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The SID displayed the "Service Theft Alarm" message the other night. No intermittent alarm problems yet, and the message has not returned. So, I have a little time to get the alarm module replaced, which is nice, particularly since it costs in the $300-$400 range!
After checking the posts on the board I saw that Fuse 14 could prevent or stop the siren from going off. I checked my owner's manual and found Fuse 14.
But, just to be sure, I figured I would check with a dealer. They told me that since the alarm unit was self-contained, there was no fuse to disable the siren. I showed them the owner's manual with Fuse 14 labeled as AC/siren. They didn't think that removing it would really work; and even suggested that the car might not start; but to let them know what happened.
Well, I removed it. The car started. I did get the "Service Theft Alarm" message, which I then cleared. With the fuse out, the automatic locking via the key button still works. However, there is no "chirp" now.
Obviously, unless the alarm starts sounding intermittently overnight and wakes up the neighbors, I can keep the fuse in so that I can have some AC. Maybe that's SAAB's way of making sure you get it fixed.
So, I'm a bit surprised by the dealer not knowing that pulling the fuse could be a temporary fix, at least for overnight parking should the alarm start sounding intermittently.
Regardless though it seems kind of funny that you could stop the alarm by pulling a fuse. What's to prevent a car thief from doing that? Yes, they would have to know which fuse, but it's location is noted in the manual!
Originally, I thought that the fuse was simply there to allow the regular 12V car battery to start sounding the alarm to let you know that the actual alarm battery is no longer able to provide power. (I guess they felt that if you ignored a few "Service Theft Alarm" messages, then that was what they had to do to get you to fix it.) And somehow, when the alarm battery level drops low enough, the 12V car battery gets into the circuit and sets-off the alarm. But in reality, that fuse is the true power path to the siren, regardless of whether or not the alarm batrtery or (perhaps) the car battery is powering the system.
I do recall that once when my car battery went really bad, the alarm kept going off. Other posters have had similar experiences. (Thank goodness it was in the dealer lot by then for me.) So, it sounds like there is a "battery balance" circuit which must sound the siren when either the car battery or the alarm battery is too low.
Either way, I'm sure that from any neighbor's perspective it would be better not to have the alarm go off under these circumstances. Also, one reason why most of the posters' alarms go off only at night is probably due to the fact that it's colder at night; so that's when the battery drops, much like a "cold start" on winter days.
I have not heard of this on other cars, but, of course, we have all heard car alarms go off suddenly without provocation. Maybe this is a common failure mode for all car alarms.
It still does seem odd to be able to pull a fuse to stop the siren. It's a good fail-safe option for the owner. Clearly, this alarm configuration is to stop the amateur car thief only.
Steve
1999 9-5 LPT
posted by 192.160.5...
, Fri, 21 Apr 2006 09:50:26
, Fri, 21 Apr 2006 11:15:03
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