While everything possible has been done for the newer car models to hide the wires, as well as equipping the steering column with safety measures to prevent the engine from starting by making contact with the wires, previous models produced up to mid-1990s are typically good candidates for this purpose. This is a useful technique to know if you lose your car keys and need to start the engine. Be very careful while untangling the wires, and consult the instruction manual for specific directions regarding the color coding of the wires and the wiring of your car model. Check the first method for more information if you want to know how to get started with unlocking the steering column and using other systems.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Connect the Wires in the Steering Column
Step 1. Get in the car
Don't crack a car door if it's not your property and you don't have the documentation to prove it. Know that if your vehicle has an alarm, cracking the doors will trigger it.
- This system, and indeed most systems for starting a car with contacts, only works with cars produced up to the mid-1990s. Newer models come with a bunch of locking mechanisms to prevent contact starting unless you are extremely familiar and familiar with the specific car model. If you try a 2002 Honda Civic, you will likely end up setting off the alarm and blocking the starter, with the result that no one will be able to drive the car.
- If you can consult the instruction manual, check and make sure the steering column and gear selector can be overridden. In fact, with this system they could be seriously damaged.
Step 2. Remove the plastic steering column cover
It is usually held by some hidden clothespins or some Phillips screws. Remove them and reveal the access panel.
Alternatively on some even older models you can break the starter lock pistons by inserting a flathead screwdriver into the keyhole, hitting it with a hammer and turning it. It is very difficult - if not impossible - to do it by hand, but if you think the car is old enough to allow it, you can give it a try
Step 3. Find the clamp with the cable connectors
After removing the steering column panels, you should spot a tangle of electrical wires. Don't be intimidated, but try to identify each group of cables. There are usually three main groups of threads:
- Wires connected to controls mounted on the steering column on one side, such as those for lights, cruise control, and other gauges
- Wires connected to controls mounted on the steering column on the other side, such as those from the wipers or seat heating
- The wires that go to the battery, ignition and starter motor and that run right down the steering column.
Step 4. Take the battery, ignition, and starter wire assembly aside
The first will be the main source of electrical power for the ignition switch, the second the ignition and the last the starter. The other colored threads serve different purposes designed by the manufacturer. To make sure you identify each group of wires correctly, consult the instruction manual or search the internet.
The ignition wires are usually brown and the starter wires are yellow, while the battery wires are almost always red. However, even in this case the only way to be sure is to read the manual. You are not MacGuyver; you might get shocked if you mess up the wires
Step 5. Strip the battery wires about 2.5 cm and twist them together
If you have electrical tape available, use it to wrap them, and be careful they don't make contact with any metal parts in the car. Connecting the battery wires supplies electrical current to the ignition devices, allowing the engine to run when the starter is turned.
Step 6. Connect the ignition wire to the battery wires
As you do so, you should see the lights and other electrical components come on. If your goal is to listen to the radio, you've already achieved it. On the other hand, if you want to drive, you will need to give the starter cables a few sparks, which could become dangerous.
Step 7. With great care, strip the ignition cable about 2.5 cm
It is a powered wire, so you have to keep it very carefully especially compared to the other bare wires. With the end of this wire it touches the battery wires. Do not wrap them together, but touch them together causing them to spark to start the engine.
Step 8. Crank up the engine
If you want to start the car, crank up the revs so that the engine doesn't stall and you don't have to repeat the process again.
Once the engine has started, you can unplug the starter wire and continue on your way. When you want to turn off the engine, just untie the battery wires from the ignition wires and the car will shut down
Step 9. Break the steering lock
You started the car and are ready to whiz into the sunset, right? Wrong. Even if the car is in motion, the steering column should be locked, which means you have to break the steering lock to be able to turn, unless you want to go deep into a ravine.
- In some cars all you have to do is take out the key cylinder that releases a spring, and break the steering lock. If you've tried pushing the screwdriver into the lock before since you have a car that dates back to the mid-seventies to mid-eighties, the steering lock is probably already broken.
- For some models there is no need to use a lot of elbow grease. Turn the steering vigorously to both sides as if it were unlocked. You can also use a hammer and pry the steering wheel. You should hear the noise when it breaks and the steering wheel comes free, and you can drive freely at this point.
Method 2 of 3: Drill the Lock Mechanism
Step 1. Place the drill bit over the keyhole approximately two-thirds of the way through the opening
The goal of this method is to destroy the lock mechanism and its internal pins in order to start the car by turning a screwdriver instead of the key inside the lock itself. This is a common method for cars whose keys have been lost.
Step 2. Drill for a length roughly equal to that of the key
Each lock pin is made up of two sections followed by a spring, so insert the drill more than once, pulling out the bit each time to allow the internal pins to fall apart.
Step 3. Insert the screwdriver the same way you would insert the key
It should not be inserted too far because the lock pins are already broken. Use the screwdriver as you would use the wrench, turning it about a quarter turn clockwise to try to start the engine.
Warning: with this method you destroy the ignition with the key and you risk that anyone, using a screwdriver or a sturdy fingernail, can steal your car
Method 3 of 3: Power up the Dashboard
Step 1. Open the hood and locate the red coil wire
Both the cap and the coil on almost all V8 engines are placed on the rear of the engine. In engines with four cylinders they are located on the right side near the center of the engine. In those with six cylinders on the opposite side: on the left, always near the center.
Step 2. Pull out the cables for the battery
Connect a cable from the positive pole of the battery to any of the positive poles of the coil, or to the red wire connected to it. This is how the dashboard is powered, a fundamental step in starting the engine.
Step 3. Locate the starter solenoid
In Fords it is located behind the right bumper. In the GMs it is above the starter under the steering wheel.
Step 4. Unlock the steering wheel
Insert a flathead screwdriver centered into the top of the steering column, prying between the steering wheel and the column. The goal is to unlock the retaining clips on the steering wheel. Don't worry, you can be brutal at this stage.
These pegs won't break or set off any alarms, and you should be able to find the solenoid that should be right under there
Step 5. Connect the solenoid to the positive pole of the battery
You will see a small wire on top of the solenoid and underneath the positive battery lead. Remove the starter switch wire from the solenoid and, using an insulated screwdriver, short the positive pole of the solenoid to the terminal the starter switch was connected to.
This applies a voltage of 12 volts directly from the battery. The solenoid is activated, and the starter should start the car
Advice
- If you start your car with contacts you risk seriously damaging it.
- Once you have finished starting the engine, never leave the starter wires connected. Otherwise the car's starting system would burn out, and at the very least drain the battery.
- If you contact incorrectly, the alarm will go off in most cars.
- Use this information responsibly.
- Vehicles that have an electronic chip in the ignition lock cannot be switched on with the contacts, because it is precisely the chip that activates the Electronic Control Module, without which the car will not start.
Warnings
- If the ignition wires come off while you are driving, the engine would immediately shut down, and you would end up with no traction, no steering and no brakes.
- Wear insulated gloves.
- Do not use this information for illegal purposes, for example to steal cars.
