96 camaro z28 passlock sensor?

hey i was on the phone with the dealership today because my car wouldn't start after having my key checked out to make sure the chip was good, and it was, they said that it seemed as if my passlock sensor was bad or possibly the lock cylinder itself? how do i know how to tell which it is? i can start the motor by jumping it from the started but it seems that as soon as the computer registers the sensor is bad it shuts off, is there anyway to tell if i should replace the lock cylinder itself or the sensor? trying to save a few dollars thanks sammi

hey i was on the phone with the dealership today because my car wouldn't start after having my key checked out to make sure the chip was good, and it was, they said that it seemed as if my passlock sensor was bad or possibly the lock cylinder itself? how do i know how to tell which it is? i can start the motor by jumping it from the started but it seems that as soon as the computer registers the sensor is bad it shuts off, is there anyway to tell if i should replace the lock cylinder itself or the sensor? trying to save a few dollars thanks sammi

If you decide to replace the cylinder do not buy it from GM. They quoted me over $200 just for the cylinder. I bought one instead from a local auto part store for $24.

I always knew parts at the dealership are overpriced but I didn't know it was that bad.

can you tell me what problems you were having so i can compare it to the ones i am having? thanks sammi

can you tell me what problems you were having so i can compare it to the ones i am having? thanks sammi

Sure, but I don't think it will help much. I bought my car from a towing company, they didn't have an ignition key for it. I bought an ignition key from the dealership but the cylinder had been replaced once already so it didn't work. I had to buy a new cylinder.


I think I just thought of an easy way to tell if its the cylinder or BCM though... hold on one second...


EDIT: Ok yeah I am a genius. Here is what you do:

Your going to have to take the steering wheel off to get to the cylinder. Once you get down to the cylinder you will see two wires bundled together (Orange in my experiance but the haynes manual says they are yellow), coming out of the cylinder.

With the key out of the ignition measure the resistance between the two wires, it should read infinite.
Now measure the resistance across the key.
Now with the key in the ignition measure the resistance between the two wires. If it matches the resistance of the key your cylinder is fine.

Just be careful taking your steering wheel off. Those SRS (air bags) can really hurt ya and in some cases even have broke peoples necks from not being careful.

2 words... airbag fuse

For some reason I thought they had a pack up and could still deploy. But what do I know??? lol

For some reason I thought they had a pack up and could still deploy. But what do I know??? lol

In the haynes manual it tells you to pull the airbag fuse, then take the plastic plate under the steerwheel off, and disconnect the yellow wires.

i am having the same issue as sammigirl...dealership advisory told me that my bcm box is screwed and my 96 camaro will need to be repgrommed with an new bcm...anyway around this?

I had a 96 sunfire with a passlock issue.... In the end It took a new wiring harness and reprogram to solve the problem.

Sammi, Do as Stepho says and make sure you disconnect the yellow two wire connector at the base of your steering column in addition to pulling the Air Bag or possibly labeled (SIR) fuse. The Air bag module holds reserve energy in case of loss of battery power in a crash so removing the fuse alone will not asure your safety. Normally the two little wires coming out of the lock cylinder break due to flexing. have a look. If you can do it yourself it is a pretty inexpensive fix. You will have to either know which key code your chip produces so you can have a key with the same code cut for your new cylinder or you will have to change the pins in your new lock cylinder to accept your old key. I suggest taking your old ley in and having the code read and then have a key cut with the right code. Changing pins is no fun unless you are interested in being a locksmith:) If you are adventerous though, it is interesting. Good Luck!