From what (little) I know about VATS, I believe I have 3 options for disabling or fixing it. Of couse, I want the least expensive and least painful method. I'm not worried about the extra protection the VATS provides because the car has an alarm, I don't drive that much, it's garaged, the garage has an alarm, and when i'm driving it I have a .45 auto on my hip. It's pretty well protected. Here are what I believe to be my options. Please correct me if I am wrong, and toss in other options if I've missed any. The problem is that the car may start on the first try, or I may have to turn the key to the 'crank' position 50 times or 3 times, it varies randomly, before the engine will actually crank. It always fires immediately when it does finally crank.

1) I tried a new key, and it made no difference. From another post, I am sure it is the ignition key cylinder in the column. Therefore, I could either fix this myself or have it fixed at a dealer. No idea how much I'm looking at to have this done, but I always hate to replace faulty equipment with equipment that is just as likely to become faulty. Plus I don't want to mess with the airbag myself.

2) I can program the VATS out of the computer, although for me this means the expense of a laptop and learning LT1Edit. I would like to do this anyway, and we would have other uses for the laptop at home anyway, but right now is a very difficult time to spend this kind of cash. However, I have a feeling the cost would be nearly equal to having a dealer fix the ignition cylinder.

3) From a previous TPI swap, I believe there is a way to hardwire a resistor into the system to bypass the one in the key. Anyone done this in an engine swap???

 

If the problem is only the key cylinder, you can install a resistor for a few cents. Some info here.

 

To quote the tortoise from 'Finding Nemo', "Dude, You So Totally Rock!!!" That is exactly what I needed! That will be significantly cheaper than any of the other options.

 

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I priced the ignition switch & key at my local dealer. The switch was $95 dollars & the key was $35 {the metal 1/16" or so little piece that you see on each side of the key IS a resistor}...... I just used the old OHM meter like Shoebox recommended Mine registered 1128 on the ohm meter so I got a 510 & a 620 resister & put 'em together....... Bill

ps, THANK YOU SHOEBOX

 

The vatt function can't be programed out because it's not in the PCM. It's in the BCM.

 

BCM???

 

OK, I'm Electrically Retarded!!!

I need to measure the resistance in my car key so that I can hard wire a resistor into the harness and bypass the key altogether, as the ignition key cylinder is faulty and costs about $300 to repair. I managed to get 'a' reading from the multimeter that doesn't match any readings that are listed in the book, and got a resistor that gets me the 'same' reading, although neither reading makes any sense to me.

When I set my multimeter with the positive lead on:

V-Ohm-mA
750VAC
1000VDC
200mA MAX

and the negative lead on the ground, and I set the meter to 20k Ohms, I get a reading of 4.72. 4.72 WHAT??? 4.72 X 20,000 Ohms? That doesn't match my chart at all, nor does 4.72 Ohms.

So anyway, I bought a set of resistors that are labeled 4.7k-Ohm, and they measure 4.58-4.62 of whatever magical units the other measurements are giving me. So I feel pretty confident they'll work, but I would feel a lot better if I understood what the **** I was measuring and what my readings are telling me!!!

The other settings my Multimeter has on Ohms are:

2000k
200k
20k
2000
200

Remember I get my readings on the 20k Ohms setting.

Help!!!

 

.....350350, you've got the red & black leads hooked up correctly. But
set the Ohm meeter on 2000. Put the red lead on one side of the key and the
black lead on the other. Then you've got your reading. Don't worry,
you'll get it. I know you'll get it for a fact cuz I'm also an electrically retarded but I just went through all this last week.... Bill

 

yeah, I think it is 472 ohms

 

....good you got it..... Bill

 

Body Control Module...

up till 95 VATS was easy to turn off

 

The PCM can be programmed to ignore VATS fuel enable inuput from the BCM (or VATS module on pre 96s). You still must have the correct pellet on the key or have the pellet bypassed for the theft deterrent relay to operate the starter.

 

I spent some time reading about the BCM and I actually got some DTC's out of it, but all related to interior lighting. There is no real troubleshooting or diagnostic section on the 'car starting' of the BCM part of the factory service manual, unless I'm missing something.

I read about the interconnection between the PCM and the BCM and it seemed like I could hard wire everything out except for the fuel enable input from the BCM to the PCM. I wouldn't know how to fool the PCM into thinking the input was good... Is this possible, or does it have to be done with programming?

 

350350, I'm not sure if this is what your trying to accomplish or not
plus I have a '94 so may be its different but I finally just hooked mine
up with a toggle switch for on/off ignition, another on/off switch for
accessories, and a push button for the starter. No resistor(s) necessary,
I just hard wired everything together. I couldn't find, nor understand
even if I did find, any schmatics {sp. wrong} so I just touched different
wires together until I figured it out. It works just fine. Then hook up a
hidden toggle switch for theft if you want. Again, not sure if this is what
your trying to do, plus mine is a '94. If this is what your after and it'll help
you then I'll go look under my dash and tell you what color wires go
where..... Bill
ps, now I get to hear all the 'Mickey Mouse' hook-up comments from
everyone all over again .....

 

No, programming is not the only option for the fuel enable signal. You can buy a module that simulates the signal (it is a pulse width modulated ground-not just a normal ground). This is what people buy when they are doing a swap into another car (like S-10 or hot rod). I have seen them on Ebay.