Owners of 2017 Chevrolet Camaros are perplexed by garage door problems

Have you ever heard of a repeater module for a garage door opener? I never had. That is one of the suggestions that Camaro owners are recommending to help the owner of a 2017 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. A driver who calls himself Inferno, from San Antonio, reached out to members of a popular Camaro forum about his recent problems. The owner writes, “No matter what I do, I can through the programming steps and verify it works by the door closing. I can stop the closing by hitting the button again, and then make it go back up. However, if I close the door all the way I cannot get it to open again. What's more weird is, without exaggeration, I can hit the button 100 times and it will open it once or twice out of all attempts. Otherwise, nothing.”

Clearing the previous programming

Trident suggested making sure that all previous attempts have been cleared and then trying again. “Suggestion- try clearing all codes by holding the two outer buttons till the lights blink fast then reprogram. That's the best I can offer.”
Another driver said that perhaps Inferno missed a step. “Sounds like you may have just programmed it using the remote, but didn't use the 'learn' feature on your opener to account for rolling codes?”

Inferno says that helped but only temporarily. “I actually kept re-doing the learn part thinking that's what must have gotten messed up since it would close the door on command every time, just not open. Blowing everything away and starting from the beginning again seems to have cleared it up.” But he quickly found out otherwise. “I spoke too soon. Went out tonight. Closed it like it always has. Got back and wouldn't open. Light on the home link was flashing so I know I pushed it hard enough. Even pulled all the way up to the door. Nothing. Grrrr.”

Several Camaro owners say they have no problems, but others say they are in a similar boat. Justin, from Delaware, thinks it is a larger problem. “I too have noticed that the Homelink in the Camaro seems to throw a weak signal. I've also found that you have to hold the button for two or three seconds most to the time to get it to work. Can be a bit annoying, but I've not had it fail to work, just had it make me try several times!” Justin goes on to explain why the weak transmitter would cause the problem. “When you close the door, it is already open - ergo, the receiver in the unit is exposed to line of sight and the signal has no obstructions. When the door is closed, you have a metal door with reinforcing braces between it and you. A weak transmitter can have some trouble.”

Boosting the signal

This is where the repeater comes in. A Corvette owner who goes by MD says, “Depending on how new your garage door opener is, it might have the new rolling frequency system. I bought a new Chamberlain last year, and it has this. Rolling codes have been around since the 90's, but this is an additional security feature. Because of it, I had to get a repeater module. Actually, I had to get two -- one for the Homelink in my BMW, and one for the Lear unit in my C6. I only would have needed one if both my cars had a Homelink. They just plug into a power outlet near your opener, and work as a middleman between your remote (car in this case) and your opener.”

Skill also has a 2017 Camaro ZL1 and a very strong opinion. “Here are my thoughts.... The GM system just sucks... I have a 2016 Tahoe LTZ and ZL1, Both are terrible at sending a strong signal. My 2015 Dodge truck can open the door about 100 to 150 yards out. My Wife had a dodge 2010 minivan and it also worked great. When I pull up in my ZL1, I have to push the button 3 to 10 times to get the door to open, once I am about 10 feet from the door it works about 25 percent of the time on the first try. When I am parked in the garage it opens on the first try almost every time, Distance is the key due to poor signal strength.”

Inferno believes he has found an answer that works for him but it is a frustrating problem to have. “Yeah it must be a very weak transmitter, in mine especially. Likely combined with a weak receiver in the Genie door opener brand. I experimented pulling in to my driveway hitting the button at different times because I pass a window before I get to the doors. Found a spot that worked. I'll have to try that a few more times to see if it is consistent.”

Several other owners suggested that Inferno try a new upgraded garage door opener to see if compatibility may be a problem. Let me know if you have another recommendation that 2017 Chevrolet Camaro owners should try.