Alarm going off at random

[nordwulf]

I found all the resources with instructions on replacing the battery in the alarm module. I removed mine from my M04 9-5 but am a bit puzzled on how to open this thing. They used screws on earlier models but the newer ones are sealed. I tried scoring the edges with a knife but am not getting anywhere in opening it. Any suggestions besides brute force and breaking things?

[photousa]

i believe I saw a tutorial a while back that covers cutting the box open using a dremel with a cutting wheel attachment. http://www.twinsaabs.com/9-5_repair/...tery/intro.asp
I found a great deal for the BBA Reman service on EBAY for something like $10, so I just sent mine to them.

[rpiereck]

Try a heat gun to loosen the adhesive that holds it together, or the Dremel as photousa says.

[nordwulf]

I replaced the batteries a while. A rotary cutting tool worked great for this and I refitted with screws and some silicone sealant.

However... my alarm is still going off at times and I occasionally get the theft alarm message on the SID. So it looks like I also need to replace the capacitors. According to this site, these are needed:



Any thoughts on where I can get these for a reasonable price?

[nordwulf]

Never mind... found this post with info: Saabnet.com: 9-5 BB Post: Re: Theft Alarm Battery & Capacitors Replacement Tips

P/N P13123-ND 330 uf, 25v Position C4 on the circuit board
P/N P12920-ND 220 uf, 10v Position C2 on the circuit board
P/N P10316-ND 10 uf, 50v Position C1 on the circuit board


Parts are $1.18 and shipping $4.54 with Priority Mail. They also can ship with First Class Mail for a very reasonable $2.80.

I just wished I replaced these with the batteries because now I have to go through the entire procedure again.

[walawala]

Frank,

What batteries did you use?

I just replaced the batteries about 3 weeks ago and my alarm is fixed. I posted the work on another forum

Saab Owners Community, Malaysia • View topic - Replacing siren alarm batteries

To split the box open I used a airsaw.

Got my batteries from Ebay, the exact same ones. CR17335. The CR17335SE won't work as the specs are much lower than CR17335

http://www.abcde.de/data/cr17335.pdf
http://www.abcde.de/data/cr17335se.pdf


des

[nordwulf]

I made sure to order the CR17335 because I also read the SE are not the right batteries to use. I got them from this seller.

2pcs New Sanyo 3V CR17335 Lithium Battery with Tabs Free Shipping | eBay

Is measuring battery voltage a reliable way to determine if they are good or not? I thought they were rechargeable but they are not reading from your post. Hopefully, mine are still good after the alarm has been going off quite a few times. Also had it parked at the airport for 12 days and who knows how many times it went off then.

Welcome walawala, thanks for your feedback.

[MI-Roger]

I am surprised your 2004 is having capacitor problems. I had heard this issue was linked to the Global Capacitor Plague circa 2000, and thought all of these would have been used by 2004. Perhaps your car was equipped with a siren module manufactured two or three years earlier.

I finally gave up trying to fix the problems with the siren module on my 2000lpt - before the capacitor problem was identified - and had the siren disabled at a Dealership for less than what I spent on new batteries the first time!

[nordwulf]

I am surprised your 2004 is having capacitor problems. I had heard this issue was linked to the Global Capacitor Plague circa 2000, and thought all of these would have been used by 2004. Perhaps your car was equipped with a siren module manufactured two or three years earlier.

I am not sure the capacitors are the problem, just a guess and next step to try to fix the problem.

Having the siren disabled would be even better but I am not anywhere close to a Saab dealer or other place with a Tech II. If it wasn't for the SID message every time the engine is started, I would just leave the alarm module off the car.

When I removed the cover of the alarm module, one of the battery terminals was loose so perhaps I didn't make a good connection the first time.

[walawala]

Is measuring battery voltage a reliable way to determine if they are good or not? I thought they were rechargeable but they are not reading from your post. Hopefully, mine are still good after the alarm has been going off quite a few times. Also had it parked at the airport for 12 days and who knows how many times it went off then.

Welcome walawala, thanks for your feedback.

Thanks for the welcome.

I may be wrong with the rechargeability. I read this from saabcentral that it wasn't rechargeable, and the Ebay site you posted said it isn't too.

The best way to test a battery is to load test and measure the voltage. My test meter has a battery load test and it clearly showed that the old battery drops to 2.98V once connected. New ones maintain their voltage at 3.15V.

Did you measure the voltage when you connected it up? I made sure i did. When i connected the siren module back, the theft protection failure popped up. had to reopen and check all solder joints and make sure there wasn't any shorting.

des

*thank god for Autosave on this forum!