toutru

Anyone familiar with installation of remote starters, in order to signal the remote starter when the engine has started, it has to be connected to a source of current that turns positive only when the engine is running.What are the possible sources that can be connected to for this purpose?And how do I find them on a Cavalier 2002?

biggbabysweetz1

most remote start systems take a signal from the tach to tell the module to "stop cranking" if your vehicle didnt come with a tach in the dash dont worry almost all vehicles have a wire for the tach your particular wire is
purple with a white line and can be located at the engine harness.

The easiest way to access this wire is to open your hood and look at the firewall/bulkhead if your not too familiar with cars this is the metal separating you and the engine, you should see a bunch of wires coming out either just below or along side the brake booster. this would be the easiest place to get to the wire but if your going for a more professional look try to trace the wire inside the vehicle.

Again the tach wire for your 2002 chevy cavelier is purple with a white line

please be sure to look at the manual before you hook this wire up to make sure it needs a tach signal. however if your remote start system doesent need a tach wire you can hook up any 12 volt constant (IVE ONLY SEEN A FEW THAT DONT NEED A TACH SO MAKE SURE!!) again i say make sure because if you hook up a wrong wire your out a couple hundred bucks. this is one of those cases where you do need to look at the documentation, lol too bad my brother's table didnt turn out so well.

Good luck and if u need anymore info just post again

biggbabysweetz1

what model is your remote start anyway?

swingline

i worked at a chevy garage for a while and chevy's seem to be very tempermental with aftermarket security systems and remote starters. you may have to try many models to find one that works well, or find someone with your car with one installed that works. i live in alaska and nobody wants to go outside in the morning when it's -20 to start the car so remote starters are somewhat practical here, but I still use the key that came with my ride.

toutru

Is the tachometer wire supposed to produce a 12V positive current when the engine is running? I found only one purple/white wire, where the harness crosses the firewall. I also checked the white and orange wires that are near the ignition module. They all produce approximately 12V negative current whether the engine is started or not - unless the multimeter I am using is defective. And I checked several times.
(The remote starter is a Thor, not very well documented but mentions to connect to a signal which is 4-6V negative at ON and then 12V positive when the engine is running).

toutru

Usually the problems you had noticed, did they mostly have to do with that particular signal which allows the remote starter to sense when the engine is running?
Either it would crank the engine too long or not enough?

biggbabysweetz1

well first off i would have gone with a black widow. second the only wire i know of that can fluctuate voltages like that is the tach wire. believe it or not its one of the only AC wires on your car. no not like household
AC, its more like your idling so the tach wire sends a signal of 12 volts, your revving to 5000 so the tach wire sends a signal of 12 - 13 volts etc
when the vehicle is off it should have a negative polarity
im on the thor website right now and ill let you know what i find but im almost 100% that your gonna need to hook it up to the tach wire