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Sedans Pontiac Grand Am Pontiac Grand Am Security Passlock Problems
740 messages, Last post on Dec 08, 2009 at 4:13 PM
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Replying to: drhrejsa (Oct 27, 2009 7:27 am) There are a number of things which could be wrong with your car. For a car to run, you must have three things: The proper amount of fuel must be delivered to the cylinders There must be compression There must be spark These are the basics. If too much fuel is delivered to the cylinders, the car will flood. This could be your problem. Sometimes, when a car sits overnight, and certain conditions exist, there will be too much fuel in the intake, and the engine will not start until the excess fuel is cleared. That may be what is happening in your case. After trying for a long time, the excess fuel is finally driven out of the cylinders by the constant cranking, and finally, the engine is no longer flooded, and it will start. If there is not sufficient compression, your engine will not start. This could also be the problem you are having. Constantly turning the engine over with the starter may be warming the cylinders enough to make them finally fire up the fuel, even when the compression is low. If the ignition system does not deliver a high enough intensity spark, this could also cause the vehicle not to start. Again, as the engine gets a bit warmer from turning it over for a prolonged time, this may be overcome. These are my recommendations. * Check the compression of all your cylinders. I don't know how to do this, but any competent mechanic should be able to do it. A quick check is to listen to your engine as you try to turn it over. If it seems to be turning over very fast, but does not fire up, this could be a sign of low compression. The only way you would know if it is turning over very fast is if you were to compare it to a similar car that starts correctly. * Make sure you are getting good spark to all cylinders. Again, any good mechanic should know how to do this. This isn't that easy to do on the V-6 engines, since they are so crammed into the engine compartment that it is difficult to get to the spark plugs. * Make sure that fuel is being delivered to the cylinders. You will need a shop manual for your vehicle to determine how to do this, but I understand that there is a valve somewhere on the fuel rail where you can check for proper fuel pressure. See my post #599 in this thread for a link to where to purchase a shop manual. I am afraid that you really do need a mechanic to repair your vehicle. It is sad that you have had your car to mechanics who are not willing to diagnose your problem and perform the correct maintenance and repairs. |
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My 2003 V6 Grand Am has been having some small problems lately ( the wipers stop working mid swipe and the clock resets itself to 12 regularly). The past few days its been hesitating when I go to start it and today It would not start at all. No trying to start and failing - nothing happened when I turned the key. No radio, heat - NOTHING.. I had it jumped and it started right away and then checked the battery and it said that it is fine. I took it to autozone to have them check that battery, prepaired to buy a new one but they said it's fine too.. After jumping my car it starts fine, but I'm not convinced that there is no problem at all with the car. The alternator is working (we disconnected the battery after it started and it ran fine). And the car runs fine after a jump. Any ideas before I go drop a mess of cash for a problem that will most likely resurface in a few months...
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Replying to: emo78 (Oct 28, 2009 10:59 am) But to address your problem anyway, You should probably disconnect your battery cables from the battery, make sure he terminals are ABSOLUTELY clean, and that the contact points on your battery also are clean and bright. Then re-connect your battery terminals, making sure they are secure. If you can get to the other ends of the battery cables, you might want to do the same there. Once you are sure your battery cables are secure on both ends, start the vehicle and let it run for 10 seconds or so, then shut it off. Do that about 20 times, letting it sit at least an hour between starts. If you don't have any problems, you probably will have enough confidence in the car to take it out of your driveway. Good Luck The Passlock Security Nazi |
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ok so i followed the advice from http://www.bergerweb.net/grandamsecurityfix.htm worked wonderfully. car starts every time. now my question is, now my Security light is on all the time. is there a relearn procedure i can preform for light to go off? or am i stuck with it on? Thanks in advance.
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Replying to: grandamgt2002 (Oct 30, 2009 10:46 am) The light being on all the time is an indication that the resistor you soldered into the circuit is not connected. There is an open circuit in your wiring. Either you soldered the resistor in to the wrong side of the yellow wire, you broke the resistor, or in some other manner, the circuit became open. To troubleshoot, do the following: Remove the middle connector from the BCM. Measure the resistance between Pins A6 and B6. The resistance should be the same as the resistor you soldered in place. If it isn't, there is an error in your installation, or there is an open or short in your wiring. Re-read the page on the web site thoroughly, and you will see that when the light is on solid, it means that your circuitry is bad. |
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Replying to: lovemygrandam (Oct 26, 2009 3:16 pm) waiting 10 minutes almost every time I started my car.....Ja |
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I recently updated my web blog about the Passlock Security System on Pontiac Grand Am and other GM vehicles. This blog describes in detail how to solve issues with the Passlock II system on GM cars. It also contains all the posts in this thread which have valuable information about GM's Passlock system. If you are having any Passlock problems, I suggest you go to my web page and read it thoroughly. Here is a link to it. Grand Am Passlock Security System Repair
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Replying to: lovemygrandam (Nov 02, 2009 11:12 am) I'd just like to say thanks for all your help. I followed your instructions on your website, step by step to fix my 2000 Oldsmobile Alero. So far, after two weeks, I have had no problems with the Security light coming on or the car starting (knock on wood!). To anyone who suspects their passlock problem can be fixed with Mr. Berger's method, I suggest you try it (at your own risk, mind you). I had never soldered before, but quickly picked it up after watching several Youtube videos. Mr. Berger's pictures and guide are extremely helpful. Again, proceed at your own risk and mechanical know-how. Thanks a ton! -mizzOUstu702 |
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Replying to: lovemygrandam (Nov 02, 2009 11:12 am) I WISH I FOUND THIS WEBSITE before...instead i called my mechanic who came towed the car and fixid, he then told me he had to call someone else to fix the passlock thing but he already told it was something to with it when he towed the car. I can't believe how stupid i was withtout checking the Manual and do the 10 seconds' thing to make the car start again. Honestly i can't tell you if the car was doing any noise in the past days...a tlinking or stuff like that since it makes a lot of noise. My GrandAm is a 1997 with 130,000 miles and i can tell you that it runs fine!! Anyway tonight i picked up the car... my mechanic which i have always considered honest,at least with me, charged me $ 300 ... towing included and the problem seems fixed. I hope so. What do you think???
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Replying to: robyr77 (Nov 03, 2009 4:42 pm) Take a look at your work order. If he replaced the Ignition switch, he probably fixed your problem correctly, and you got by a lot cheaper than going to a dealer. If he didn't replace the ignition switch, check to see what he actually did, and see if it makes sense. Remember, Passlock problems are caused by either: 1. Ignition Switch 2. Wiring & connectors 3. Body Control Module Doing the 10 minute reset is not worth $300. Why? Because it only takes 10 seconds to turn the ignition on, and 15 seconds to check to see if it worked 15 minutes later.... Total repair time - less than 30 seconds. |
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