Introduction: "Hard-wiring" a Garage Door Remote Into My Vehicle

I permanently mounted a garage door button in my Rav4 to open and close the garage door. This can work on any vehicle as long as you have room for the button and a place to hide the original remote.

Step 1: Things You Need

Things I used to complete the project:

- Working garage door opener
- Momentary push button.
   + I used a power button from an old PC
   + I think any momentary close switch should work like this one from Radio Shack.
- Dremel tool
- Drill / Drill bits
- Wire cutters
- Wire strippers
- Soldering Iron
- Wire (I used some from the PC switch)
- Multi-meter (to verify the switch would work for the application)
- I also used some super glue for my switch.

Step 2: Adding the Button to the Garage Door Opener

First I snapped apart my opener which consisted of the plastic front, back, button, circuit board, and battery.
Removed the battery and the circuit board.
I found where the original button was on the circuit board. It had 4 leads.
My switch had long enough wires already attached to it. I tested it by holding the two wires from the new switch to two of the four leads from the original switch. After a process of elimination, I found which two leads I needed to attach the new switch to.
I then soldered the new switch to the back of the circuit board.
Again I tested it out and both the old and the new switch worked to open and close the door.
I used my dremel tool to cut a slot in my remote where the wires from the new button could come out, replaced the circuit board, and closed the opener.

Step 3: Mounting the Button

Here is where my project may vary from others who may attempt this.
My Rav4 has two punch-out areas where it looks like optional equipment would be installed.
I removed the panel, and popped out the unused area.
I drilled a hole big enough for my PC button, and cleaned it up with my Dremel.
I was able to superglue my button into the hole I created in the punch-out.
I then put my opener in the dash, behind the panel I took out. I could have put it anywhere as long as the wire was long enough and it didn't interfere with any other operation in the car. One thing I would recommend is to place the opener somewhere somewhat accessible for when you need to replace the batteries in the remote. You could probably hardwire the remote into the cars electrical system, but since the batteries last a while, I didn't feel the extra effort would pay off.
I reinstalled the panel into the Rav, and tested it out once more.
Success!

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