanks for the input guys I really appreciate it, will try to tackle it over the weekend before I bring it in to Soundsgood.

You're looking for continuity with the multimeter. You'll be searching for a loss of continuity as it'll indicate that wire is broken.

But being that you loss power locks and window control at the same time and on both doors, it could even be a dead switch in the driver door and the whole system only works if that switch is working. Not sure if the 240's are wired like that though.

There's typically a big plug just behind the kick panel for everything going into the door, with a wiring diagram you can check for shorts and see if the correct signals are coming from the switches or not. There may also be a module in the drivers door that is either damaged or not getting power: