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-   -   Clifford 50x Alarm + The rain ! (https://www.scoobynet.com/general-technical-10/25314-clifford-50x-alarm-the-rain.html)

KevinJ 15 January 1999 02:56 PM

With the current weather ie WET does anybody else have a problem with the alarm sounding, with the alarm indicating that the bonnet has been opened ?

TC 15 January 1999 04:14 PM


Only had one problem and that was a faulty door actuator, but the supply company sorted that pretty promptly othewise very happy,best spent £500 for a while.

Chris B 15 January 1999 04:41 PM

Yes, Last night the alarm went off three times and each time indicated that the bonnet trigger had been actuated. After lots of shouting and slamming of the bonnet it stopped. Still a sleepless night though!!
Chris

richlee 15 January 1999 09:28 PM

It's perhaps a problem with sophisticated alarms in general. The Toad alarm on my my98 went off 3 or 4 times today in a wet and windy carpark. The diagnostics showed that it was the unltrasonics which had triggered - I disabled them, leaving the perimeter(?) and the immobiliser, and the alarm didn't go off for the rest of the day. I wondered if it might be possible to adjust the sensitivity of the ultrasonics. Even if this were a good idea, does anybody know whether it's possible?

Stevebyng 16 January 1999 12:02 PM

This is not a windup!
Certain car manufacturers, who shall remain nameless have a very simple solution to decrease the sensitivity of ultrasonic alarm sensors.
the answer is to gently spray hairspray at the sensor mesh.
This slightly clogs the holes in the mesh - reduces the amount of air movement on the sensor - thus reducing the sensitivity!
At least you could wash it off with warm water if you put too much on!!!!!
Hope this helps

Josh L 17 January 1999 02:20 PM

I had a Clifford 50x fitted the day after the car was delivered last Feb. In the first couple of days the alarm went off several times, usually relating to the proximity sensor. I took it back and had the sensitivity reduced you could do it youself, but I wouldn't recommend it). The only time water has set it off since has been when I used a pressure washer on the screen.
Hope this helps.

colint 18 January 1999 11:07 PM

I got a 50x fitted to my new car last week, and the first day I had it it went off too, in the wind and rain, indicating the bonnet to be the problem.

I took it back, and the installer removed the bonnet switch (dunno if it was there as standard or not) and replaced it with a longer switch.

I thought it was just the Aluminium bonnet on the car that caused it, with it flexing a bit more than a steel one.

An easy fix would be to stick something to the bonnet where the switch hits it, making sure it always makes contact.

Anders 18 January 1999 11:43 PM

My installer fixed a piece of double sided foam at the contact patch and this cured the problem you described

rupertu 19 January 1999 09:31 AM

This thread is beginning to make me think that the Clifford 50 is too clever for its own good. My impending car has to be fitted with a Thatcham Category 1 alarm/immobiliser as a condition of the insurance (funny really, my first IT in 1995 only had an immobiliser and never in 3 years did I have ant grief from tea-leaves !) However I live in the back of beyond, rarely park in inner-cities, and work in low-risk Swindon. So can anybody give me any objective advice on alarms/immobilisers, I dont need the dogs do-dahs, and I certainly dont want to be rushing back to the suppliers to have the darned thing adjusted/tweaked if it can be avoided. Sorry to be so long-winded.

KevinJ 19 January 1999 10:02 AM

Hi Guys thanks for the advice, and i have more to offer .. After speaking to my installer he recognised the problem straight away. Apparently because of the shape of the wing / bonnet excess water (ie heavy rain) runs straight into the switch, which connects oops ! To get round the problem a longer switch can be installed, or spray WD40 onto the original switch and connections. I can concure that it works and my car is silent .. at last.

yee_har 19 January 1999 12:08 PM

My Clifford 50X has "played up" in snow/rain since day one.
It doesn't go off, just sounds the warning chirp.
I took this up with the installer and they said that, whilst you can adjust the proximity sensitivity in terms of range, you can't do anything about it in terms of "mass". Basically the thing can't differentiate between an accumulation of snow sliding down the driver's window and a perp. peering in the window.
Or so they said...

Godzooki 19 January 1999 04:30 PM

To add further info to the Concept 50x problems -

I have one currently fitted to an Escort GTi (Awaiting delv on the MY99 IT) and had problems with the proximity sensor activating the alarm. It should never do this , (not after 3 warnings etc as commonly thought) the problem being that the glass break sensors, as sent from the factory, can be set too sensitively(?) and the high pitch warning screech can the trigger the glass break. Solution - see your Clifford installer and get the sensitivity turned down on the glass break.

I also have the instructions for setting the internal and external proximity sensors - it isn't in the user manual, only the installers manual - if you are interested e-mail me.

yee_har 19 January 1999 07:25 PM

rupertu -

Hallmarks in Thatcham (how relevant!) recommended "a man in Swindon who does all our alarms" when I popped in there last year.
Apologies - I don't have either of their numbers to hand.
Might be worth giving Hallmarks a buzz...?


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