Security Light On; NO START
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Teching In
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 21
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From: Southern Maryland
Security Light On; NO START Hey guys, I have a 2000 WS6. More and more often, when I go to start the car, the starter will not engage, and the security light will stay on. If I wait about 2 minutes, the light will go off, and then the car will start. Even though it isn't a big deal, it can be VERY frustrating when you are in a hurry.
Any ideas as to what is causing this or what might be done to correct the problem???
Thanks in advance for any possible help!
Any ideas as to what is causing this or what might be done to correct the problem???
Thanks in advance for any possible help!
Sometime I don't fully seat the key into the cylinder and this will happen. 
You can also stop the door alarm while the leaving the key in the On or RAP position by giving it a tug.
You can also stop the door alarm while the leaving the key in the On or RAP position by giving it a tug.
there are wires that run from under the dash up into the column and are part of the ignition switch- the chip in your key completes the circuit when you put your key in the lock cylinder. I imagine that if the wires are wearing at all that it would cause this problem with whatever key you insert. the cheapest way to test this would be to unplug the harness going to the ign switch and put a resistor the same value as the key chip into the car side of the harness, if that fixes the issue, its your switch. the resistors are dirt cheap at radioshack, they should also be able to tell you what the resistance of the key is also
Where would this harness be located and what would it look like? Any markings or insignia on the harness?
I am having a similar issue; only my wires are definitely bad because the security flashes even with a new key
I am having a similar issue; only my wires are definitely bad because the security flashes even with a new key
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It was an orange wire coming out of the harness and going into the column on mine. Take the trim panel off under the steering wheel and look for one wire with a small plastic connection. I can try to take a picture of it later if you need me too. Do be aware that doing this will only bypass the chip in the key(or faulty wiring/connections to the key resistor) if your problem is still there after you've bypassed the wiring in the column you may have issues deeper in the security system. This is only an easy way to bypass one possible problem that may or may not be your issue.
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Verdad Gallardo It was an orange wire coming out of the harness and going into the column on mine. Take the trim panel off under the steering wheel and look for one wire with a small plastic connection. I can try to take a picture of it later if you need me too. Do be aware that doing this will only bypass the chip in the key(or faulty wiring/connections to the key resistor) if your problem is still there after you've bypassed the wiring in the column you may have issues deeper in the security system. This is only an easy way to bypass one possible problem that may or may not be your issue.
To clarify, I do NOT have to disassemble or remove the steering column to access this wire? Just look for an orange wire and put a pellet matching resistor on it.
Any specific type of resistor?
Thank you very much for all this. I think everyone in this thread knows how much it costs to replace a cylinder switch in our cars
It's more than worth it to try
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 11,328
Likes: 344
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
It's not an orange wire - it's two wires (purple with white and white with black) that are both in an orange insulating sleeve. You want to use your resistor(s) to connect the two wires together.
That's exactly the information I need.
Thank you for all the assistance!
Gonna run to advance for the resistor. If the issue is not corrected, AAA to the dealer
I'll post back either way
Thank you for all the assistance!
Gonna run to advance for the resistor. If the issue is not corrected, AAA to the dealer
I'll post back either way
there are wires that run from under the dash up into the column and are part of the ignition switch- the chip in your key completes the circuit when you put your key in the lock cylinder. I imagine that if the wires are wearing at all that it would cause this problem with whatever key you insert. the cheapest way to test this would be to unplug the harness going to the ign switch and put a resistor the same value as the key chip into the car side of the harness, if that fixes the issue, its your switch. the resistors are dirt cheap at radioshack, they should also be able to tell you what the resistance of the key is also
WHITEBIRD00; I made the attempt with no success.
I connected the purple/white-white/black wires via a 10 amp fuse (I measured the resistance at Advance - showed 6-9) and the security light still flashes.
Therefore I'm AAA the car to this Audio/Alarm place 5 miles down the road. They can bypass the security crap
EDIT: the gauge wire I used for the resistor was 12Ga (possibly too big of a wire for the ignition wires). The ign wires are tiny.
I connected the purple/white-white/black wires via a 10 amp fuse (I measured the resistance at Advance - showed 6-9) and the security light still flashes.
Therefore I'm AAA the car to this Audio/Alarm place 5 miles down the road. They can bypass the security crap
EDIT: the gauge wire I used for the resistor was 12Ga (possibly too big of a wire for the ignition wires). The ign wires are tiny.
Last edited by The Dragon; Nov 23, 2010 at 04:20 PM.
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 11,328
Likes: 344
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
Well of course the guy at Advance Auto doesn't know - they don't sell resistors. You have to go to Radio Shack or an electronics supply store to buy resistors.
First, you need to read the instructions on VATS bypass in this post.
Then you need to measure the resistance of the pellet on your ignition key. Set your multimeter to the 20K ohms scale, touch the red probe to the metal contact on one side of your key and the black probe to the contact on the other side. The reading should be someplace between 0.4 and 11.8. That represents 400 ohms to 11,800 ohms. Then you need to find a resistor or combination of multiple resistors that equal the same value. It's those resistors that you wire between to the two wires in the orange sleeve.
Here are the 15 possible values for VATS resistors:
1 - 402
2 - 523
3 - 681
4 - 887
5 - 1130
6 - 1470
7 - 1870
8 - 2370
9 - 3010
10 - 3740
11 - 4750
12 - 6040
13 - 7500
14 - 9530
15 - 11800
First, you need to read the instructions on VATS bypass in this post.
Then you need to measure the resistance of the pellet on your ignition key. Set your multimeter to the 20K ohms scale, touch the red probe to the metal contact on one side of your key and the black probe to the contact on the other side. The reading should be someplace between 0.4 and 11.8. That represents 400 ohms to 11,800 ohms. Then you need to find a resistor or combination of multiple resistors that equal the same value. It's those resistors that you wire between to the two wires in the orange sleeve.
Here are the 15 possible values for VATS resistors:
1 - 402
2 - 523
3 - 681
4 - 887
5 - 1130
6 - 1470
7 - 1870
8 - 2370
9 - 3010
10 - 3740
11 - 4750
12 - 6040
13 - 7500
14 - 9530
15 - 11800
Last edited by WhiteBird00; Nov 23, 2010 at 04:44 PM.
I think that I paid around $5-6 for a package of resistors at radio shack, there were many in the package- I just bent the resistor into a U shape and put it in the connector on the orange wiring that I mentioned earlier and secured it with electrical tape, could be soldered in, but that seems like overkill if you tape it well and secure the wire back to the harness.
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Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 709
Likes: 2
From: 336 NC
I went to the junkyard and found another f-body. I cut the plug off for the vats. At home I measured the resistance of the chip in my original key. Then I soldered and shrink wrapped the correct resistors to the junkyard connector. I then plugged it into my vats harness. I did this so as not to mess with my oem harness, and if neccesary I can remove my vats "key" I made thus making the car much harder to steal.
