02' Camry (XV20) Headlights Flickering and Central Locking failure

[thatguyadam]

G'day everyone,

I was wondering if anyone could help me. I have an 02' Camry (XV20) and it seems to be having (from a totally uneducated car wise person) electrical and electrical power supply issues. Basically (intermittently) the headlights and the dashboard lights often flicker subtly when driving, and the CD player (aftermarket) resets and the antenna tries to go up again when driving. Sometimes it happens more than others, and I often have trouble with the central locking. When I turn the car off and get out of the car and I try to lock it, it makes a noise as if the car is trying to lock itself when using the remote, but doesnt have enough power now that the engine is off? Added to that, my key does not unlock the door manually... So basically, I cannot get into my car, because I locked the doors manually the last time I got out of the car (i.e before I closed the door I manually flicked them to locked, and then held the drivers door handle open while locked on the inside before closing). So I am locked out of my car and I don't know whats wrong...

I have taken the car to an electrical mechanic twice, and he couldn't find anything wrong, as most of these problems are intermittent, they had usually resolved themselves by the time I made it to see him. We have checked recently whether a fuse was faulty or maybe dead, and they all seemed to be in good condition.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

[trentmeyer23]

What is the condition of the battery and terminals?

Does the key turn at all? Has the ignition barrel or a door lock ever been changed?

[thatguyadam]

I think the battery is only 2 years old, but I'm not really sure. My friend has a gadget thing that measures voltage (I think) that is plugged into the car lighter thingo, and it was at 14v when running but dipped down to I think 12 as soon as we turned the car off.

Again, I know nothing about cars, so I don't know if the ignition barrel or the door lock have been changed. And no I don't believe the key turns :(

[trentmeyer23]

Voltage is not what you want to be measuring, it is battery health. Most Supercheap stores should have a battery tester.