rickb20

You said, "The main ones I still have to deal with are a) what to do with the steering lock..."

How did you handle this? It sure would suck to have this one component/connection fail and your steering wheel to lock while you're driving 60mph down the interstate.

MN

Points well taken. I can see how the programming and interfacing the iPhone in order to reliably and securely lock/unlock the car (including steering lock), arm/disarm the alarm, and powering up/down the ignition system could turn into a nightmare.

Has anyone any experience with the "2 GO KEYLESS" system from Digital Guard Dawg (www.digitalguarddawg.com/2GOKEYLESS1.html)?

MN

rickb20

Well, maybe it eliminates the 'turn-key', but you know what I meant:

http://www.auto-hub.com/stardrive_pu...ignition.html#

cb944

Ha ha! I wish I'd seen that before I started all this... mind you, it is quite a lot more expensive than my setup. My RFID alarm cost ~£80, the push button was ~£15. The latching relay was quite expensive at £25, the other relays were around £3 - £4 each.

I'm still working on this. Currently I still need the key to disengage the steering lock. I note in the link above that they rather optimistically say you should read the 'steering column repair FAQ'. By 'repair' they seem to mean 'remove the colmn lock'. This is probably what I'll be doing as well... as I agree with you, to say it would suck if the column locked itself on the interstate would be an understatement

I've looked at other alternatives, such as some sort of rotary solenoid or perhaps retro-fitting some sort of electronic steering lock from another car, but I'm leaning towards just disabling the steering lock.

The steering lock is a security feature which I don't think is entirely necessary with this alarm installed. The car alarm I have will immobilise the car, a siren will sound and the lights will flash when the alarm is triggered. My additional wiring also ensures that the car is further immobilised when the RFID keyfob is not near the car.

If someone managed to bypass this mass of wires, most of which are only accessible by removing parts of the dash, they'd surely also be able to bypass any sort of electronic steering lock I might be able to rig up. Chances are a theif would come armed with a bar, or a screwdriver, or whatever you need to break the steering lock anyway.

My one thought in favour of keeping a steering lock is that if I could make the steering lock only engage when the car's battery is removed, then that would act as a last resort should someone pull the battery and try to tow the car away. I think that's a bit unlikely to happen with a car of this age now - what I'm going to do now is buy a spare ignition barrel/metal surround so I can better understand what's going on with the steering lock. Then I'll decide on my next course of action!

Chris.

rickb20

Chris,

In any case, I admire the work you've already done on this project.



Rick