[rwd4evr]

PASS KEY FAULT Light on Continuous - Car Starts

I've read through most of the posts in this 20 page sticky. I appear to now have the "fail-enable mode" active on my 96 Caprice because the Pass Key Fault light is now on continuously and the car has started 5 times.

I cleaned the key and the chip with rubbing alcohol. No change. I read that you should also try to clean the ignition cylinder. I have not read any description of how to swab it out. I'm guessing that if I try a Q-tip, the cotton head will stay inside the cylinder and I would be really screwed.

I'm confused on the reset procedure. The amount of time to leave the key in the "ON" position ranges from 1 minute to 11 minutes and then turning the key off and waiting 5 seconds to 30 seconds before trying to start the car.

I forget the exact security system but this car has what I think is the GM VSS-150 system. Could some part of this system failing cause this light to come on?

Also after reading the 20 pages of posts, I either missed a diagram of the system or no one posted any so that I could locate the anti-theft module and the anti-theft relay. Where are they and what do they look like? In an F-body related discussion of the VATS, one of these items (module or relay - I forget which) is under the dash on the passenger side of the car. Is it in the same general location for B-bodies?

Since my car starts with a solid, steady light, I'm thinking that I need to do something other than the resister bypass for the key to turn the light off.

Any help is appreciated.

 

[1slow96]

One of the most common causes of problems with the PassKey II system is that one of the little wires on the ignition cylinder has broken...

 

[rwd4evr]

Pass Key Light on Continuously

I'll have to get under the dash and look for the "orange" wire and wiggle it and see what I see. I don't see having the time to do this until Friday night or Saturday morning.

I believe that the light came on while I was driving home on Tuesday evening (2 days ago). I wasn't there when I pulled out from work and then it was on when I arrived in my driveway and it's been on ever since.

 

[Goldmaster]

FWIW, I drove a RMS that was in fail enable mode for 2 years and never had a problem. I don't think it cause you a problem unless the theft deterrent module fails all together.

 

[darth]

Well, I haven't read this entire thread but I have an issue with a Roadmaster wagon.

- Dead battery. Borrowed a good battery out of another car, put it in, started the RM, removed the battery with the RM running the whole time, put the dead battery back into the RM and drove the RM about 5 miles, shut it off.

- Security light is on solid, no crank.

- I have a parts car and want to plug in the ignition lock and theft module from my parts car because I suspect that unhooking the battery with the car running likely did something to the system. However, I don't know what the module looks like. Anyone have a picture of it?

 

[darth]

Found it in my parts car and removed it but boy did I trash that dash to get to it. No worries, the parts car is off to the shredder very soon anyway. Getting to it in the car I want to run is sure going to be fun though...

 

[rwd4evr]

Darth - So where are all of the components in these B-body cars?

I have some cranky neck issues from an accident a long time ago so laying on the floor of the car and looking up under the dash for hours isn't something that I want to do unless absolutely necessary.

I think that I recognize the large silver air bag control module. I think that the modules for the pass key system are supposed to be mounted near it someplace.

Any help is appreciated. There is a diagnostic flow chart in the factory service manual for a steady pass key fault light and a step is to disconnect one of the modules to determine where the short/fault might be. I can't unplug what I can't find!

 

[Impin' Ain't Easy]

Thanks for the info, guys. I was able to knock out my PFK light tonight...after battling through the stripping of the insulation on the very thin gauge of those white wires. Make sure that you cut up high enough on the Orange insulation piece to give yourself enough room to work through that issue.

 

[sherlock9c1]

Just an FYI on VATS and older versions of TunerCat:
http://www.impalassforum.com/vBulletin/showthread.php?t=1276633

 

[TGO]

Adding my experience in to this thread:

My car wouldn't start. No crank, no start. No noise from the starter. Pass Key Fault light blinking.

Resistor bypass already performed due to aftermarket alarm/remote start.


With much help from ROCKO350 we determined it to be a problem with the Theft Deterrent Module (TDM) and I performed a TDM bypass. Basically the TDM fails and no longer sends the signal to the relay needed to engage the starter. The bypass itself is pretty simple. It involves simply grounding one wire to the body. The hard part is getting to it.



DISCLAIMER: YOU WILL STILL NEED TO DISABLE VATS IN THE PCM OR YOUR FUEL INJECTORS WILL SHUT OFF AFTER A SHORT TIME! MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A TUNE WITH THE VATS DISABLED TO LOAD ON YOUR CAR BEFORE YOU TRY TO DRIVE IT!

First step is to disconnect the battery and locate the TDM. My car is a 95 Impala SS so this should apply to all Caprice/Impala. Not sure about Buicks, Cadillac or Oldsmobile.

Move your drivers seat back as far as it will go and lay with your back on the floor looking up. You will be able to see the TDM . I found a picture of it in this thread:

http://www.impalassforum.com/vBulletin/2167697-post9.html

You can see it with the red x.

There is only one screw holding it up there. It is a major bitch to get to but it is doable. Mine wasn't very tight. I was able to get a small ratchet up there and loosen it a little and then just use the socket (7mm) with my fingers to remove it the rest of the way. Once you get the screw out you can shimmy the whole plate with the TDM attached to it down and out of it's retainer. On the other side you will find the TDM itself and a relay. You need to ground the yellow/black wire going from the TDM to the relay. You can see the wire in the below picture:

Unwrap some tape so you can see how much slack there is on the wire.

Do NOT be a moron like me and cut the wire near the relay. You want to cut the wire as far away from the relay as possible so you can ground the relay directly to the body thus bypassing the TDM.

You should be able to get about 6 inches of slack which is enough to put an eyelet connector on the end of the wire (strip it first - duh) and there is even an existing hole right above where the parking brake pedal is that you can use with a sheet metal screw.

That's it. Reconnect the battery and make sure the car starts. If id does you're done and you can put everything back together.

What you need to remove from your car to get enough room to work behind the dash is up to you. You should be able to get away with removing the knee panel and the metal plate behind it.

I had been trying to remove the fuse panel and get at the module that way, which required that I remove the whole bottom part of the dash. It's not hard to do and maybe 10 screws but I'm not sure if it made a difference anyway.

Hopefully this helps someone else in the future. There's lots of good info here but it's spread across a lot of different threads!

 

[Baby-D]

?

Please tell me if I ordered the correct by pass ?


https://www.ebay.com/itm/GM-VATS-or...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

 

[Baby-D]

anyone ^ I just received the bypass module yesterday

 

[GhostFox]

Adding my experience in to this thread:

My car wouldn't start. No crank, no start. No noise from the starter. Pass Key Fault light blinking.

Resistor bypass already performed due to aftermarket alarm/remote start.


With much help from ROCKO350 we determined it to be a problem with the Theft Deterrent Module (TDM) and I performed a TDM bypass. Basically the TDM fails and no longer sends the signal to the relay needed to engage the starter. The bypass itself is pretty simple. It involves simply grounding one wire to the body. The hard part is getting to it.



DISCLAIMER: YOU WILL STILL NEED TO DISABLE VATS IN THE PCM OR YOUR FUEL INJECTORS WILL SHUT OFF AFTER A SHORT TIME! MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A TUNE WITH THE VATS DISABLED TO LOAD ON YOUR CAR BEFORE YOU TRY TO DRIVE IT!

First step is to disconnect the battery and locate the TDM. My car is a 95 Impala SS so this should apply to all Caprice/Impala. Not sure about Buicks, Cadillac or Oldsmobile.

Move your drivers seat back as far as it will go and lay with your back on the floor looking up. You will be able to see the TDM . I found a picture of it in this thread:

Theft Deterrent Module location

You can see it with the red x.

There is only one screw holding it up there. It is a major bitch to get to but it is doable. Mine wasn't very tight. I was able to get a small ratchet up there and loosen it a little and then just use the socket (7mm) with my fingers to remove it the rest of the way. Once you get the screw out you can shimmy the whole plate with the TDM attached to it down and out of it's retainer. On the other side you will find the TDM itself and a relay. You need to ground the yellow/black wire going from the TDM to the relay. You can see the wire in the below picture:

Unwrap some tape so you can see how much slack there is on the wire.

Do NOT be a moron like me and cut the wire near the relay. You want to cut the wire as far away from the relay as possible so you can ground the relay directly to the body thus bypassing the TDM.

You should be able to get about 6 inches of slack which is enough to put an eyelet connector on the end of the wire (strip it first - duh) and there is even an existing hole right above where the parking brake pedal is that you can use with a sheet metal screw.

That's it. Reconnect the battery and make sure the car starts. If id does you're done and you can put everything back together.

What you need to remove from your car to get enough room to work behind the dash is up to you. You should be able to get away with removing the knee panel and the metal plate behind it.

I had been trying to remove the fuse panel and get at the module that way, which required that I remove the whole bottom part of the dash. It's not hard to do and maybe 10 screws but I'm not sure if it made a difference anyway.

Hopefully this helps someone else in the future. There's lots of good info here but it's spread across a lot of different threads!

This was incredibly helpful. You should repost it in its own thread so it comes up easier in google searches and maybe it will get "sticky'd". This is the only place I found this info on vats / tdm / passkey removal for the 4th gen caprice / impala. Thank you.

 

[96SSEric]

Hi, I'm Eric and my wife and I have a 1996 Impala SS. Or should I say she does... anyway, died one night getting groceries so we towed it home. It was in a no crank/no start condition. I checked the neutral safety switch and it was ok, I bypassed the solenoid with a remote starter switch, and it ran, but cut off after a couple of seconds. I unplugged the connector to the ignition key cylinder, and read resistance with and without the key, they were both open. I bought a new key cylinder from AutoZone for $38 and plugged it in with my key in the new cylinder and turned my other key in the column and it started right up. I secured the old key in the new cylinder and isolated it under the dash and the car functions perfectly. By using my original key in the original cylinder, and the same switch and everything, I basically eliminated the chip part of the key. Tomorrow I'm going to get non chip keys made and see if they start the car. Saved loads of money and I hope this helps you too.
Eric
Four months later and the non chip key starts the car and the passkey light goes off when it should after it starts. Hope this helps someone

 

[[email protected]]

If your Pass-Key light is on continuously but the car runs, that means that there's a break in the circuit between the Theft Deterrent Module and the key. I have this on one of my cars but haven't had a chance to fix it.

What was the outcome of this?