Door unlocking on it's own problem & fix

J

JimPghPA

Joined
Aug 22, 2009
Messages
7,001
Location
Pittsburgh,PA U.S.A.
About 10 days ago when I came out of a store and went to enter my 2016 CR-V EX the vehicles door was not locked. Then a few days ago as I was walking away from the vehicle I heard the doors unlock. I went back and locked them again and they unlocked again a few seconds later. I tried locking from the passenger side and the button on the trunk, and both of those locked it and it stayed locked each time I tried those. But when I lock it from the driver's side if I don't move quickly away from the vehicle it will unlock again. I had heard that these touch-sensitive door locks have had a high failure rate. So I happened to be in the area of the local Honda dealer and I stopped in and talked to a few people and found out that they want $590.55 for a door hand it was an hour's worth of labor to put it on and their labor charge is. $285 an hour. And both of those cost would have an additional 7% tax bringing the total to $936.84

Also, that they have replaced many of these.

So I thought I would try to see if I could fix it myself first.

We've had an awful lot of dirt settling on vehicles lately from just out of the air. So I was thinking possibly some dust got in there. I blasted it off really well at a self serve car wash. That did not help.

I washed the car and while I was doing that I washed the handle very well and then I treated it with some rubber treatment on the back side of the handle where the rubber part is. That did not help.

So I started thinking about what would be involved to remove the handle and clean it up inside very well if I could get it apart.

Then in the evening I realized that my problem started the same time when I started using my new phone, A Samsung Galaxy A 53 5G (referbished $150.00).

The time delay betwein locking the door and having it unlock on it's own was about the same amount of time that it would normally take for the door to unlock automatically if you had left the fob inside the car. So I started thinking that maybe my new phone is sending out enough of a signal to cause the vehicle to think that the fob is locked inside the car. So I put the phone a very far distance from the car and the problem went away. I brought the phone back and the problem reoccurred. So I started to think about what I could do to prevent the phone from causing this problem. I turned off Wifi connection and bluetooth connactions on the phone and the phone no longer causes the problem.

It's a bit of an inconvenience to keep these turned off. Because I do use them when I have the phone in the house. But when i'm going to exit the vehicle from now on I'll have to have this turned off.

I'm just passing this on to everyone. Because apparently an older vehicle that has a key fob may not be protected from interference from the more modern versions of cell phones. Mine certainly is not. My previous cell phone was a Samsung galaxy orbit and I had no problems with the door lock when I used that phone.

Also, I wonder if the design has been improved to not have this problem with modern more recent phones, and people are getting fleeced by the dealerships selling them an upgraded part.
And them thinking that the original part had failed when the problem is that the original can't handle the Interference that new phones cause. Also, it seams that the service person at the dealer is clue-less about what is actually going on. This is just speculation on my part, but it sounds pretty plausible.
 
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I clearly see that you did detailed troubleshooting and can see why you believe that is the issue. I am just having difficulty accepting that as the real reason and think it may be a coincidence because phones and vehicle key frequencies are not the same nor even close. I suspect the issue will happen again but please do keep us updated.
 
The symptoms sounds exactly like the well documented faulty Body Control Module issues that Honda has experienced on numerous CRV, Pilot and Odyssey platforms of the 2011 to ~2020 era. Huge number of complaints with intermittent unlocking doors and false triggering of the security alarms. Google Honda BCM problems for specific details.
 
not to mention it happened on my 96 civic.. it was a faulty door lock control module, in the door! Seems like Honda cannot fix this issue it had since 25+ years ago! If the phone is causing this.. it's, more like the BCM as @Nukeman7 said.. (y) sounds like any kind of EMI/RFI frequencies is affecting the BCM.. then again think about leaving the car in a parking lot and anyone walks by with any cellphone! Park next to a cell tower?! etc.. BCM is faulty and needs to be looked at.
 
I’ve noticed on our odyssey and accord, if I have my key in my pocket, and am washing the car, it will self unlock or lock when I spray the door handles.

Maybe you have moisture in somewhere?
 
If I have my phone in the same pocket as my Dacia's keys, the car won't automatically unlock. When I get in the car I get a "Keycard not detected" message and I have to place the key on a pad on the centre console to turn the engine on.
 
Here is an update:

The problem with the door lock on my 2016 CR-V EX came back. So I decided to put some more thought into trying to figure it out. I looked at some YouTube videos of how to remove the door panel and how to R&R the door handle. We had a lot of rain here recently for several days in a row, and I was thinking that one of the problems might be that some water had gotten inside the handle because there is a bundle of wires with heat-shrink that come from the handle and water might get into the handle there.

I took the door panel off and took apart the electrical connectors (removing them from the mount is a little tricky) and sprayed corrosion X Aviation grade electrical contact cleaner on both sides of each of the connectors (where the wires go into each and also on the connection ends). I then put the connectors together and took them apart about a half a dozen times to work the connectors to make sure that they would get good connections. I also did the same with all the other connectors on the door. And I also sprayed a decent amount of corrosion X Into the actual door handle while I had the panel off the door, because it was easy to access where the wires went into the door handle while it was still on the door but from working inside of the door. I put it all back together and it's been working fine now with no problems. And even if I put the phone near it with all of the connections on the phone enabled such as wifi and bluetooth there still is no problem with the doorhandle.

When it was acting up, it really did act up more if the phone was near it with bluetooth and wifi enabled. The fob had to be near it, and the combination of fob and phone would make it unlock without touching the back of the handle. Sometimes when it was bad the combination of phone and fob did not make it open but if you touched the vehicle anywhere it opened.

It had two B codes, I cleared them with my blue-driver and it has remained code free.

Anyhow, I've got it working 100% correctly all the time. And I didn't have to buy a new door handle from the dealer. No more opening when it should not, and it opens when it should.

Amazing, what just cleaning the electrical contacts of the connectors for the wiring and treating them with a good electrical contact cleaner and maintainer can accomplish. I think I save myself $936.84

Now I'm starting to wonder how many other times people have replaced electronic items on vehicles when actually it was the connectors that were not doing their job.

I bought that can of corrosion x aviation grade about twenty years ago and its getting low. But it's great stuff for cleaning electrical contacts. And I understand that it is use on electrical contacts for aviation such as lear jets. Whenever this can finally runs out I'm definitely going to buy another.

Now I'm thinking that I should treat all of the electrical connectors in all of the doors with corrosion x before the next winter gets here and its too cold to be working on the car.
 
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Another update. The problem came back. I noticed it's related to if it has rained recently. If we get a stretch of dry days it works fine.

So, going on the premises that the electronics is OK but the handles sensor is intermittent and effected by high moisture, especially during and after rain, I was thinking maybe the black plastic has aged and become somewhat permeable to water.

I removed the handle. I realized that where the wires go into the handle the opening is too large and over time can allow dirt to get inside the handle. Some If those small pieces of dirt will be organic such as small parts of plants, and those will be good at holding onto moisture, making the sensor think someone is touching the handle totally throwing off how the lock works.

I used a 32 oz bottle of 70% alcohol that I bought at Wallmart to repediatly squeeze a stream of alcohol into where the wires go in the handle. Then let that alcohol drain out some small holes on the other side. Repeat until using up all of the 32 oz. Do this outside because the alcohol throws off fumes. Also, it's wise to wear waterproof insulated gloves if you have some. Evaporating alcohol gets cold. Then dry out the hande with air flow. Then dry it out better by placing it on a soft cloth in a low temperature oven measured to be running at 120 F inside for 2 hours.

Then I put some loctite E60-hp epoxy on the black plastic to seal it, and also put that on all seams. Clean away where it does not belong and let it dry in thec120 F oven for an hour. Repeat applying a thin coat ( apply and remove with a paper towel) and dry in 120 F oven for an hour again.

Seal where the wires go in with GE Silicon, and let that dry.

I put it back on the door and it now works fine.


Repeated for the other door.

-------------------

A couple of notes. Watch youtube videos on how to remove the door panel, and how to remove the handle.

Tape towels or something over the inside side of the door panel to protect it. Stuff marks will show if you rub it on any surface.


Tear off wax paper a few inches at a time and put that on the black glue that never dries that holds the vapor-barrier in place where you peal back the barrier, both on the door and on the barrier. This stuff makes a mess and is easy to get on your hands and arms, so use the waxpaper to prevent it from getting on you.

Keep the little rubber cover you remove from the bottom of the door handle, oriented as it goes in the door when you set it down after removing it. It looks like we it goes in either way, but only goes in one way.

-‐--------------

I think I have it fixed this time.
 
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JimPghPA said:
Amazing, what just cleaning the electrical contacts of the connectors for the wiring and treating them with a good electrical contact cleaner and maintainer can accomplish. I think I save myself $936.84
Click to expand...
When I bought my Legacy, the LF window would not go down. If I tried closing it, I could hear it trying, perfect. I took the door panel off including the master power window switch and disassembled the switch for an inspection. What I noticed was a considerable amount of residue on the contacts. I cleaned them and it's been working perfectly since 2021. Most shops are going to sell you a switch, in my case about $220 + installation.
 
It's probably best to do only one door at a time if you have to close the doors and lock the vehicle, so you can still open the vehivle.

I suppose you could insert the driver's handle and key lock section to unlock it with the key, if you did both at once, but I did not try that. So before doing both at once, with the wiring connector of the drivers door disconnected by the inside of the door by the handle, lock the vehicle, then try opening it with the key and drivers door handle to mechanically work the door lock.

If your going to do this, keep the thin black gaskets outside the vehicle so you can put them on before putting the handle back on the vehicle. If there in the vehicle you will have to remove the handle again after opening the vehicle. And also there's a slight chance of scratching paint if those gaskets are not there.

One thing for certain, with the wiring disconnected, simply inserting the handle back in plac is not going to enable the electronics of it to be able to unlock without using the key, with it still electrically disconnected.

BTW, since doing this to both doors, they both
word extremely well. We have not had any rain since I did them to test how well they work when wet. I'll comment after some rain.
 
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LO TECH = less problems IMO, just KISS keep it simple stupid!! as another member once noted!!
 
Hi everyone, I had this door handle problem come back " again " and have been wrestling with it some more. I think I may have finally fixed it so it does not come back. The following is a copy of what I just posted on the Honda CRV owners club forum about this:

Hi everyone. Here's a more recent followup, with more information. I will NOT be supplying pictures.

The handle I have been having a problem with is the front drivers door handle. Though much of this may apply to the front passenger side door handle. If that one acts up I will fix it in a similar way.

The problem with my 2016 CRV EX door handle is definitely related to moisture / water intrusion. Call me cheap, or stubborn, or persistent, or frugal, or smart, its up to you, but I have something against replacing a poorly designed part with an identical part still containing the initial design problem. There was even a post where someone had their handle replaced and about 13 months later it failed again, just out of warranty.

I first realized that this problem is related to moisture because when it first acted up we were having a lot of rainy days, and then we had a string of dry days and it did not act up as much, and then more rainy days and again it acted up.

My CRV would unlock as I was walking away from it after I had locked it, and sometimes if it was locked it would unlock as I approached it, before I touched the inside of the handle.

So, realizing it may be moisture related, I removed the handle and dried it by placing it on a cotton washcloth in a small toaster oven that I had carefully preset the internal temperature to 150 F by running it and testing the internal temperature by opening the door and quickly measuring the internal temperature with a digital IR temperature measuring device, and then adjusting and letting it run and retesting until I had it regulating at 150 F.

After letting the handle sit inside that toaster oven for at least a day at 150 F I then tried sealing it with 2 very light coating of a good epoxy. I put it back on the vehicle and it worked well for quite a while. Then the problem came back.

___

Try 2:

I pulled the drivers door handle off again, dried it inside the 150 F oven for at least a day, and this time sealed it up even better. I put epoxy down into the bundle of wires from the handle by getting it into the heat-shrink around that bundle, and letting it dry. Then I wrapped electric tape around that heat-shrink, and the wires after they leave the bundle.

I then sealed around where that heat-shrink entered the handle with RTV silicon.

I sealed all the holes on the back-side of the handle with epoxy.

I sealed the black section that is touched to unlock with a coating of JB Weld regular ( not fast ) epoxy.

I sealed on-top of that with loctite epoxy.

I placed it on the vehicle and it worked well for quite a while again, then it acted up again during rainy days.


____

Try 3:

I pulled the drivers door handle off the vehicle again ( getting good at doing this, using wax paper on the black gooey stuff on the vapor barrier and on the inside door panel helps a lot ). Dried the handle in the toaster oven at 150 F for a day again, and began looking for how moisture was still getting into the handle. I added some more epoxy to the back of the handle around some seams. Then I decided to add some Corrosion X Aviation grade electric contact cleaner to the inside of the handle. I drilled 2 small holes in the black rubber backing on the side of the handle furthest away from where the wires come out of the handle. When I sprayed the contact cleaner into the handle a lot of it came out of the seam where that back rubber touches the painted flat section furthest away from where the wires bundle comes out of the handle. I had put a thin coating of epoxy in that area, but it was not enough to seal properly. So I lifted up that rubber and placed a decent amount of loctite E-60 epoxy between that rubber and the handle and let that dry.

I then put a decent coating of JB Weld Black over the area where the handle is touched to unlock. If you have been keeping track, that is now 3 layers of epoxy over that area. Regular JB Weld, topped with Loctite HP-60, topped with the JB Weld Black. The last coat ( JB Weld Black ) extends a little past the seam of the original black backing and over the painted section. BTW, JB Weld Black is a very thin epoxy when first mixed, and thickest as it cures, which does not take very long.

I let that last coat of epoxy dry a day, and put it back on again. It is now working very well, again.

I think I may have it finally fixed to last a very long time.

___


Summary:

Changes in ambient atmospheric pressure can force air to enter and leave the air space within the handle if there is ANY means for that air to move in and out when the ambient air outside that handle is of sufficient different pressure from the air within the handle. And ambient air pressure changes as the weather changes, and also as the vehicle goes up and down mountain. So, if there is a means for ambient air to move in and out of the handle it will allow moisture in that air to move into that handle, maybe even water if rain is sitting on that spot. And it is somewhat of a challenge to have an air space within these handles and totally seal it so moisture can not get in, while still having a lock button with a rubber section that can be pressed.

Drying and sealing future moisture from entering has a decent chance of fixing these handles.

If you do try to fix a handle, after drying, be sure you have it sealed well on the flat section parallel to the door panel, opposite of the side where the wires come out of the handle. That is the section that I missed the first 2 times.

Only time will tell if what I have done ( for the third time ) finally keeps this handle working. I will try to post a follow up in several months. Today is March 9, 2025.

_

Additional note: When bad, the handle causes some modules within the vehicle to not go to sleep after stopping and leaving the vehicle. I have upgraded my CRV battery with a new Walmart Everstart 24F MAXX battery on Sept 11, 2022, and that 29 month old battery still test great with my battery tester. Testing often with that tester show that when the door handle is bad and causing constant drain of the battery when the vehicle is not being used, it drains 16 percent of the state of charge each day. With a smaller 51R battery that would be 24 percent of the batteries charge per day.

____

Because someone posted that they had their handle replaced by a dealer, and it failed again 13 months later just out of warranty, fixing these handles instead of replacing with the same design might be a good idea. Also, there is a real possibility that the parts dealers are being supplied are new old stock ( never used, but aged stock that may not last as long as the original did because it is already aged ).

It might be possible to just seal without adding epoxy outside to the section that is touched to unlock. That would be better looking than what I did. I do not have several handles to experiment with. I tried to do this as best I could with what I had to work with in as short of a time as it could.

In the future, many years form now, these handles will not be available any longer. So fixing the handle similar to what I did will be the only way to repair them.

__

If you fix one and do a neater job ( don't add epoxy outside the handle where you touch it ) but just seal by putting epoxy within the handle by where the handle is near the door panel, and seal the wire bundle, and it works, please post about that.

Good luck if you try to fix handles yourself. It is something that can be fixed, but there is room for improvement of how to do it neater than I did it.

Signed: JimPghPA

PS: Honda, if you are listening, there is a design problem here. If current designs are similar and still incorporate this problem, it is a design that can be easily improved so your customers do not have to put up with this problem in the distant future with the models you sell in the near future, so your brand maintains a great reputation.
 
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3rd try did not permanently fix it.

I bought a new handle by using the online Honda parts store that shipps to the dealer. Almost $400.00 for that handle including thar its painted already to match my vehicle. I sealed all the passages that would allow water and dirt in, and if there is a huge differance in pressure between the space inside the handle and ambient atmosphere, it can vent through the shrink-wrap around the wires so the section where the shrink-wrap stops is inside the door and not likley to allow liquid water in when it rains.

It's been more than a month now since I put the new handle on and it works fine, and no more parasitic drains.

I really tried to fix it before buying one, but had to give in.

One thing, if you have this problem, you can verify it's the handle by removing the handle and baking the moisture out of it by putting it in a small toaster oven at 150 F for a day, and then put it back on. It will work for several days until humidity and or rain gets into it again.
 
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