This 1999 Chevrolet Venture van came in with the complaint that the power door locks only work in one direction. This repair applies to all GM mini vans through the 1990’s and early 2000’s. Venture, Montana, Lumina and Silhouette. A quick test at the switch revealed that there was a wiring problem and knowing these vans, it is in the same disgusting place it always is. Under the passenger side carpet, where water has accumulated and rotted out the splice connections. Of course I’m putting on gloves for this one. i pulled the rocker trim panel up and lifted the edge of the carpet and mat. A gentle squeeze and water will pour out. If you own or ever go to buy one of these vans, do yourself a favor and find out if it has a water problem before it is too late.
If you click on the picture below you will see the broken end of the white wire and the black tape wrapped around the other two white wires to the upper right corner.
A few clips, a new piece of wire and some heat shrink and this one is done. There are several splice joints in this area that affect multiple systems including power door locks, power windows and interior lights.
YES!! My power door locks are working again!! Thank you so much and such an easy fix too.
However, I still cannot seem to get the door locks to work with putting the transmission in park or out of park, any suggestions?
There are several splice connections in the harness and it may be one of the other ones causing your problem. If you do not see anything there, please email me at the address provided under “Contact Sparky” Top center of page.
After reading this post I followed your instructions and found these wires sitting in a puddle. However, upon further inspection the wires were not damaged in anyway other than water logged. I lost power windows, power locks, and interior lights all in one shot. Found and changed both accessory time delay relays under the passenger side dash, and checked the RAP relay fuse in the fuse panel. I NEED HELP!!! Its getting hot out…..pleeeeze.
Thanks for the praise. I have realized over the years that people tend to make automotive electrical problems and problems in general harder than they need to be. I have also seen the complete lack of information or misinformation on the internet relating to these problems. This site is my humble attempt to simplify auto electric problems for both the experienced and inexperienced. I hope that you will also set up links to this site for others to follow.
I love this thread, not because I care about this particular problem, but because it shows that at least in this particular case you have enough experience with electrical problems to know where common problems occur.
When I was a kid, many of the mechanics in town knew that when they had an electrical problem (like a short) they couldn’t quickly find they would refer the car/truck to this one particular guy. He was excellent at electrical troubleshooting, and through experience knew the trouble spots of particular vehicles. A friend of mine had a problem with his 1970 Ambassador Wagon, and he knew exactly where to look for the problem. My experience with him, led me to broncozone.com when looking for the solution to a specific problem I had with my newly aquired Bronco. Those guys were very helpful, and introduced me to helping others repair their cars and trucks by way of the internet. They taught me that a quality post includes pictures and diagrams, and a thorough explanation of the proceedure.
Cudos to you, for your knowledge, and willingness to share. Also the quality of your postings (at least those that I have reviewed) are superb. The inclusion of pictures really make them stand out.
I have marked you site in “my favorites” and as time allows will puruse your site. I am sure that I will learn lots 🙂
Thanks again,
BroncoJoe19 at both broncozone.com and ford-forums.com
If you choose to post this, please do so without editing it.
Again,
THanks for your superb postings!