MidgetHurse-LT

Been looking through many pages/threads and have done the "search" thing more than I want to admit... If it is in there already, point the way!

I am looking for an easier way to find what is blowing the power door lock fuse 26! I can see how I might narrow it down if it is the driver's door, but beyond that, it looks like I have to start opening all the doors up to see which solenoid or wire is the problem.

Is there a connection before any of the doors to make this easier?

Any help would be great! Thanks.

whopper

Hopefully a helpful tip for you - keeping your issue/questions in a single thread (rather than four separate threads) would make it a lot easier for people to follow the work you have done so far.

I suspect you might have to pull the inside panel off each of the three doors and disconnect the solenoids directly, inside the door itself. Not a fun job, but do-able.

MidgetHurse-LT

Thanks for answering so fast! Didn't mean to cause any trouble about the other thread entries. Actually, I thought I wasn't asking for help when posting on the two other threads and wasn't expecting (and didn't receive) any help from those thread entries... Don't get me wrong, it would have been great to get pointed to a thread that would help! I was just comparing my problem to theirs and offering what I had found that could help their situation. At that time, I was still searching for something that would touch on my problem more closely so I could either get the answer or pose the related question. I was trying to avoid starting another thread if there was already one for me to find. I gave up searching and let this rip...

Fuse 26 blew one day last summer and I thought by now I would find a better way to troubleshoot it... Thanks for letting me know life will suck finding it though!

I was really hoping for something easier... Guess I'll have to get a bag of those plastic door darts from the dealer and resign to pulling and prodding until I stop blowing fuses. Really trying to avoid having so much fun this winter... Oh Happy Day!

whopper

No problem - there is a thread here that covers removing the door panels (sorry, I am on a rather flakey wifi here and can't provide a link to it) - just take your time and things do come apart fairly easily. I've had a few door panels off and only broke one of the "door darts" - so I lucked out. Just be extra careful if it is really cold out. Let us know what you find if you can.

Lucky

I think whopper is correct the only connectors for the locks are inside the doors.

You don't have to investigate the rear lift gate there's no lock actuator there. When locked the body controller just turns the power off to the electric latch.

donbrew

I think somebody has posted the wiring schematic, so I won't bother right now. Maybe later.
This might be helpful. PM me if you need a better pdf.

MidgetHurse-LT

The good news is I already know about taking the front door panels off from replacing the speakers when the wiring was actually bad to them. The bad news is that I didn't find it to be fun and have been avoiding this problem's fix since summer! The more you take them off, the more the "door darts" break too.

Yeah, one of the things I have eliminated is the lift gate. It still works fine with the fuse blown/removed. I have to remember to lock/unlock it separately with the door switch now...

I was planning on this tomorrow but an hour ago my 2004 Chevy Classic decided to act like its fuel pump just gave up. Priorities do dictate HHR doors will be later...

So, give me at least a week for an update on this one. Thanks everybody!

db/sb

Are you using some type of trim removal tool or just prying on the panel with a screwdriver?. I bought a pair of cheap panel clip pliers at Harbor Freight yeas ago and I can't remember the last time I broke a 'door dart' when removing a panel.

MidgetHurse-LT

I've got one of those panel removal pry tools like they sell in the set there. Kinda looks like a screw driver flattened out with a slot in the middle. It is not that great and there are casualties... Just not looking forward to it!

Are you talking about these?

Panel Clip Pliers

Guessing they are better. Didn't know they existed. I just went there a couple days ago too... I picked up 2 mini fuse sets (10ea of 6 sizes) for $4 each! I figure between blowing some during troubleshooting and replacing spares used, 20 should be plenty.

There is good news! My other beast is out of the garage as of late yesterday and I can pick up a pair of those while the chill/frost melts off.

db/sb

Those are very similar, probably an 'updated' model as I bought mine years ago.