Power door Locks questions

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Tofast4U

Not-quite-so-new-guy
Jan 8, 2019
35
2
8
Are these a pretty common wear out part? Seems both of mine don't work. I have the inner door panels off and they look easy to replace. So what are you replacing them with? I see some from $59.00 to 9.00. So what is a good replacement part? I can get dorman for like 18.00 a pair. Seems reasonable?

Thanks Guys
 

fleming442

Captain Tenneal
Dec 26, 2013
13,046
24,216
113
You should troubleshoot it first. If the relay housing in the passenger kickpanel isn't grounded, they won't work- same with a blown fuse. Verify power at all locations before assuming a part has failed.
 
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HAFROD

Royal Smart Person
Jul 15, 2013
2,179
3,331
113
Claremore, OKLAHOMA
Pull out your switch from lower door panel, using a small flat blade screw driver, pry off bottom. Clean the contacts with sand paper and reassemble. It's that easy. They will have green corrosion on them. I have fixed many. Unless the chrome is in bad shape on the outer bezel. Then I'd replace.
 
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69hurstolds

Geezer
Supporting Member
Jan 2, 2006
8,088
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I'm assuming a G-body here?

Two bad switches themselves seem suspect. Usually only one may be bad, but I have to admit, I did have one lock side bad and the other the ulock side was bad (contacts were toast).

The relay is up behind the kick panel on the passenger side.

But if you DO happen to need switches, you want GM or aftermarket? Do you need to remain GM stock parts?

20734310 is the GM number. Search Ebay with that number and you'll get a plethora of aftermarket versions as well.

The relay is p/n 20306055 and they don't make that in aftermarket parts that I can find. Borg Warner had one that was R4732, and it looked identical down to the bracket like the GM one. I can't find that BWD makes those anymore from their website.

You'll need to find a G-body one, as B and C list different part numbers. I don't know what the difference is. 81 A-body and 82-88 G-body. Monte, GP, Regal, Cutlasss...all the same.

Relay gets power from a Circuit Breaker (rear defogger is on this circuit too if equipped) and the switch sends signals to the door lock actuators via the Dome Light fuse (20A).


Here's an Olds G47 diagram. Other G-bodies should be similar.

85 G47 power door lock diagram.JPG
 
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HAFROD

Royal Smart Person
Jul 15, 2013
2,179
3,331
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Claremore, OKLAHOMA
My 87 square body, neither worked. Took apart and cleaned. Work fine now. If they are not used, they corrode. Car is 30 years old, don't you think corrosion would be an issue??? When I used to flip G bodys, this was a usual occurrence. But I'm just a dumb redneck, what do I know
 
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88AZSS

Master Mechanic
Mar 13, 2018
433
1,092
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Mesa, AZ
Mine didn't work when I bought my 88 Monte Carlo. I thought it was the relay so I replaced that with a used unit from someone on the forum. Still nothing. So I bought new actuators on both sides, still nothing. Running through the troubleshooting guide in the shop manual I tested power at the relay and found all to be good. So I tested the actuators straight to a battery and both sets worked fine. I found that the relay was not grounding properly and would not power the actuators. GM would mount these with what look like self tapping screws and without removing paint on body where theyre mounted and over time I suppose the grounding capability is lost or doesn't work.

I removed the paint in the area the relay mounted to and both sides work now just fine. I would suggest checking the relay as well and cleaning up the contacts like others have said. The relay is located on the A pillar, behind the kick panel. If your vehicle has a computer then youll have to move that aside and pull the jute cover from behind it as well. The relay uses the bracket that holds it to the body as a ground.
 
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awdblazer

Master Mechanic
Dec 12, 2013
314
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do you still have your doors apart? can you take a pic of the actuator? thanks!!!
 

88AZSS

Master Mechanic
Mar 13, 2018
433
1,092
93
Mesa, AZ
do you still have your doors apart? can you take a pic of the actuator? thanks!!!

Sorry, my car is in storage at the moment and i don’t have access to it. I’m sure there are photos of doors on the forum with the panels removed.
 

565bbchevy

Geezer
Aug 8, 2011
9,591
12,612
113
Michigan
My 87 square body, neither worked. Took apart and cleaned. Work fine now. If they are not used, they corrode. Car is 30 years old, don't you think corrosion would be an issue??? When I used to flip G bodys, this was a usual occurrence. But I'm just a dumb redneck, what do I know
I agree, I have bought many Gbody's where neither power lock switch worked and all it took was a quick disassembly and cleaning and readjustment of the contacts and they worked fine, in fact there has never been a time for me that the relay or actuator was the issue.
I would assume it started with one side not working first and then over time the other side quit, I have also had Gbody's with no dash lights and every single bulb was burnt out, another "what's the odds of that" but I feel many previous Gbody owners at some point in the cars life either didn't have the know how or money to put into basic maintenance and the car ends up neglected.
 

Tofast4U

Not-quite-so-new-guy
Jan 8, 2019
35
2
8
I bought a Pair of them for $15.00. Here are the inside of the old ones.
 

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