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Rear power door locks failed on 08

137K views 140 replies 45 participants last post by  raybo100 
#1 ·
My daughters car is a 2008 Impala and I only see it when it needs work. It currently has a problem where both rear power door locks do not work from any control or the remote. She thinks they failed at about the same time, but not 100% sure. At first I presumed that it was the actuators since I've heard they are known to fail early. Then I stumbled across a video on youtube talking about a common failure in GM products where a splice in the wiring harness in the front passenger doorway can corrode. I'll check that first, but if I have to replace the actuator/lock assemblies how difficult is that? Would I need to remove the window and regulator? Anyone else experience this issue - and what was your solution? Lastly - not under warranty as it has about 70k miles. Thanks!
 
#78 ·
I had problems with windows and locks.. Since the driver control switch operates all door. That's where I started. I removed the driver window control switch and used some electric grease in the socket plug and problem fixed .. that's it. Hey everybody ease up on the crazy repair fixes man scary!!!!!
 
#79 ·
Yup, connections are always a possible cause of electrical issues, though in a majority of cases cited here it is the faulty actuator design. One way to tell is that when actuators fail they first get weak. You'll note that if you hold onto the lock knob you feel (and might see) it is trying to open, but fails - so you know it is getting power.
 
#81 ·
I have an 08 Impala that the front drivers door failed within the warranty time frame. The dealer took care of it. Now both my back doors have failed & I have about 42,000 miles on this car. With just me, the back seat has had little use. I have not done anything about the problem because it would cost over $1000. If you find out a way to have them fixed I would appreciate your input. I, personally think that GM should have had a recall and I will never buy a GM again because I don't feel they stand behind their product when they know there is a defect! Thanks for listening....
 
#83 ·
I posted a writeup for doing the replacement earlier in this thread. Unfortunately, the only viable replacements are exactly the same and will eventually fail. You mention not using the doors much, but that has nothing to do with it. Every time you lock or unlock the doors the actuators cycle. Most cars lock at 15MPH, not sure on this one as I rarly drive it myself. Your only option on repair is do it yourself or have it done. You can get the GM actuators online for a discount. Read this entire thread, but don't be tempted by third-party (non GM) actuators.
 
#82 ·
SO you would never buy another GM because your power door lock actuators failed on a 5+ year old car? All cars have some sort of issues - in this case, this issue is actually a pretty minor issue that is easy to fix yourself inexpensively.

Recalls are for safety-related issues, which this is not (you can still unlock the doors manually). Is it frustrating? Absolutely. Is it a valid reason to never buy another GM vehicle? I don't think so.

On the other hand - I've owned GM vehicles my entire life and I have never had a power door lock actuator fail. Sometimes, it's just the "luck of the draw". I'm sure that there are MANY (the majority, I'm sure) Impala owners that have never had a door actuator fail.

Just saying...

As to how to fix the problem, I'm sure that there is already a write-up on this forum on how to replace the actuators. Try doing a little searching and see what comes up. If there isn't a write-up on this forum, I'm sure that one exists somewhere - maybe even a video on youtube. Google is your friend! :)

Good luck and let us know if you run into any specific issue when you go to actually replace the actuators.

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#87 ·
SO jtrosky, I have always owned GM products. I really like my car & had a bad day the day I posted that. Now as far as doing it myself, as a senior woman with a disability, I cannot manage to do that. I don't have people around me that are able to fix it, which leaves me to having it fixed. I checked into it and I will cost over $1000.00 to have them both fixed. As for it being a safety issue, when I take care of an 11 year old boy, he knows enough to wait for me to get in the car, start it, roll down the window & he can manually unlock & get in. It is in a busy parking lot when this takes place. My concern would be if there was any emergency with the backdoor locked & for example a baby or toddler is in a carseat they cannot get to that lock to manually unlock it. If I had that situation the baby would be left slightly unattended while starting the car, getting the window down, getting back out to get the child in. To me that is dangerous. In the old days the door could be unlocked from the outside, but my car only has a lock on the front door. I appreciate your feedback, setting me straight on my thinking. If you are young or healthy enough to do it yourself, I'm happy for you. If I was able, I would do it myself, as well. Being on a fixed income, it is a hefty bill to foot so it is a matter of taking one door at a time. Thanks again! Have a great day!
 
#84 ·
Also, you can use the DIC to reprogram the door locks so that only the drivers door unlocks with the key fob. If you want to unlock all doors, you just press the unlock button twice in a row. I actually set mine up like this since I'm usually the only one in the car and since I've read that the actuators are known to be somewhat delicate in these cars. Why have the other three doors lock and unlock every time I get in the car when I'm the only one getting in/out! :)

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#85 ·
Also, you can use the DIC to reprogram the door locks so that only the drivers door unlocks with the key fob.
That is the default action on my GTP... would that not be the factory default for the Impalas too? Haven't checked, but this is a smart idea to do if it is not already that way.
 
#88 ·
I can certainly see where you are coming from - in your case, I guess it really is a safety issue - I shouldn't assume that you are a young person that is able to tackle things like this.

And believe me, I agree that $1000 is an absurd price to fix something like this. If I were you, I'd check with an independent mechanic instead of a dealership. Chances are they can get this issue fixed for 1/4 or at least 1/2 of the price that a dealership charges. You may even be able to order the parts yourself (we could help with that) and just pay a local shop to install them - that may provide some additional savings (some shops are OK with you supplying the parts, but they may not offer any warranty in that case).

My apologies for making assumptions about your physical status! Who knows, you may even be able to find someone on this site the lives in your area that would be willing to assist. Good luck and seriously, please let us know if we can help in any way!

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#89 ·
With that price it sounds like a GM dealer using book rate - number of prescribed hours times a high hourly rate. May want to ask around where you might find an independent shop that would be cheaper. The parts are about $340. I would not pay over $100 labor per door, so no more than about $540 pre-tax for parts and labor for two doors.
 
#90 ·
Is that $340 the price per door for parts that you are quoting? I found someone that I could pay to do it in my own garage. I just happened to mention to the handyman I found to fix a couple of things for me around the house. He offered to do it for $45/hr. plus parts & tax. One door was about $190 and the other door about $215. I paid a little over $600 . It was so much better than going to the dealership. This way I had both doors fixed and I am so relieved! Thanks for all the input!
 
#93 ·
I have the same problem. Both rear actuators failed on my 2008, they failed before the car hit 30,000 miles! Now has 51,000 (I know, it's low miles, that's why the warrranty did not cover it - the car was already 4 years old when they failed). Damn GM, it's no wonder people buy Japanese. I have owned several Japanese and several American cars. Japanese were always more trouble free. Still are.
 
G
#95 ·
When screwing on the plastic knob to the end of the lock rod, be careful not to screw too far. (It is a lot of turns to get there). If you go too far, the rod will want to start to poke through the top of the plastic knob. When you start to fit the inner door panel back onto the door, look to see if you need to screw the knob on farther, or back it off the rod, so that it sticks through the door trim the proper amount to match the other doors.
 
#96 ·
Point advice for anyone wanting to test electrical items while at a Junk Yard.

The battery from ANY cordless tool is enough to power a door lock, window motor, etc.

They are easy to carry around and anyone that works on their own stuff should at least have a cordless drill or screwdriver.
 
#99 ·
You're welcome. Now just hoping she sells the car before any more fail. Also have had to replace a vent actuator and have another one intermittent. I'm going to urge her to buy a Ford or Subaru next time, though every car has some issue they're known for - for instance, Dodge Caravans have issues with brakes, transmissions, and sway bar bushings. I guess actuators don't sound so bad after all....
 
#101 · (Edited)
The right rear door lock actuator on my car ('09 LTZ) has been acting up for a while now. It sticks quite frequently when unlocking, meaning the right rear door does not unlock all the time. I can get a replacement actuator from my local Chevy dealer for $ 145. This is wholesale pricing and they give me that on all parts. Aside for a failed $ 32 HVAC actuator which I replaced myself, this is the first annoying issue I have had with this car in 5 years/73k miles.

I intend to replace this door lock actuator by myself. No sense in paying someone for something I can easily do myself. According to the dealer, these actuators fail frequently and they carry them in stock for that reason.

However, now I am beginning to worry that a lot more things will start falling apart on this car. It is obvious that GM is using substandard quality parts that are known to fail early on this model car. I am wondering if it time to get rid of it. The horrible resale value is not encouraging. Despite the fact that prices on new redesigned 2014 Impalas are ridiculously high, that did not seem to have helped the resale values on older cars like mine. A similarly equipped 2014 LTZ would now cost at least $ 35k to buy. I can expect $ 9k or $ 10k trade in value on my car right now. Given its dismal resale value, I do not think any Impala is worth more than $ 25k new.
 
#102 ·
Yeah, if this is your primary vehicle you may be concerned. For us, it is our daughter's college car, though now she is living with us while working full time and finishing grad school. As long as she does not drive it much and I'm around to fix it, we're still OK with it. It has over 100k miles now, so she is looking forward to buying one when she's done with school. So - comes down to what you use it for.
 
#103 ·
I'm kind of amazed that an after-market company hasn't come out with an enhanced version of these actuators (or have they?). My 2000 LeSabre was known for window regulator failures VERY frequently - and were over $500 to replace at the dealer. Found enhanced versions on Ebay that cost like $100 and came with lifetime warranties. Basically, the aftermarket company just corrected the initial design flaw (cheap plastic part) - never had an issue with any of the replacements.

Does anyone know if there are "enhanced" versions of the actuators available from some third party? Same goes for the HVAC actuators?

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#105 ·
I'm kind of amazed that an after-market company hasn't come out with an enhanced version of these actuators (or have they?). My 2000 LeSabre was known for window regulator failures VERY frequently - and were over $500 to replace at the dealer. Found enhanced versions on Ebay that cost like $100 and came with lifetime warranties. Basically, the aftermarket company just corrected the initial design flaw (cheap plastic part) - never had an issue with any of the replacements.

Does anyone know if there are "enhanced" versions of the actuators available from some third party? Same goes for the HVAC actuators?

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I looked on rockauto.com and could not find any aftermarket door lock actuators. The OEM ones look really cheap and are made in Mexico.
 
#107 ·
GM is the only one that does all four now. Looks Like Standard Motor and Dorman are stepping up.


GM
  • 20790495 RF
  • 20790496 LF
  • 20790501 LR
  • 20790500 RR

Standard Motor Products
  • DLA-674 LF
  • DLA-680 RF
  • DLA-675 LR
  • ???-??? RR

Dorman
  • 931-300 LF
  • ???-??? RF
  • ???-??? LR
  • ???-??? RR
 
#110 ·
Amazon's "Will Fit Thingy" is less than reliable. I don't trust it. It tells me that parts I know beyond a shadow of a doubt fit a certain application don't fit. It's also certain a part I know absolutely will not work is a drop in replacement.

The Door Latch part #s I listed are good for all of the 2006-2014 W-body Impala LS, LT, LTZ, SS, Limited, and probably the 9C1.

GM and other manufacturers release a "this model year parts list" that magically resolves to last years parts list for most parts after a year. The "incompatibility" of many of the latest MY 2006-2014 W body Impala parts is a fabricated fiction to pad the GM margin by keeping the aftermarket guessing about compatibility with prior model years for at least a year or two. The door latch actuators didn't change.
 
#112 ·
The miserable thing is that is the only latch that isn't listed by anyone but GM yet.
If you find a Dorman or SMP part# for the RR latch or the other missing Dorman part #s please post in this thread.
 
#113 · (Edited)
Yeah, found that out while searching, just my luck. There is a cheap GM one that I may get.

Turns out the SMP ones on ebay aren't much cheaper than the OEM version. The good thing about them though, they are available from Rock Auto.

The LF Dorman part is on Rock Auto. Less than $100 shipped. That is the other one I need :)
 
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