Rover 200 alarm woes

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Mon 19 May 2003 14:06
Rover 200 alarm woes - JBH
I have a Rover 200 Coupe on an L plate, the alarm seems to have a mind of its own. Sometimes it goes off 4 times in a day then nothing for a week. It is parked in the same place every night (sheltered, i thought it might be wind that is setting it off) and their is no pattern. please help
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Mon 19 May 2003 14:15
Rover 200 alarm woes - Cyd
Can you help by giving extra info first, please:

Does the car have CDL?
Does the car have remote control?
Do you use the remote to lock the car mostly?
Is there any noticable difference in alarm reliability if you lock with key or remote?
Does it have ultrasonics? (not all do at this age).
Does the boot light work ok?
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Mon 19 May 2003 14:25
Rover 200 alarm woes - JBH
Hi Cyd,

Replies:

No it does not have CDL
No it does not have Remote control
It does not have Ultrasonics.

The boot light works OK but it does not set the alarm off if i open the boot. If i slam the boot it will go off.
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Mon 19 May 2003 14:28
Rover 200 alarm woes - Cyd
.....If i slam the boot it will go off.....

Is the 'it' here the alarm or the light?
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Mon 19 May 2003 14:57
Rover 200 alarm woes - JBH
sorry Cyd, the alarm.
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Mon 19 May 2003 15:21
Rover 200 alarm woes - Cyd
I'm not sure whether your car has a separate boot switch or if it's internal to the latch.

Either way - check the operation of the boot light switch, make sure the light goes on & off okay, no corrosion, wiring ok etc.
Also check that the striker adjustment is ok - if you push down on the lid will it compress the seals a lot more or just a little? If a lot, adjust to make the slam harder (but not too hard).
Check the operation of the alarm defeat switch on the back of the boot lock - is the cam free to move, wear on the cam. Is the wiring intact. Check the operation of the link rod from the lock to the latch - it should be free to move, no stiffness but firmly fixed at each end.

Lubricate the internals of both lock & latch with spray white grease (get a can with a long nozzle to inject with). Also lube the switch cam mechanism with same grease. If this has not been done for a long time, use WD40 first to flush out dirt etc making sure everything operates ok - then let the WD40 dry out for a day before applying the grease.

From your decription that the alarm goes off when you slam the boot I suspect this is where the problem lies. It might also be worth your while checking operation of the door locks, switches and links. Clean & lube these too.

Do let us know how you get on.
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Mon 19 May 2003 16:36
Rover 200 alarm woes - JBH
Hi Cyd,

Just noticed that the bulb has blown in the boot. Could this be causing the problems?
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Mon 19 May 2003 19:41
Rover 200 alarm woes - Cyd
no
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Mon 19 May 2003 18:33
Rover 200 alarm woes - Dynamic Dave
As well as what Cyd has already suggested, check that your seatbelts are full retracted when you leave the car. Mate's alarm kept going off due to lazy passengers leaving seatbelts to creep back into their housings themselves after the car was vacated. The ultrasonics were that sensitive that they picked up the movement of the belt(s).
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Mon 19 May 2003 19:43
Rover 200 alarm woes - Cyd
The car is not fitted with ultrasonics, apparently.
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Tue 20 May 2003 00:17
Rover 200 alarm woes - Dynamic Dave
Oops, Correct Cyd. I've just seen the word "not" in one of the paragraghs above.
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Tue 20 May 2003 18:49
Rover 200 alarm woes - Dave Croker
We had the same problem on our M reg 420Gsi, it was caused by a faulty door light switch. So try disconnecting all of them for a while and see what happens.
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