Passlock System

[slls]

Originally Posted by lipstickhippie

I just took these directions to my mechanic and it took them five minutes to disable the Passlock and they didn't even charge me. Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! I am sooooooo grateful for this.

If you disconnect your battery, you will have a no start until you re attach the yellow wire and get it running again. That is, if you did not have have the switch installed.

[ponchonutty]

Originally Posted by slls

If you disconnect your battery, you will have a no start until you re attach the yellow wire and get it running again. That is, if you did not have have the switch installed.

Also you now have that ugly theft light to look at. Furthermore, the switch won't help much either over time when the ignition switch completely fails. That's why I recomend using the resistor trick instead.

[slls]

Originally Posted by ponchonutty

Also you now have that ugly theft light to look at. Furthermore, the switch won't help much either over time when the ignition switch completely fails. That's why I recomend using the resistor trick instead.

How close to the actual resistance do you need to be, I noticed you told some one in a PM.

[ponchonutty]

Well I was told to be with in 5%. Anytime I can't be right on the money I try to have it slightly higher than what I meter.

[slls]

Thanks

[thelittles]

Hi I have the same no start problem on a 2001 grand am. I was going to do your resistor trick. I have one question that I did not see in the thread. Do I have to match the resistance or can I just put a resistor value in of what ever and have the system relearn. If so that would keep me from having to read and match a value.thx

[Hoppy2]

If you are lucky, you will get the resistor equivalent of the signal required. If not you will have to solder a few in series to get the proper value.

[thelittles]

Thank you for the instructions. The bypass worked great and no security light. I baught a pack of resistors from Radio Shack and read the resistance as you stated. When reading resistance use the black wire not a general grounding point. The figues are different. I recommend this to all.
thx

[AD2BU]

Great thread and good information. I thought about doing the resistor thing, but I just couldn't bring myself to start hacking on a such a great car with only 135xxx miles. So, I put in a new ignition switch. Got the OEM part for around $100 online. Put it in a week ago and all is still working fine. Instructions below can also be used to access the ignition switch.

If you go this route, you will need:
To remove the bezel around the instrument panel - runs all the way accross the car on a 98 Malibu. There are two electrical connections for switches. Be careful when you pry on this and start on the passenger side - the first clip is near the end.

Then, remove the top of the cover behind the steering wheel (Three screws coming up from the bottom) and gently pry apart on each side.

Next, remove the instrument panel - 4 screws and one connector on the back right. Rotate to slide out of the opening.

Pry off the bezel around the ignition lock with a small screwdriver and then pry/pull the bezel from around the lock/stereo/AC controlls.

Now, remove the two screws holding the ignition switch in place and feed the switch up through the top where the instrument panel was. Trust me, you cannot get the switch through the radio opening - you need to go from the top.

There are two electrical connectors on the bottom of the switch to be disconnected. There is a cable that runs into the switch from the back that was easier to remove after removing the lock cylinder (put in the key, rotate to run and press in on the small metal catch on the bottom of the switch - cylinder should then pull right out). Finally, remove the last remaining connector - the one with the infamous yellow wire.

Installation is reverse of the above procedure.

Note: For prying internal body pieces (if you don't have a tool), take a screwdriver and wrap it several times with masking tape to prevent scratches.

Good luck.

[ponchonutty]

Sorry but what you did wasn't the fix. Also, my way of fixing isn't "hacking" up stuff. What you did was just change the mechanical side of the switch. You needed to change out the "electrical" side of the switch which includes the decoder. When you change out the system you MUST do the relearn sequence per GM instructions. When GM first started having issues with this system while they started doing the same repair you did. At first it seemed to fix the problem but usually with in 6 months, the symptoms come back. Then they swap out the part that holds the decoder. Again, using the GM parts is only temporary while using the resistor is a done deal.

[AD2BU]

Thanks for the info, Poncho. I didn't mean to infer the resistor fix was a hack; I was jokingly referring to cutting into the factory harness. I'll see how long it still works. Odd that this "cured" the issue for now. I've had the switch out previously with no change in the theft system error.

So, based on your understanding of the resistor fix would the following work:
Remove the connector from the keylock cylinder and insert a resistor in the end of the connector between the yellow and black wires and not bother to plug the connector back into the keylock cylinder. I'm guessing the resistor value is somewhat irrelevant because the system needs to be relearned anyway. Your thoughts?

[ponchonutty]

No problem. I didn't mean to jump you either. It's just that I've seen dealerships do the same thing you've done and charge people $400 only to have the problem come back with in a year. The only thing I can think of why it works for a little while is from routing around in there with the wiring may move the decoder (even though it isn't suppose to) enough to get it to work again. But, after a while it goes back to the way it was.

As far as unhooking the system and putting the resistor in the end of the connector, not sure if it'd work or not. I'm not totally sure what the white wire that's with the other 2 have to do in the system. In the old PK1 systems like in a '98 Sunfire use that wire as a bulb check in the security system. If that doesn't check out, it'll through a code. Also, the black wire is a ground reference wire and I'm sure there would be a little bit of change in value if you unplug that wire. Reason is that grounds in these GM vehicles are horrid and usually are very poor.

If you start having the same problem, just try it and see.

[AD2BU]

Thanks. I'll post back if I need to tear into it again. And, really good info. I appreciate experience like yours on this site - makes it worth my time to read and learn.

[Hark]

okay - dumb question but there are pages and pages under this post - daughter has a 97 V6 Malibu with 130,000 miles, key doesn't appear to have a chip in it - only in the winter she has the problem with the theft light blinking and no start, nothing. I've read enough to know to turn the key on until the light stops blinking, then wait 10 minutes and it will start - that's what we did last winter. But since she's usually by herself in the cold trying to get home when this happens - what actually needs replaced to actually "fix" this - not just get around the problem? Is it the starter or some type of computer module - just don't think it's safe to leave a teenager stranded in the cold anymore.

[ponchonutty]

Nope. It's the PK2 decoder or the car's BCM at fault. You can get a new decoder and try to get it going yourself for about $200 or have the dealer do it for about $600 or perminately bypass this system for about $10.