Veebs76

Hey guys, I'm sure someone here has some insight as to what might be my problem.

I have a 1998 and I can't unlock the doors with the key in the doors or the remote. The only way to unlock them is from the trunk. Turning the key in the trunk will unlock all the doors, but when I turn the key in the doors to unlock it, it will force itself to lock. Specifically, when I turn the key in the doors, the interior lights will briefly come on and it will force the locks to lock.

I'm guessing the central locking pump is to blame because the odds that all the actuators are broken isn't very high.

Can anyone verify this? Thanks.

4Driver4

Sounds like the key is out of sync. This is common on the C4 cars. Do some searching, especially on the urS forums. You should fins something. Fix is fairly simple.

Veebs76

It's a B5 A4, and I don't think the key is out of sync. It's not the remote I'm talking about, it's the fact that I can't put the key in the door and turn the lock to unlock it.

4Driver4

The way I read your post is that you insert the key into the door, turn it to unlock the door, and the car locks all doors, forcing the lock button back down:

It that the situation, or does the key not turn at all in the lock - as if it is the wrong key?

Veebs76

The key will go in and turn if I force it. Not like it's rusted and hard to move, but like the power locks are forcing it to stay locked. The interior lights will come on briefly then re-lock.

4Driver4

The key is out of sync.

Veebs76

I'm a little confused. How can a key be out of sync if there's no remote? It's just a metal key.

4Driver4

Has nothing to do with the remote. If I understand correctly, you unlocking the door with the key triggers the control unit to lock the door. As soon as you turn the key to unlock, control unit forced it locked again.

Does that sound accurate?

I guess I could say that the switch on the door key and the control unit are out of sync.

Veebs76

So what's the fix for this issue? Do I need a new part? I've tried re-syncing the key with no luck.

Thanks for the help.

Veebs76

Here's a video i took. It should give you a better idea of what might be wrong.