I need some help determining what's wrong with my Camaro. I just bought a 95 3.4L model.

1) Whenever the inside light comes on, the Camaro makes a tick-tock sound for the duration the light is on.

2) Whenever the door is opened, the Camaro not only makes the tick-tock sound for the duration the door is open (and the inside light remains on) but it also makes a beep-beep sound in tandem with the tick-tock sound. Every thirty seconds the ticking and beeping will pause for a second or two, then resume. The brake lights also blink endlessly while the door is open.

If I close the door and leave the inside light on, there is no beeping, and the tail lights stop blinking, but the ticking sound continues until that inside light is turned off. (IE, if for any reason I turn it on, with the door closed, the ticking begins for a minimum of 30 seconds)

3) It takes three tries to start the car for the first time in the day. No more, no less. Always. Temperature down here in Houston is 78-98 degrees so it's not cold outside. Once the car is warmed up it'll start the first time, every time.

4) The tiny red light in the car on the dash (I guess it's an alarm light) blinks 3 times in a row, pauses, and then continues. Always. Car running or not.

As far as I know, there isn't an alarm system, but I am not mechanically inclined and I don't know a lot about cars. So it wouldn't surprise me if some of this is due to an alarm system that is somehow bypassed, but is still partially plugged up. But I really don't know.

5) There is some cosmetic work that needs to be done, but that's for another thread, and I don't know how to upload images, or what is the best free host to use to upload images for forum viewing.

Any help or advice would be appreciated. Thank you!

 

sure sounds like a aftermarket alarm issue. i would also check fuel pressure and have it scanned for trouble codes.

 

Check the connections at the battery and junction block for any wires that don't look "factory". Try disconnecting any wires, if there are any, and see what happens. It sounds like some aftermarket security system is getting tripped. Tail lights and front marker lights are usually connected to alarm systems as a flash announcement when it's activated or deactivated. So that would also explain the flashing tail lights that you're getting.

 

is there a small rocker switch somewhere down on the kick panel if so try flipping it and see if it stops but thats deff an aftermarket alarm

 

It's raining outside pretty heavy so I can't check right now, but what is a kick panel? I was looking for a switch or button for the alarm inside the car last night, and couldn't find anything. Later on when it's dry, I'll look for connections at the battery and junction block for any wires that don't look "factory" - as suggested above. I am planning on getting a new car alarm anyway, so I'll have the bad alarm removed entirely when that happens.

 

Here is a side view of my car:



Here is the interior view:



As you can tell the interior needs some work, but I will take care of that after I resolve the issue with the aftermarket alarm and whatever is causing the car to take three attempts to start.

 

The joy of aftermarket alarms. Too bad they do everything but prevent theft.

 

you could always pull the panel under the steering wheel off and rip out the alarm system

btw the kick panel is where the hood release is

 

alarms are stupid i hear them go off all the time at stores and no one runs to see if everythings ok also i had an eclipse with some ghetto alarm you had to hit the brake while pushing a button in order to start the car... ohh and if the switch was flipped to arm and you tried to start it the horn would go off steady for 45 seconds and there was nothing you could do to turn it off (explain that to your neighbors at 2:30 in the am)

 

Ultron, the rhythmic clicking you are hearing is most likely coming from a control box that's under your dash. Get your head and ears under there and start doing some digging. Chances are good, if it's an aftermarket alarm you have, the manufacturers name will be on that control box. Then start doing some pulling and removing of wires that are connected to that box. Careful though, if the alarm was made to disarm the ignition, some of the wire connections to the module would have "broken" a factory wire and then run through the module. Just ripping and cutting everything related to the alarm out, without reattaching the factory wires back together, could immobilize your car. Be methodical, and pay attention to the color codes of your wires.