Pin switch and mercury switch

rckid wrote: On the pin switch I have the ground part hooked up to ground with a wire and the trigger wire hooked up to the end of the switch with a male connector.

That is incorrect. The pin switch should only show ground when the hood is ajar / open. As I understand what you have stated, you have grounded the switch directly to the chassis. It should only show ground with the pin in the up position, and not in the down position. Which you show ground in the up and down position. Regards EVIL Teken . . .

I have the pin switch mounted to plastic so i had to put a wire on it so it could ground when the trunk was open. So im pretty sure I have that right. Anything else look wrong? I can't figure it out. This is the last thing I have to do and its pissing me off!! Clay

Anyone have any ideas?

Which wire are you using from the alarm? The blue wire? Did you see that in the install guide, it says that you have to reprogram the remote if you use the blue wire for the hood or the hood and trunk? Maybe that's a problem? If not, I think you need to do some process of elimination. Hooking up two sensors to one wire usually isn't this complicated, so I think you need to start "basic", and then add stuff on until it messes up. For example: Just hook up the mercury switch (without a diode) to the input wire of the alarm, and see how that goes. If it works fine, then add the diode in. If that works fine, then add the trunk pin, and then the diode. If it messes up somewhere in there, then maybe you'll be able to find the problem. I'm wondering if something is messed up because you used plastic to mount the pin switch (although I see that you used a wire to ground it). Q: What's the best nation in the world?

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rckid wrote: I have the pin switch mounted to plastic so i had to put a wire on it so it could ground when the trunk was open.

Clay, How and where is this wire affixed to the pin switch? Regards EVIL Teken . . .

The wire is on the threads of the pin switch. Where it would normally be grounded to the body if it was mounted to metal. That is not my problem. I disconnected both switches. Then i armed and disarmed the alarm. Everything was closed and it said the trunk and door was open. I knew this wasn't right so i disconnected the battey and that fixed it that. So i connected the mercury switch on the hood and that worked fine except after I had triggered the alarm a few times it didn't work anymore. After I started the car and let it run for a little bit, i tried it again and it worked fine. Im thinking this might have something to do with the battery. Do I need to run a constant power directly from the battery because how I have it I just tapped into the fuse box. I know this is not the best way but it was easy. Im thinking that when the voltage goes down a little the alarm doesn't know what to do. Is this normal? Thanks, Clay G.

Clay, How you have explained the situation sounds to me like the Viper alarm system has simply bypassed the zone / area, because it thinks that area is defective. Viper calls the feature NPC (Nuisance Prevention Circuitry) the federal law calls it Noise Abatement. To test that theory, simply count the number of times the unit ignores that zone. If the number of zone(s) tripped are consistant in the time you notice the sensor as being inactive. That will confirm my belief. Regards EVIL Teken . . .

Do you have a DMM (digital multi-meter)? If so, set it on continuity test. It should emit a piezo buzzer sound when the two leads are touched together. Clip one lead to the wire at the wiring harness to the alarm. Clip the other end to any grounded metal spot under the dash near the alarm. It should not be beeping at this point. Now open the hood. If your switch is connected and functioning properly you will hear the continuity buzzer when you lift the hood. Close the hood and the sound should stop. Now open the trunk. If the trunk pin is properly connected and making a connection to ground when you open it you should hear the buzzer again. If this all works correctly you may have a bad input on the alarm brain. Or as Teken says it could be bypassing the zone. Good Luck.

Im pretty sure it was bypassing the zone. I forgot all about that. Thanks for everyones help. I have it almost working. I didn't feel like messing with it today. I just have the hood hooked up now but the trunk will also set it off because it is the same trigger wire for the doors.

rckid wrote: Im pretty sure it was bypassing the zone. I forgot all about that. Thanks for everyones help.

Good to know things worked out. But, I would definately verify all aspects of the installation. As it has been pointed out in how to do so for specific area's. Regards EVIL Teken . . .