Cage OEM alarm system question

[djh3]

My 02 Durango has had this annoying problem of a couple years now. The key fob unlock has died on both fobs. I have changed batteries and still dont work. So sometimes when you unlock the door with the key the horn goes off like someone is breaking in. Usually I can quickly turn the key and relock the door and it will stop. But more and more frequently you have to actually start the car. It seems to be getting more and more frequent of the horn going off and is starting to really bug the wife.

So looking around the Durango sites the info I pick up is it could be a couple things. One is some kind of time delay module, it controls the slowly dimming interior lights, the headlights staying on for a few minutes after you pull in the drive and shut car off and a few other things all of which seem to operate normally. Its somewhere in the $300 to replace, and of course if you buy one its your should it not fix the problem. The other is some other magical black box the runs like $150-180 buck with the same problem if it dont fix it to bad.

So chased a few wire diagrams, and found what should have been the signal wire for the "alarm horn". Disconnected it at the body harness and pulled from connector. Dang horn still went off. So I guess it either wasn't or it was up stream of the signal going out.

So next idea is to disconnect the horn. Now I live in Central Fla where we need to wake up northern visitors driving quite regular. So I really need the stebil working. My though was to disconnect the horn, but wire it on a realy the gets energized after the car is started. Do you all think I can simply remove the "signal wire" run to relay, then a "key on" power source for relay and complete the circuit? I'm thinking that should eliminate the horn just going off, because it would not have power at the relay.

[Flyinfool]

After a battery change do you have to reprogram the key fobs to the car? Worth a try.

[Eck]

After a battery change do you have to reprogram the key fobs to the car? Worth a try.

 

This was my first thought also as I was reading his problem...

[djh3]

HMm not that I know of. Will do a little looking around though. Thanks for the idea. I installed a relay on the horn today. It solved the horn going off after I unlock the door, but I can hear a relay under the dash clicking like crazy until I start the car. LOL And tonight I noticed the headlights flash too. Never saw that before.