legacycentral bbs

So, my car has an issue with startup. A previous owner cut the red wire in the harness that runs to the starter and replaced it with another wire that runs directly from the ignition to the starter. I think this bypasses the neutral safety switch because you can start the car in gear (4eat). I could be wrong on that. Anyway, I think I may need to install a panic button so that I have an independent keyswitch operated connection between the starter and battery. Where should I mount this thing, inside the engine bay or inside the car?

It's possible that the neutral safety switch failed and the previous owner decided to bypass it instead of fixing it.

By panic button you mean a button that you can hit to kill the engine? Or just the starter? I don't understand; why exactly do you need this?

The button's purpose would be to start the car in case the ignition switch failed to do so. I would be, in effect, installing another switch to bypass the ignition in case the car won't start, sort of a parallel branch. The switch would go from the battery to the starter I believe and be a keyswitch.

A previous owner replaced the tranny with a WRX setup but didn't install the right rear diff I believe so it messed some stuff up. Plus, I think the kid did some other things wrong as the speed sensor pulls out easily. I think he might have dropped the tranny without disconnecting the sensor. Anyway, the guy that bought the car after him put a 4eat in it and wired the starter directly from the ignition switch. I want to eventually try and fix it the proper way but as it is I ocassionally get stranded for brief periods of time when the starter won't turn. I could need a new starter but it did this when I bought it and the starter was fresh then.

Oh, okay, I understand, I think.

If the starter fails to turn on occasion it may actually be the ignition switch that's at fault, so you might consider replacing that at some point.

In the meantime, what you're looking for is just an "in-case-of-emergency" thing, right? What I recommend is actually simpler and cheaper and more secure than wiring in a new keyswitch: make a temporary bypass cable.

Get an alligator clip with an insulated handle, a 30A fuse/fuseholder, about 5 feet of 10 AWG wire, and a yellow female 1/4" quick-disconnect spade terminal.

The quick-disconnect can be connected to the starter solenoid easily without removing anything other than the current connector. So if you find yourself stranded, turn the ignition on, connect this cable to the starter solenoid, and press the other end of the cable against the positive battery terminal to crank the engine for a couple seconds.

But if you leave the car in gear, you may kill yourself.

Yes.

Nobody ever said death was a bad thing.

Well, I know that Scott's smart enough not to run himself over doing an emergency start.

Yeah, I think that I can handle it. If a person can't handle that then they shouldn't be servicing a car at all.

standing to the side of the fender would eliminate the possibility of getting run-over. Heck, I'd want to be as close to the driver's door anyway when doing the bypass. By the way, there are push-button switches available with alligator clips at the ends of the cables that are made for this kind of thing. I used one on my motorcycle and an old Accord for testing compression.

This works awesome.

I had this happen today, and the usual 'get out and hit it with a screwdriver 'til it works' method wasn't working, so I pulled out a length of wire, doubled it up so there would be enough there, and voila! It worked like a charm.

Is there anyway to take out the ignition switch and clean it off to possibly get it to work? As well as this works, I would much rather have a fully-functioning ignition switch.......

A new ignition switch is about $35 from the dealer and snaps right in. Getting the key to mathc the doorlocks though...
I don't know how to get one out - my car didn't have an ignition switch when I bought it, just a short screwdriver.
Maybe there's a small hole where a pin could depress a release mechanism? I'm not drunk enough for my memory to be accurate yet.

The heads of the two bolts holding the ignition switch in are sheared off during the installation process. You use a chisel or something to back them out.

Hmm....

That's cool.

Think a bolt-out would work?

I may try this.

I am seeing 2 different parts under Ignition Lock: Ignition Cylinder and Ignition Switch. The cylinder is only about $30, while the switch is about $130. Which would I need?

A bolt-out would work, I'm sure, but it's probably more trouble than it's worth to try to get a drill down in there. There isn't very much holding the bolt in place.

I don't know much about the details of the ignition switch, but I would imagine you need the switch rather than just the cylinder. I wonder, though, if you could swap your current cylinder to the new switch, allowing you to use your current key.

Wait -- why do you think your ignition switch is bad? If it's just failure to crank, I would first suspect the clutch safety switch (if it's a 5MT) or the inhibitor switch (if it's a 4EAT).

4EAT.

How would I check the inhibitor switch?

My issue is that it's seemingly random. All of the time it starts up fine when cold and most of the time when hot, but when I let it sit for a while, but not long enough to cool down it gives me issues.

Well, one way would be to wait until the problem happens again. When it does, unplug the ignition switch connector. It's a 6-pin connector but only 4 pins are present. The wires are thick and the pins are the same shape and size as 1/4" quick disconnects. On the car side of the harness, the black-with-yellow-stripe wire is +12v, and the blue-with-red-stripe wire adjacent to it is START. Short the two together. If the engine cranks (it won't start), the ignition switch is likely at fault. If it doesn't crank, the inhibitor switch is likely at fault.

Where is this connector?

You have to remove the trim piece just above the driver's knees, and you'll see a bunch of wires coming down from the steering column. The connector is in there.

Thanks V, I'll check that when I get back home.

Found the connector when it was doing it at home today.

Looks like the ignition switch is the culprit.

Either that, or when I removed the security system, I may not have gotten rid of all the shoddy connections.......

Do you think installing a push-button ignition could bypass the faulty ignition switch?

It can, but if it does it kind of makes your car a little easier to steal.

Hmm.....

What would be the way with the least impact?

I would much rather pay less than $50 for a push-button start than $123 + shipping for a new ignition switch........

Well, if it's just the START contacts that are faulty (that is, the ACC and ON positions still work perfectly), wire a heavy-duty pushbutton switch (or better yet, a relay meant for a remote starter, and a switch to operate the relay) between the ON and START wires.

ON is the red wire next to the blue-with-red-stripe START wire on the car side of the ignition switch harness connector.