Car locking by itself when sitting inside or near beside the car?

[sonick]

The past few days working on the stereo and cleaning the interior of my new Protege 5, I noticed if I unlock the car via remote, and leave it untouched for about 2-3 minutes, it will automatically lock by itself!

It's happened when I was sitting in the drivers' seat, or if I was standing beside the car. I am just paranoid if I leave the keys in the car one day while I am outside cleaning or picking up something I left inside it will lock the keys inside the car automatically.

What triggers this automatic locking? Does detect the range of the remote?

 

[Booski]

It's on a delayed relay. It's basically like a timer. If you unlock the door and don't perform an action like opening the door for a predetermined amount of time. It will automatically lock the doors. It's part of the anti-theft
Basically a fail safe

 

[Fraya713]

it's ghosts!

eh, not really
Pretty much what Booski said, it's the same on mine. You're best idea is to have a spare key in the house.. most people should in case of "accidents" or you'll be using the old coat-hanger or busting out a window..

 

[Astral]

The past few days working on the stereo and cleaning the interior of my new Protege 5, I noticed if I unlock the car via remote, and leave it untouched for about 2-3 minutes, it will automatically lock by itself!

It's happened when I was sitting in the drivers' seat, or if I was standing beside the car. I am just paranoid if I leave the keys in the car one day while I am outside cleaning or picking up something I left inside it will lock the keys inside the car automatically.

What triggers this automatic locking? Does detect the range of the remote?

It's just a timer. The idea is that if you accidentally unlock the car but DO NOT open the doors, then it will re-lock itself. There is no range sensor. The delay is about a minute.

You SHOULD NOT be able to experience this from the driver's seat, unless you lock it while in the driver's seat.

If you find the car locking on you despite you opening the door, then you have a malfunctioning door switch. This happened to me on the P5 before: I suddenly found the doors locking before I began driving. To fix, replace the door switch. YOu can test the door switches by setting the interior dome light to middle "DOOR" position and then closing and opening left vs right doors.

 

[31N007]

I was thinking the same thing. On top of that, I just picked my P5 up and had the same thing happen to me...

Slightly off topic, I went to drop my dad's Nissan Altima off at the dealership and they do the same thing... After 5 minutes, the doors lock themselves... That's why the guys at the dealer rolled the window down in the event that the car didn't detect the SmartKey... Interesting stuff.

I gotta hand it to Mazda and really anyone that incorporates even the simplest of safety features into their cars. My mom's Jeep Grand Cherokee, 2007, doesn't automatically lock itself. I'll go out on a limb here and say maybe it's a Japanese thing...

 

[sonick]

Yes the faulty door switch was spot on. I noticed the courtesy light and door chime did not come on when I opened the driver door. So I unscrewed it, jiggled it around and reinstalled it and now it works again and should fix the auto door lock while inside problem.

 

[maxdolphin]

If you unlock it and open then close a door it shouldn't lock itself right? Even if it is sitting there parked

 

[31N007]

I might have an iffy door switch but mine locks itself again unless I start the motor...

Idk though, could just be me. My dome light is acting up but I get the door chime. I also get the beeeeeeeeeeep if I leave my lights on and open the drivers door. I might get a multimeter and check the dome light to see if it even gets power...

 

[Astral]

If you unlock it and open then close a door it shouldn't lock itself right? Even if it is sitting there parked

It should not lock itself. Check your door switches. If you open the door, does the dash show door open light?

You can also try swapping door switches between the driver's door and the passenger door (presumably the passenger one is less worn).

I might have an iffy door switch but mine locks itself again unless I start the motor...

Idk though, could just be me. My dome light is acting up but I get the door chime. I also get the beeeeeeeeeeep if I leave my lights on and open the drivers door. I might get a multimeter and check the dome light to see if it even gets power...

If it locks again unless you start the motor, that means something isn't right with it detecting opened doors. However, since you do get the beep/door chime, likely your door switch is fine. There might be an issue elsewhere in the wiring, making for a more complicated diagnostic.

 

[31N007]

It should not lock itself. Check your door switches. If you open the door, does the dash show door open light?

You can also try swapping door switches between the driver's door and the passenger door (presumably the passenger one is less worn).

If it locks again unless you start the motor, that means something isn't right with it detecting opened doors. However, since you do get the beep/door chime, likely your door switch is fine. There might be an issue elsewhere in the wiring, making for a more complicated diagnostic.

thanks for the response. Ill have to check it out next time I get a chance!