Incessant beeping on a test drive

Technical questions and answers about the Mazda Bongo

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celtictigress

Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by celtictigress » Tue Mar 22, 2011 6:02 pm

:oops:
Last edited by celtictigress on Tue Mar 22, 2011 6:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by celtictigress » Tue Mar 22, 2011 6:03 pm

Yeah I meant continuous, I thought it had been disconnected as I've never heard the beeps before, not when I left the lights on (by accident) put it in reverse or left the keys in the ignition.

I'll check it out when I finally have the thing home, thanks for all your help though as at least I know where to start looking now :mrgreen:
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by Driver+Passengers » Tue Mar 22, 2011 6:19 pm

skater wrote: here's bit of a list of things that cause beeping/electronic noises ( of various tones, speeds, etc ) on mine.

Doors open warning
lights on
reverse sensors
roof opening/closing
driving with roof up
reverse gear selected
Mason alarm ( temp gauge mod )

Other Bongos can have extras for other accessories.
Thanks for this list - useful for me, celtictigress and others, I'm sure. The JPNZ is quite light on details about what should beep, how and when - as it is about the finer points of dashboard lights, particularly the ones with dual purpose (sediment). If there isn't already an expanded list floating around, then perhaps as part of "getting to know my Bongo", I can see about collecting the details. Probably common knowledge to many owners, but

I'm probaby one of the few people who wants their Bongo to beep!
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by skater » Tue Mar 22, 2011 11:00 pm

Always good to have some fresh eyes on the subject.

There are little things to miss or forget or not realise you had.

Roof won't go up without handbrake on for example.
Got worried one time when I forgot that #-o

Pushing wiper lever toward dash does one quick wipe.

Adjustable steering wheel height is a feature some don't notice.
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by Driver+Passengers » Fri Mar 25, 2011 12:05 am

Cheers, skater - good tips!

Haydn - thank you very much for the buzzer. I've just soldered it in place and I now have an awfully noise Bongo - a combination of a high pitch and two-tone siren with the lights on, pips with the key in, changes to pip-pips when I turn the key.

I wonder if the two-tone is due to the buzzer you sent me, Haydn, or if this is generated by the buzzer board - what does a vanilla Bongo do?

I'll find a secluded lay-by tomorrow and commence fault finding, starting with the roof switches.
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by haydn callow » Fri Mar 25, 2011 8:18 am

my buzzers are NOT 2 tone......
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by mikeonb4c » Fri Mar 25, 2011 11:40 am

Driver+Passengers wrote:
I wonder if the two-tone is due to the buzzer you sent me, Haydn, or if this is generated by the buzzer board - what does a vanilla Bongo do?
Ditto - the behaviour of my Bongos beeping did change (sometimes) after I fitted the LCA. Don't know quite why and don't really care as long as LCA works well (which it always has :D )
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by Driver+Passengers » Mon Mar 28, 2011 3:05 pm

haydn callow wrote:my buzzers are NOT 2 tone......
You almost sound affronted! It must therefore be an artefact of the drive circuit - and either way, not a problem - it won't be perceived when the beeps are intermittent and I'll be plenty satisfied if/when I complete the job. Thanks again for the part.
mikeonb4c wrote: Ditto - the behaviour of my Bongos beeping did change (sometimes) after I fitted the LCA. Don't know quite why and don't really care as long as LCA works well (which it always has :D )
Ah, but in my case, I don't have an LCA yet or if I do I have not yet located it - Haydn only supplied me a single component for to repair the timer and buzzer PCB.

The temp guage sits at 11 o'clock all the time, so I suspect there is no Mason installed. I will be performing the '5p resistor mod' to extend the range of the indicator, at which point the presence or absence of a Mason will become evident. Thereafter, I will install an alarm - which one TBD - will read the other threads before committing to a purchase.

Still trying to find time to escape domestic duties and track down the fault that's causing my Bongo to beep incessantly... perhaps this week. [-o<
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by mikeonb4c » Mon Mar 28, 2011 3:11 pm

Driver+Passengers wrote:
haydn callow wrote:my buzzers are NOT 2 tone......
You almost sound affronted! It must therefore be an artefact of the drive circuit - and either way, not a problem - it won't be perceived when the beeps are intermittent and I'll be plenty satisfied if/when I complete the job. Thanks again for the part.
mikeonb4c wrote: Ditto - the behaviour of my Bongos beeping did change (sometimes) after I fitted the LCA. Don't know quite why and don't really care as long as LCA works well (which it always has :D )
Ah, but in my case, I don't have an LCA yet or if I do I have not yet located it - Haydn only supplied me a single component for to repair the timer and buzzer PCB.

The temp guage sits at 11 o'clock all the time, so I suspect there is no Mason installed. I will be performing the '5p resistor mod' to extend the range of the indicator, at which point the presence or absence of a Mason will become evident. Thereafter, I will install an alarm - which one TBD - will read the other threads before committing to a purchase.

Still trying to find time to escape domestic duties and track down the fault that's causing my Bongo to beep incessantly... perhaps this week. [-o<
Hmmmm. Well in that case I can only think to refer back to my original post, in case it's that (although I'm not saying it is!) :
mikeonb4c wrote:I had to drive my Bongo over to have the lifting roof mended. Becuase it would not close fully, it beeped at me, so I disconnected the front beeper to reduce the dreadnoise. The little one right down at the back (hidden behind o/h rearmost panel I think) still beeped away at me but was v. quiet from the drivers seat. It doubled the beep rate as the car moved from stationary to on the move.

I reckon that, almost certainly, is what you heard on your test drive. But what's causing it? Well a faulty microswitch on the roof closing mechanism is a possibility I guess.
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by Driver+Passengers » Mon Mar 28, 2011 3:27 pm

mikeonb4c wrote: Hmmmm. Well in that case I can only think to refer back to my original post, in case it's that (although I'm not saying it is!) :
mikeonb4c wrote:I had to drive my Bongo over to have the lifting roof mended. Becuase it would not close fully, it beeped at me, so I disconnected the front beeper to reduce the dreadnoise. The little one right down at the back (hidden behind o/h rearmost panel I think) still beeped away at me but was v. quiet from the drivers seat. It doubled the beep rate as the car moved from stationary to on the move.

I reckon that, almost certainly, is what you heard on your test drive. But what's causing it? Well a faulty microswitch on the roof closing mechanism is a possibility I guess.
I concur - it's the obvious place to start looking. Armed with the service manual, a multimeter and the suggestions in this thread, I'm confident I'll find the fault.
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by Driver+Passengers » Mon Mar 28, 2011 11:38 pm

All four roof micro-switches are electrically sound, though the front-driver's side roof-down switch (#4) is physically damaged and I must assume that it does not engage with the roof down. The metal paddle was somewhat bent and the plunger is missing the tiny wee plastic cap meaning that the paddle must be pushed beyond flush to actually engage the plunger. I tried a small reverse bend in the paddle, as well as padding it with a few turns of insulating tape, but without success. I can confirm, however, that with both front switches depressed, the incessant beeping stops.

I could continue to invent ways to pack the space or reduce the clearance and resolve the issue through trial and error. Unless there are any bright ideas from anyone, though, I'll probably just source and fit a replacement switch. I do need to read through the removal/installation procedure before I commit to that.

So fixing the switch is going to stop the beep anyways. However, on removal of the AFT control unit (the "little one right down at the back") and armed with the knowledge that it should beep at me too - cheers, Mike/triathlondave - I immediately opened it up. It would appear that a previous owner objected to this buzzer with a screwdriver or pliers, and it needs replaced, too. I will solder in another replacement in due course.
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by Driver+Passengers » Mon Mar 28, 2011 11:50 pm

This has ended up quite a long thread for what has turned out to be nothing but a couple of vandalised sounders and a faulty microswitch, but I am nothing if not thorough, and grateful of course for the help along the way. Cheers!
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by bigdaddycain » Mon Mar 28, 2011 11:56 pm

D&P? What's happening with the "roof" light on the dash whilst on the move?
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by Driver+Passengers » Tue Mar 29, 2011 12:07 am

bigdaddycain wrote:D&P? What's happening with the "roof" light on the dash whilst on the move?
D&P?? - oh is that me?

There's no roof light on the dash showing, never has been - I'll check the bulb when I've got the instrument panel out. There's the green light I mentioned by my left knee too - I still don't know what that is.
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Re: Incessant beeping on a test drive

Post by bigdaddycain » Tue Mar 29, 2011 12:55 am

And the "roof" light on the dash doesn't illuminate when the ignition is switched on? If not i'll hazard a guess it's been removed by the previous owner. Along with the butchered buzzers... If your happy the freetop is firmly anchored i'd stick my neck out and suggest the microswitch is iffy, yet all is well with the freetop... Still sticks in the back of your mind though i guess? Especially if your hoofing it along in the wind! :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:
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