[Slaab4life]

I've searched and gotten a little bit of really basic information about the deadlock feature.

I was reading a post from last week that someone was having trouble getting into their car with a flat battery and never had really thought about the deadlock feature, so I went outside and tried to see if I have it. I turned the key clockwise and the doors locked and the key didn't go any further, but holding it there for a second while putting a little force the key went to the 3 o'clock position . It had never done that before. I almost think it was never used because the more times I put the key there the easier it gets. Looked in the owners manual and it says nothing about it except at what position it occurs in.

So what exactly is going on? My understanding is that while in the deadlock position it disables the outside passenger door lock from operating the central locking and also disables any door from unlocking from the interior. Can anyone confirm this is perhaps elaborate on the deadlock features. While holding the key in the deadlock position for X amount of seconds will the alarm arm or do I still need to use the FOB for this?

 

[JMarkert]

Hi Nate - my 94 doesn't have a remote, so it might be different. But what you say is true, the 3:00 position deadlocks mine and turns on the alarm. In fact for me it's the only way to turn on the alarm.

Sometimes it's a pain, like when you go to the grocery store and want to unload your stuff into the passenger's seat. I also think that when the car is deadlocked you cannot open the doors, even from inside, which is why it's such a huge pain when the system fails.

The big gap tho is that you can open the trunk with the key. I'm not sure if there's an extra "deadlock" on the trunk itself or not, but when you turn the key to 3:00 you can definitely hear a bunch of mechanical stuff snapping into place (more than the regular locks).

 

[PMI]

Deadlock does not turn on my alarm... I wish it did, because my remotes get intermittent in the winter. It also does not prevent the locks on my car from being opened manually from inside or by pulling up on the pin when the window is open. It does not disable the trunk, just the passenger side door. I wonder if it can be programmed using the Tech2 computer?

 

[JMarkert]

OK, I just double checked with the window down. Deadlock would definitely lock someone in my car if I used it. Kind of a creepy feature, when you really think about it, though I can see how it would discourage a theif who smashed a window in to steal something from the passenger cabin. He/she would have to reach through the window to take the object rather than open the door. Nobody's gonna jump through the window and try to hotwire the car.

 

[PMI]

OK, I just double checked with the window down. Deadlock would definitely lock someone in my car if I used it.

If you find out how to make it work that way, please post. I like to leave my windows open a few inches in the summer, and being able to lock the doors so they can't be opened by reaching in would be a nice feature.

 

[Slaab4life]

Hmmm, thats strange PMI. I just went out to mine and played around. Once deadlocked I can't open my locks from within, but like Jeff said, the trunk can be opened with the key.

 

[Sacko]

Hmmm, thats strange PMI. I just went out to mine and played around. Once deadlocked I can't open my locks from within, but like Jeff said, the trunk can be opened with the key.

same for me

 

[PMI]

Hmmm, thats strange PMI. I just went out to mine and played around. Once deadlocked I can't open my locks from within, but like Jeff said, the trunk can be opened with the key.

I tried again, and deadlocked or not, pulling up on the window tab will open the door. Alarm is not activated when I use the deadlock... oh well, no wonder it seemed like such a useless feature. Thx for checking.

 

[Slaab4life]

I tried again, and deadlocked or not, pulling up on the window tab will open the door. Alarm is not activated when I use the deadlock... oh well, no wonder it seemed like such a useless feature. Thx for checking.

You are going to the 3 o'clock postion right? I think the only time it ever armed the alarm was in '94 and possibly '95 (when no FOB was featured), and was reintroduced in '98 as per conversations with CleveSaab about it a while ago.

 

[PMI]

You are going to the 3 o'clock postion right?

Yes, I checked twice today after reading this thread. Second position, three o'clock, I hear the deadlock engage.

 

[CleveSaab]

PMI's busted?
I thought every 900 should do this, but apparently not the 9-3's. Never worked on my vert. It goes to 3 oclock but I can unlock it from inside. My 94 900 did and my 98 900 does it.
Think about how hard it is to steal a Saab. If deadlocked.
Break window. Climb in. Break ignition apart. Not as easy to do on a 900 as any other car due to the placement of it. Plus there's a metal plate protecting the wires. Hot wire car. Drive off. Any time he stops he has to climb out the window.

 

[JMarkert]

I wonder if they abandoned it for a couple years? Sure it makes the car very hard to steal for the reasons cleve mentioned, BUT there must be a lot of liability in selling a car you could actually lock someone inside! Those child proof rear latches are sort of like that, but in a pinch you could always crawl out the front. In a SAAB your only choice is to break a window.

 

[enor]

I wonder if they abandoned it for a couple years? Sure it makes the car very hard to steal for the reasons cleve mentioned, BUT there must be a lot of liability in selling a car you could actually lock someone inside! Those child proof rear latches are sort of like that, but in a pinch you could always crawl out the front. In a SAAB your only choice is to break a window.

Lots of cars have the "deadlock" feature, not just SAABs. For example my previous car, a '94 Volvo 850 wagon, had it too. Like the SAAB though, the rear hatch wasn't affected which lost me my beloved Music Man HD150 amp and a speaker cab once. But, on the bright side, the burglars smashed the passenger side front window and actually had to crawl in that way to get to the trunk area to open the hatch. At least they didn't get away with it all that easy

Oh and PMI: Your central locking is broken! If acts the way yours does it's not actually deadlocked at all.

/Magnus

 

[CleveSaab]

I wonder if they abandoned it for a couple years?

Doubt it now.
My 94 had it.
My 98 has it.
Sacko's/Slaab's 97 has it.

 

[Marquis de Saab]

I made a post/thread on this last year when I noticed my horn beeps when I turn my key twice CW in the door lock. Later on I managed to translate explanation from my Italian user manual. You don't even need to force key to 3:00 position, it's enough to push it CW two times within 5 seconds, and your sirene should confirm this with a short beep. Yup, one also hear a whole bunch of mechanical movement and as a result you won't be able to open your door from the inside, as well as the trunk even using a key (you can insert the key into the trunk lock but it won't let you turn it in any direction until you unlock the door first). Since I have no alarm on my 93SE I always use this feature, it became a habit to push it twice when locking.

 

[missgoodnight]

I love this feature. On very hot days I sometimes leave my windows down, and just activate the alarm. With nothing valuable is sight, the only reason to try and get in the car would be to steal it, but correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the alarm disable starting of the car? It nice to now how difficult it would be to actually steal the car even with the windows down. They could not even pull the fuse to disable it because they would need to first need to open the door to gain access.

My only grip is that sometimes I pop my trunk before I get out, then lock the doors and alarm it. Then when I open the unlocked trunk the alarm goes off. Can be a little embarassing. I have to remember to open the trunk with my key only when the alarm is activated to avoid setting it off.

 

[JMarkert]

Well, maybe just for '96

Doubt it now.
My 94 had it.
My 98 has it.
Sacko's/Slaab's 97 has it.

 

[TigerSilhouette]

Every NG900 has deadlocking, the reason PMI's alarm isn't engaging when he deadlocks is because only the 94's did it. They were not equipped with remote entry so the door lock activated the alarm. The question is why his deadlocking is not working. Perhaps a fuse is blown? On my previous car (95 325is) deadlocking the doors told the central locking system to activate an additional set of motors that restricted the movement of both the pin in the door lock hinge and the pin on top of the door. The same probably applies to our Saabs. If your deadlocking isn't working, then one of the motors probably burned out or more reasonably, the wires that tell the motors to deadlock are either loose or broken.

 

[Tboy]

PMI,

Are you removing the key while it is in the 3'oclock position? this is the only way to enable deadlock. I ask only because nobody has mentioned it yet!

Tboy

 

[PMI]

PMI, Are you removing the key while it is in the 3'oclock position?

Yes. I noticed something about the last bit of rotation does not seem to feel right though. I have not had time to investigate, was checking for AC leaks again today... :roll:

You are on a good track though, because here is what it DOES do:

When I turn the key to 3 o'clock, whether I take it out in that position or turn in back to 12 o'clock and take it out, the driver side lock is disabled. Nothing else, as far as I can tell, just the driver side lock from the outside. So what I am saying is, deadlock is doing something other than the sound of metal parts moving, just not ALL it is supposed to do.

Does yours do that when you deadlock, then turn the key back to 12 o'clock and take it out? Can you unlock the driver side door with the key then?