Can you turn off the auto door locks?

sqdude

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2007
Location
Eugene, Oregon
TDI
2000 Jetta TDI
I know it's safer to drive around with the doors locked, but it's annoying to have to unlock all the doors, throw some gear in the back, drive somewhere and unlock all the doors again. Plus I'd imagine the locking mechanisms wear out much faster.

Anyone know how to adjust the settings with a VAG-COM?
 

MOGolf

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Jun 27, 2001
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underneath something
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2001 Golf GLS TDI Reflex silver, rough road suspension and steel skid plate, 2004 Passat Variant, Candy White, rough road suspension and geared balanced shaft module, and much, much more. 2016 LR RR HSE TD6, 2019 Jaguar I-PACE
Yes it is possible. Covered many times if you'd like to use the search function. As an alternative, you can also program the car to auto unlock the doors when you pull out the key from the ignition switch.

This is done via the soft coding and adaptation channels of the convenience/central locking controller (which ever is appropriate for your car).
 

sqdude

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2007
Location
Eugene, Oregon
TDI
2000 Jetta TDI
Thanks MOgolf. I searched a while back using advanced search, with "door lock" in the title, didn't hit anything useful. Upon reading your post I set about to prove you wrong, that the search function doesn't pick up multiple words. This time I limited the search to OBD Scanners and viola! Very first post about changing the locks in an A4 with the link to the Ross Tech site. I love being wrong as much as I hate getting the answer, or wait . . . :)
 

Lug_Nut

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Sterling, Massachusetts. USA
TDI
idi: 1988 Bolens DGT1700H, the other oil burner: 1967 Saab Sonett II two stroke
sqdude said:
I know it's safer to drive around with the doors locked,...
I had a Volvo in my pre-TDI days. It specifically advised AGAINST driving with the doors locked because of the delay rescuers would face in opening doors to extract incapacitated accident victims. I leave mine unlocked.
 

sqdude

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2007
Location
Eugene, Oregon
TDI
2000 Jetta TDI
Aside from the whole terrorist-opens-the-door-and-throws-in-a-bomb scenario, I had heard it was harder to pop a door off if it's locked. However, if you're in a crash so severe that it'll explode a door off the car, I think there'd be other stuff to worry about. :(
 

Lefty

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2005
Location
Lazear,Colorado Population 60
TDI
Jetta, 2000,Green GLS
My wife really really hates the auto door locks. Reason is: When we get in a hot car after shopping or going somewhere and we both put the windows down. Then at 10 MPH the doors lock. She hasn't learned to keep her arm out of the way and the door lock sucks part of her skin on her arm down with it and leaves a nice little blood blister on her arm. She of course yells at me for it. This has happened at least 4 times this year already.
 

TDIfarmer

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 14, 2007
Location
alabama
TDI
99 GL
Lefty,I frowned when i read you post about the locks pinching you wife's arm.Mine done the same thing a couple of weeks ago.I hate the auto locks with a pasion.I live in north Alabama and i am looking for someone in my area with a vag-com but i have not had any luck yet.
 

MOGolf

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Lefty said:
My wife really really hates the auto door locks. Reason is: When we get in a hot car after shopping or going somewhere and we both put the windows down. Then at 10 MPH the doors lock. She hasn't learned to keep her arm out of the way and the door lock sucks part of her skin on her arm down with it and leaves a nice little blood blister on her arm. She of course yells at me for it. This has happened at least 4 times this year already.
Insist that she sit the back seat.
 

paramedick

TDIClub Enthusiast, Vendor
Joined
Jul 29, 2001
Location
Versailles, Kentucky
TDI
2015 Audi Q5 TDI
sqdude said:
Aside from the whole terrorist-opens-the-door-and-throws-in-a-bomb scenario, I had heard it was harder to pop a door off if it's locked. However, if you're in a crash so severe that it'll explode a door off the car, I think there'd be other stuff to worry about. :(
Nope, just as easy to tear the door off locked vs. unlocked. Done quite a few with the Hurst tools.

Of course, it helps to check that the doors are unlocked prior to prying. I've actually walked to the passenger side and opened a door while the fire guys are getting the hydraulic tool ready to pop the driver's door. ;)
 

vwmk4

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Joined
Feb 16, 2005
Location
ROCKPILE IL. USA
TDI
None at this time, Looking for a nice one though.
I had mine turned off before I took delivery. YES the dealer did it. But would not turn off the Dreaded Daytime Running Lights.
 

blandon

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 25, 2003
Location
Eugene, Oregon USA
TDI
2000 Jetta
For what it's worth, when my first 2000 Jetta TDI was T-boned (while parked and locked), the doors somehow all unlocked by themselves. The alarm did not go off, presumably because the glass amazingly didn't get broken. I wonder if there's some kind of safety feature that causes the doors to unlock in such a situation?
 

MOGolf

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Yes there is. I'll have to dig further to find the exact wording on this, but VW does say this is supposed to occur when a crash is detected.
 

sqdude

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2007
Location
Eugene, Oregon
TDI
2000 Jetta TDI
MOGolf said:
Yes there is. I'll have to dig further to find the exact wording on this, but VW does say this is supposed to occur when a crash is detected.
That's pretty smart. They should have a similar feature that rolls down the windows when the computer detects that the car is underwater!
 

MOGolf

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2001 Golf GLS TDI Reflex silver, rough road suspension and steel skid plate, 2004 Passat Variant, Candy White, rough road suspension and geared balanced shaft module, and much, much more. 2016 LR RR HSE TD6, 2019 Jaguar I-PACE
Quoted from Bentley manual:
"If the airbag control unit is triggered, a signal is sent to the convenience control unit to unlock the doors."

There's another note that mentions the interior lights are turned on and the engine is turned off.
 

blandon

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 25, 2003
Location
Eugene, Oregon USA
TDI
2000 Jetta
MOGolf said:
Quoted from Bentley manual:
"If the airbag control unit is triggered, a signal is sent to the convenience control unit to unlock the doors."

There's another note that mentions the interior lights are turned on and the engine is turned off.
That's very interesting... I do vaguely remember the interior light being on when I walked out to survey the damage. Of course, since the ignition was off, the airbags didn't deploy - the whole thing seems pretty smart.

So, I guess the practical upshot is that you shouldn't worry about driving with the doors locked/unlocked from a crashworthiness point of view.
 

DieselOx

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 10, 2007
Location
Spokane, WA
TDI
2003 Jetta Sedan 5sp 342,000mi
Lefty said:
My wife really really hates the auto door locks. Reason is: When we get in a hot car after shopping or going somewhere and we both put the windows down. Then at 10 MPH the doors lock. She hasn't learned to keep her arm out of the way and the door lock sucks part of her skin on her arm down with it and leaves a nice little blood blister on her arm. She of course yells at me for it. This has happened at least 4 times this year already.
Happened to my wife about 5 times in a row last year, cracked me up. She got 5 nice little bruises on her inner upper arm. Last time she made me fix it, which was easy to do but hard to find out how. Now I can't remember, you have to make a 1 a 0 somewhere weird and unlabeled, IIRC.


As for which is safer, that's a nice discussion y'all're having, but my driver door has so many bad micro switches, the computer has no idea what's going on anyway. I leave them unlocked.
 
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