Smart Entry Control Unit Post Installation Help Please

[matrix]

Fellow Forum Members,

Today I went to a junk yard and removed and purchased for $20 a Smart Entry Control Unit (SECU) that looks like the photos shown below. My local Nissan dealer sells it for $450 so if my $20 SECU ends up fixing my problems I will be one happy camper.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow I plan to remove my defective SECU and replace it with the one I got in the junk yard today. Hopefully the replacement SECU will solve the host of problems I have been experiencing and which I have listed below:

 

• My Pathy's alarm goes off for no reason for several minutes and then turns off. It can be 2:00 AM and the alarm goes off. I'm sure my neighbors do not like to hear it.
• My Pathy's dome light flickers when set in the middle of ON and OFF position. In addtion, it does not automatically turn off after I shut the door. I have to keep it in OFF mode to work around this problem.
• My Pathy's security mode between CHIRP mode and SILENT mode no longer works correctly. I could be in CHIRP mode in one instance and then it mysteriously changes over to SILENT mode. Simultaneously pressing down on the UNLOCK and LOCK button on my remote to switch between modes does not help because it just jumps to SILENT mode by itself. I changed the battery in the remote and the two modes still remain unstable.
• The WARNING CHIME seems to be out of whack when I remove my key from the ignition.

 

After reviewing the link below my hunch is that maybe installing a different SECU may fix my list of problems shown above. None of my fuses are blown and especially my #24 Fuse is not blown like what StMute shows in his photo in the link below. Therefore, I'm suspecting my SECU may be the culprit:

 

http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/topic/38809-2001-pathfinder-le-with-electrical-problems/

 

I hope someone can help me figure out SECU post installation procedures. My question relates to whether or not I need to perform any remote reprogram procedure once I have my new SECU mounted under the dash (next to the Fuse Box) and I connect my positive and negative cables back onto my battery?

 

Or do I need to do nothing once my new SECU has the three connectors plugged in and I connect my positive and negative cables back onto my battery?

 

Will my hand held remote work play nice with the new SECU? Or do I have to reprogram it?

 

Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance. And I will update this post with the results I get post SECU installation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Slartibartfast]

I have no idea how to work with that box but I'd check the service manual for ideas. The WD21 alarms have a button hiding under a label, and pressing the button lets you pair it to your remote. I don't know if they did something similar for later models but I imagine something of that nature will be required for your keyfob to work.

 

The flickering dome light sounds more like the door switches to me. When I converted my dome and footwell lights to LEDs I noticed that they flickered if the passenger's door was open. (Harder to notice with the factory bulbs.) Turned out that little push switch was dirty/corroded inside. If your switch is making intermittent contact while the door is shut, that could explain why your alarm keeps going off. No idea if this was causing alarm issues, it's not as integrated on a WD21 and also I keep mine turned off.

[matrix]

I have no idea how to work with that box but I'd check the service manual for ideas. The WD21 alarms have a button hiding under a label, and pressing the button lets you pair it to your remote. I don't know if they did something similar for later models but I imagine something of that nature will be required for your keyfob to work.

 

The flickering dome light sounds more like the door switches to me. When I converted my dome and footwell lights to LEDs I noticed that they flickered if the passenger's door was open. (Harder to notice with the factory bulbs.) Turned out that little push switch was dirty/corroded inside. If your switch is making intermittent contact while the door is shut, that could explain why your alarm keeps going off. No idea if this was causing alarm issues, it's not as integrated on a WD21 and also I keep mine turned off.

 

Slartibartfast,

Thank you for your post. I reviewed the service manual and I can't find anything relating to a button that will pair my SECU to my hand held remote once it is pressed.

 

I will continue looking at the service manual while at the same time working on the installation of my replacement SECU.

 

In addition, I would appreciated hearing from anyone out there regarding any info about this button that pairs the SECU to a hand held remote. Does such a button only exist in the WD21? Or does it also exist in the R50? Any info will be greatly appreciated. THanks in advance.

[matrix]

Just an update.

 

I'm done installing the replacement SECU. The dome light seems to turn off automatically a short while after I shut the driver side door. So that is good news because that was not happening before.

 

The bad news is the hand held remote is totally dead as it relates to unlocking and locking the doors. Evenmore, the alarm went off out of the blue after I manually activated the alarm using my key. So that is a big disappointment.

 

My hunch is that pairing the hand held remote to the new SECU is a requirement because of how it seems to be dead. The other explanation may be is that the SECU is broken as it relates to the keyless entry circuitry.

 

Again, any help on how to pair my remote to my SECU will be greatly appreciated. Thank You in advance.

[matrix]

Fellow Forum Members,

Thanks to Google I was able to find a link that shows how to reprogram the keyless entry remote when it was dead like it was for me. I'm posting the link below so that in the future it can help somebody out like it did for me. I followed the steps in the video and now I got my keyless remote reprogrammed:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hehsQLO62To

 

So I guess what this means is my junkyard sourced SECU is now successfully communicating and paired to my keyless remote. However, it does not explain why before I reprogrammed my keyless entry remote the car alarm went off out of the blue.

 

My hunch now is I must have a short somewhere so I performed the steps shown in the YouTube video below:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wLrTjeb9TY

 

After I removed my positive cable and hooked up a continuity tester between the positive cable and the positive battery terminal I have the light inside the continuity tester light up. In short, I went through all of my fuses and I was never able to produce a scenario where the light did not go off. I should mention that while doing this I had the Hood sensor switch pressed down. Even though I did this the light will always remain on inside the continuity tester.

 

I would very much like to know if anyone out there who owns an older R50 Pathfinder has performed this continuity test shown in the video and whether you were ever able to get the continuity tester to produce a "NO LIGHT" scenario inside the handle of the continuity tester? In my situation the light seems to always remain on no matter what fuse I pull out. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

 

[NismoMike]

@matrix I’ve noticed in my r50, my dome light flickering. Turns out it’s my lift gate in the back. It seems to not close properly , requiring re-opening and closing again at times. Check switch, and lube everything up to do with the latch and such and the problem should resolve itself to either the door being ajar and the indicator displaying so, or seating properly . That should resolve , I would think, your dome light issue as well as your alarm going off ‘randomly’ . Good luck!

Edited March 18, 2021 by NismoMike

[Guest]

[mention=39335]matrix[/mention] I’ve noticed in my r50, my dome light flickering. Turns out it’s my lift gate in the back. It seems to not close properly , requiring re-opening and closing again at times. Check switch, and lube everything up to do with the latch and such and the problem should resolve itself to either the door being ajar and the indicator displaying so, or seating properly . That should resolve , I would think, your dome light issue as well as your alarm going off ‘randomly’ . Good luck!

That post was from May 2016. You may not get a response

 

 

Sent from my Pathfinder