Anyone who was with me at the racetrack Saturday knows my car died twice in the
staging lanes, due to a problem with my VATS. I figured it was the module
itself, or some circuitry there. It wouldnt start on me 3 times in a row
yesterday morning, making me late for work. I called my dad when I got to work,
and said we need to figure out what's causing this and fix it. My dad
called his friend at Selman Chevrolet, and spoke with him for a few minutes.
He suggested it might be the key, since it was cheaper, and easier to fix.
So I took my lunch hour and met my dad over there. His friend Danny took a
look at my key and immediately said that was probably the problem. My key
was pretty worn around the resistor pellets, he said, and wasnt making a
good connection with the contacts in the ignition lock. $19 and 5 minutes
later, I had a new key. I tried it and the car has started every time now
for the last half dozen attempts. It'll take a few days to see whether it
does it again, but after looking at both keys, I bet we fixed it. This
started back in June of last year at the Car Craft Anti-Tour, when it
wouldnt start for me in the staging lanes at LACR. It did it once more,
but never came up again until I started burning my own PROMs last month. I
figured that was the cause of it, with messing with the computer so much
swapping PROMs, but it must have been coincidental. I just hope this is
fixed!!!


------------------
West Coast GM Shootout 2001!
1991 Camaro Z28
5.7L 5-Speed (originally 305)
13.25 @ 107.18 MPH
Southern California
Member: SoCal 3rd Gen F-Bodies
Webmaster: SoCal F-Bodies
-=ICON Motorsports=-

 

Kevin91Z -

Just curious if you fixed the VATS problem described earlier in the year...

 

Kevin, I am willing to bet the key (or tumblers or both) are 90% of ALL VATS problems. I too started to encounter problems starting my car 4 years ago. Much like yours, it first happened once and then I never had it again for a long time. Then it started again, and then began occuring more and more.

I was just about to take my car to the shop to have it analyzed when some SOB broke into my car and attempted to steal it. VATS protected my car, but they made a big mess out of my ignition and steering column, requiring the a new the ignition lock and a new key (with a differect resistor pellet). I haven't had the problem since. It was about the only good news when the SOBs tried to steal my car.

[This message has been edited by Glenn91L98GTA (edited August 28, 2001).]

 

No, I never fixed it. After I wrote the above, it stopped working again a few weeks later even with the new key. Its either the VATS module, the lock cylinder, or something else. In the meantime I just have VATS disabled in the chip and the car will start with either key.

------------------
1991 Camaro Z28
5.7L 5-Speed (originally 305)
317 RWHP, 418 RWTQ
13.23 @ 107.62 MPH
Southern California
Member: SoCal 3rd Gen F-Bodies
Member: SoCal F-Bodies
-=ICON Motorsports=-

 

That's strange. Did you disable the starter bypass relay? The VATS module should prevent cranking via that relay.

 

If it was the VATS module I don't think it would work at all. I think it is the lock cylinder, especially since the new key helped a little.

 

Yes I disabled the starter VATS relay too.

 

That would lead me to ask: Did you disable the relay function in the chip; or did you do something to the relay itself physically?

And if physically, what did you do? Bypass it, ground it, or whatever???

 

I disabled VATS in the chip, and put in a remote starter switch for the starter relay.

Why all the interest in this all of a sudden? You guys planning on stealing my car?

 

...The Rulez say no buying or selling...Nothing about stealing...

 

Kevin -

You might find this Corvette bulletin on ign key/VATS problems interesting...

http://www.corvetteforum.net/c4/rayq...sbs/88-292.htm