Hello everyone. I have a '96 Bonneville, non SC. I installed a remote starter.....Avistart 4200 to be exact. Most of the time it works fine but, sometimes when I get out of the car and start walking away, the car will start up again on its own. And every once in a while, it will start if I open the door to put something in it. Now, if I get out of the car and it doesn't start after about 30 seconds, it won't start again unless I do something such as opening the door. Also, when I start the car with the remote and it is warming up, sometimes, it will cut off as soon as I open the door. I know that there is a setting on the system for less sensitivity but it made no difference at all. Other than these two problems, the system works great.
To give a little background, I am not a shade tree mechanic....I am a ASE cert. tech and have installed the same system twice before. Both times on Chevy Silverado'* and they worked perfectly. Has anyone else had the same problem? Any ideas???

Moved to Audio (and aftermarket electronics)

My first thought is electrical and grounds. Start at the battery, check the ground junctions at the door sills on both sides. It could even be a bad remote starter also.

I could not find an installation manual for a 4200 model on the manufacturer'* website. I need to know a few basic things:

Is this model designed for or programmible for a manual transmission? These types are the only remote starters that have a door input that could inhibit the start sequence. Others will have a door input simply to prevent accidental lock outs.
Is there an aux trigger (input) that will activate the remote start other than pressing the remote? This can include a switch for a "pit stop" feature that allows the user to remove the key from the car but continue to run.


This is quite strange and the problem doesn't seem to be consistant. I only saw something similar in a showroom display for an Auto Command remote starter. During the winter months, a static electricity discharge anywhere in the room would start the display in it'* "demo" mode. The same mode that was activated when a customer pressed the Start button on the display.

OK, my system is designed for auto trans only.
It is set up to only start with with the remote (or key obviously) but it does have a valet mode and a valet take-over feature.
I have checked and double checked all connections and grounds. I originally thought I had a defective unit. Since I (at that time) worked where I bought the system, I unplugged the unit and swapped it out (leaving all the previous wiring intact). And, it didn't fix it. I tried it with the door input wire (or dome light wire) unplugged and it didn't change anything.
Thanks for all your help in advance.

Taylor

[head scratch mode]

My next idea was going to be to reprogram the remotes. Ususally starters/alarms have a certain number of programming "slots" remembering up to say 4 remotes. In this case you would program both remotes two times thus occupying all 4 slots. Because you swapped the module (and had to reprogram the remotes anyway), I'd say that this would not solve the problem. Also, this appears to be a code hopping unit which is not really susceptible to regular RF interference. In the past I've seen RF interference cause some wonky problems.

Will opening the door be the only thing that will restore normal remote starting or are there other actions that will?

Sometimes stipid questions need to be asked: Is there any chance that the start button is being activated while in your pockets?

[/head scratch mode]

The system works fine but, if I open the door sometime, the car will start. For example: I was getting my emissions tested the other day. The guy gets out of the car while it is not running and key in ignition. He shuts the door behind him and the car starts. It went 3 or 4 days without without a problem prior to that. Also, recently, I was at a party. The car was sitting unlocked in the drive way. I go out to put something in the back seat and as soon as I open the door, it starts. I told the car "I am not leaving yet!!!"



I wish it was that easy but no, I am not pushing it accidently. Besides, you have to push the button twice rapidly to get it to start the car.

most typically of this kind of situation, a failing battery or loose power/ground connections are to blame. The unit will have a tendency to try and start itself when reconnected to power, and the jarring of the door closing my indicate an intermitant connection.

I have a similar feeling as BlackIce. Not so much as being the vibrations of a door opening but the door switch closing to ground to turn the dome light on. Almost seems like it'* completing the circuit.

As I read through the manual for a 4001, it says that the parking lights will flash when it receives the start command from the remote. Is the starter giving you any indication like this or does it simply begin to start?

In normal operation, the park lights flash before it starts. However, when it starts on its own, it just starts. Then the park lights come on after it starts as it would normally.