Security light

my wife left the keys in the car and got out.
when she got back in to crank the car the security light was on.
the car would not start for a few minutes.(until the light goes off)
i had another car that you could reset the security system by using the remote to lock and unlock and lock the car then use the key to get in.
this does not work with my Z. The system was installed when i bought the car and i think it came from the factory.

two weeks later and every few times you crank the car you have to wait 3-4 minutes for the stupid light.

anyone else ever have this problem?

Do you want the security function to work? As a test, to see if it's the key switch, measure the resistance of the key pellet. Get a resistor close to the value of the pellet. Find the orange jacketed wires at the base of the steering column. Put the resistor across the contacts of the wires. If the light goes out and stays out, you have a problem with the key switch. If it still has the same problem, then the problem is with the wiring to the PCM or the PCM itself.
camaro's and corvettes are bad about the wires breaking at the key cylinder. since it works on and off thats probably whats happening...it's a pain to fix them, so what i would do is either A. take the pallet and measure the resistance go to radio shack and sauter the resistor in at the bottom under the dash... they are two white wires and have a connector at the base of the steering column. or B. you could just sauter the actual pallet in there....i don't recomend taking the column apart because its a tough job... there are circle clips on the steering shaft that are a pain. that will save you a lot of money, but your security system won't work... do you unlock your car with your key ? or with the keyless entry? next time get out and unlock the car with your key and see if that fixes it.. if so you'll need a new key fob!

You are dealing with the VATS. (vehicle anti theft system)

The VATS module verifies the value of the pellet on your key. If the value is not correct, the car will not crank.

If the key pellet is dirty, or the contacts inside the lock cylinder are worn it will fail and show the problem you saw.

Try to clean the key, then try a different key. If that does not work you may need to replace the lock cylinder.

Thanks a lot. I'll try cleaning the pellet and see.
I'll let you know.

I 2nd all that was said above. I work on car alarms and even had this very thing happen on my Formula. Unfortunately, it was completely dead and wouldn't start at all. I didn't know at the time that if you turned on the ignition and left it on for 10 minutes that it would then let you start the car.

read the owners manual, it says it takes like 3 minutes to reset. mine would do it all the time from condensation and sweat getting on the key. I got into the habit of Wiping the key off each time before putting it in the car.

I cleaned the pellet in the key and cleaned the contacts on the key switch with some spray electronics cleaner.
I turned on the key and waited for the lights to go off and 12 of 12 times the security light went off too!!!
Hope it's fixed. I saved the post about the wires and will try that if it starts acting up again. Glad to know someone out there is willing to help with some good info.
Thanks,

holy cow thanks for the informative post all, i was just coming to post about my security light coming on and boom - top of the forum is this thread :)
awesome :D

My '94 6 cyl. Camaro has the same security/start problem as mentioned above. My father has a Z28 which has identical issues. The Chevy dealers in my area deny this is a common problem. I have discovered the failure occurs most often when the humidity is high. I never have this problem in the winter. I have tried cleaning the key as well as the ignition switch. Any suggestions before I have to replace the entire ignition?? :(

What did you clean them with?
Electronics cleaner for the ignition switch?
Alcohol for the key?

Thank You twdz28!!!
I gave the clean up job a little time and still had the problem.
I put the resistor in place and it works great!!!
:smile: :smile: :smile: :smile: :smile: :smile: :smile:
You're a life saver.

your welcome

all in a days work...

How ya doin twdz28 you really seem to know what your talking about and I was wondering if you could help me. My car wont start and I have been told that I need to reset my vats can you tell me how to do it. How would I go about cleaning my key and ignition? Much appreciated.

read the owners manual, it says it takes like 3 minutes to reset. mine would do it all the time from condensation and sweat getting on the key. I got into the habit of Wiping the key off each time before putting it in the car.


I was wondering if you could help me by telling me how to reset it.

Reset it by making sure that the car is reading the pellet and then turn the ignition on for 10 min. without starting it.

As far as using the resistor trick to disable it forever, MAKE SURE TO EITHER GET THE EXACT MATCHING RESISTOR OR ONE SLIGHTLY HIGHER. Some reason if you get a resistor slightly lower, it will start at first but then later will fail.

FYI, here's a little ditty on these systems. http://home.t-online.de/home/O_Scholz/vats.html