Automotive Kill Switches

Not only possible but trivial.

I was wondering if this was a serious question.

Yes it is possible, orientation of switch to be reversed though. I did it with two in my 65 Chevy Biscayne, that I had to sell to finish paying for college and am now restoring a 66 Chevy 1/2 ton and plan and putting two kill switches in it, both hidden, one under dash and one under the seat, and one has to be up and one will be down.

Answer to how difficult depends on how difficult it is to isolate your ignition wire - it's pretty easy in 66 Chevy...I would think it'd be really hard in a 2009 Mercedes SL500 SUV, hint hint.

It is possible, but not practical. Take a nice neat row of three position double throw switches. Start with he first switch run a 12 v0lt wire to the center post, and another wire from the upper post to the center of the next switch. pick either top or bottom of the second switch, and run to the next switch. Continue this till you get to the last switch. Then run this wire to the ignition coil. All this sounds good until you realize that you must move all of the switches every time to get the value out of the ten switches. After 2 months, you are only going to move one switch, so it will be easier for you to restart.

If you want some good ideas for cutout switches, look back on CR4 for another thread on cut out switches.

Yep. Just invert the ones that you want to be down for continuity. Works with any number and any combination of switches.

Most of them have no appreciable difference between on and off sides, so, thats a good and simple approach.

is this possible and is it difficult to accomplish?

Yes and yes. The biggest problem is that it is very easy to defeat, especially if you plan to mount the ten switches in plain sight (in which case you just gain access to the rear of the switches or the wiring and short the first and last switch to bypass the string of series-connected kill switches). Same thing if you use a panel-mounted combination lock (classy).

The best kill switch is a hidden kill switch. Also be aware that a kill switch will only defeat a simple inexperienced car thief, determined professional car thieves will be able to bypass any basic kill switch no matter how many you include and what they are connected to (although separate kill switches for the Ignition, Starter motor AND Fuel pump + a loud alarm siren may slow them down a little).

My neighbor has a magnet inside the dash panel if not manipulated a series of camera flashes will occur from the instrument panel followed by a loud siren and bright flashes on the exterior like a Smokey bear

You mean you have a magnet and such, but you're afraid that if you disclose the fact, someone will come to steal your Honda.

well thank you for all your input. i will be rethinking the kill switch idea. i just may even go with Ravelco. found it at www.nohotwire.com. i'm sure you have heard of this. but it's pricey.

From a previous thread.

You can never stop a determined thief.

You can hope to slow him down. Think of this trick. Use a fuse between the starter switch, and the starter relay. Connect a switch from the starter relay to a good ground. If the thief tries to start the car with the switch in the closed position, the fuse will blow, and the car will not start. If the thief has not made any noise, he will proceed to look for the cutout switch. If he finds it, the car still will not start, because the fuse blew when he first hit the starter. There will now be no power to the starter anyway.

As mentioned , the fuel cutoff is one of the better deterrents. If he gets your car started, and then it dies,he is going to get out of there as fast as he can. If the car dies in the middle of the road a block away, he is in a very vulnerable position. He will likely have to walk away as soon as he finds out it will not start. Hide the cutoff switch well.

Do you smoke? If not, use the cigarette lighter as a cutout switch. The element of a lighter can be shorted across to make a good cut out switch.

If your wiring skills are good, set a time delay to turn on the horn and lights if the switch is not shut off. The relay used for this should never shut off until you open the hood and disable it from another switch. ( You do have a hood lock don't you?) If the car stalls, and the horn and lights go off, the thief has to run. Your car may have a dead battery, but you will still have it.

If you ever find evidence of someone tampering with your car, take it as a warning that something scared away the thief. If he was there once, HE WILL BE BACK.

Now how badly do you want to keep this car? Good luck. I have other methods, but they get complicated at times. Good luck, and let me know how I can help.

__________________

I had a car that I was particularly concerned about being stolen while I was on active duty. Two 1/2" chains through a hole in the frame to a tree. As stated before, nothing will stop a determined thief. All you can do is slow him down, or make him want to go to another easier car. In NYC, car alarms are a joke. If you want attention, get a REAL siren. They can be bought from automotive aftermarket lighting companies. $250, gets you a 100 watt siren, and a matching speaker. Once it goes off, it becomes almost impossible to stay there.

what about key pad, it is not that expensive and easy to fit

Want to deter a thief? Install a removable steering wheel from Grant. Problem solved.

I have a 10" vice grips. I have been thinking about welding a steering wheel knob onto it. Where is your car parked? With the wheel off, it is so much easier to get to the key lock.

You see, when the Grant wheel is removed, it is replaced with a hi-visibility guard that is locked onto the column. Here's a link to the Grant Products site: Grant Security Products

If I were to consider stealing a car, one look inside and I think I would move on to another. What do you all think?

Well, that link doesn't take yop to the removable wheel either. So, what you do is click on Accessories in the left-hand column and then click on Vehicle Security.

While the system does look secure, this looks to be as awkward in a bar as the motorcycle helmet. It does look well thought out.

How much amperage can you put through that keypad? Not enough. You will have to use relays to do the work commanded by the keypad.

markg954:

I have another idea though not so easy. If you have a device to program the ignition voltage by a code then ignition will not start and engine will remain dead. How to achieve it is a technology and requires a professional device development. I know how to do it so others will also know how to do it. Just try a bit of brain work with electronics and high voltage pulses. I think this device may be a bit expensive in the range of $1000 as it involves high current and high voltage electronics.

I think there is a person or company in USA which can help. Company name is VS Holding. You can also take my help in understanding the technology, but going through professional help at this local company in USA may be faster.

Hi markg,

This is very possible, but what a waste of time.

Why would you want to do this. It only needs one of the friends you are or seem to be stopping taking your car to see the way the switches are set. And you will have to rewire them.

If I were you I would spend more time on CR4 and not worry so much about this silly mad thing you have in mind.

Take care and please keep in touch and do not forget to tell us the up and down switch 'code', just in case you forget. Have you any idea how many combinations there is of thoses ten switches?

Is it to stop you driving when you are drunk or what?

it's so trivial I designed one before I was driving. It's just a pain. It should be hidden and it's so easy to defeat. What might be cooler would be a timer that closes the ignition circuit for a period of a couple of minutes, then opens it back up. It's enough to convince the thief that there's something wrong with the car and go steal someone else's car. You could cross connect with the headlights so it won't run at all unless the headlights are on. Or the radio. I always thought it'd be fun to install a condenser that builds up enough charge to send a painful shock through the driver's seat every minute or two. Fingerprint recognition and retina recognition are common enough now you could probably install something like that fairly cheaply. You could put a scale under the seat so the car will start only when someone who weighs the same as you is sitting in the seat. If you don't mind getting sued, you could install a set of lasers designed to blind the driver if he doesn't respond to a stimulus by pressing the right switch or button on the dash. Unfortunately, a blind driver is likely to run into something and destroy your car.

it is entirely possible just interrupt the wires coming from the ignition an place the switches on the ground side (probably black) either way it should work even if its not on the ground side

Perhaps there is a more efficient method to accomplish your goal. What you describe seems quite unwieldy.

I like my e.g.'s over easy. e.g. cooked to a just barely done texture, e.g. partially raw, e.g. not fully cooked through.

Just messin witcha

It's ok - I can take it! (big boy now 70)

The e.g's are a (bad) habit I acquired because..
I don't quickly grasp the use of things myself these days.
(worlds moved on, and I find it an effort to keep up.)

In fact, I have a medal - bestowed upon me by my children,
- for stating the bleeding obvious!
(but I try not to show it off too often.)

My best regards.

jt.

I came,.. I saw,... I... faltered..eerr?

It's always good when someone can take a joke. I, being the maintenance Manager as well as the repair tech, am always the butt of others jokes. Your suggestions however were sound and your reasoning as well. I just thought i would take a poke at ya.

I am glad however, that you took no offence, as none was intended.

That sounds like an excellent system. I would add a locked bypass system that then requires the original key system so that the car can be given to the valet attendant, or sent out for repairs.

Yes...but all you will need is four. I put mine in the glove box that locks. I haven't figured out this flatbed thing yet, when I do, Ill get back to you!

To "Guests" in posts # 9, 11, 18, 19, 20, and 24. Just make up some stupid name or a number, and use it if you don't want to register. Reading six different posts that might or might not be from the same person makes this thread a joke. There are other people here that can and will provide as detailed a solution to the OPs problem as they desire. Your comments are good, but to us it seems as if you are arguing with yourself.

a simple system my friend had in an old jeep was single two way switch for ign. and acc. with a big starter button beside it and two momentary switches to activate them. the ign.switch supplied power to one momentary under the dash and a relay, the momentary sw.activated the relay to supply power to the ign. and relay to hold it open so that when the ign.is turned off the power source is removed and the relay resets and the starter button switch receves its power from the ign.switch and sends power to the second momentary under the seat and the starter a resistor coil was placed on a dummy line to the starter the second momentary switch activated a relay to bypass the resistor to start normal when the starter is used without the second momtary switch, the power passes through the coil first before it gets to the starter and it acts as if the batteries are to low to start the vehical if the first momentary is found

Hi All,

Mobile Phone operated switch can be used to secure your car.What of if it happen at gun point? You can't even press any switch at time.

The extent to which you value an object dictates the lengths you go to protect it.

they already use RFID's in vehicles to unlock them and unlock the ign. my dads Suzuki has it in the key fob

Free option if you're really concerned someone will steal your car: remove the spark plug wires.

No amount of switch toggling, key cylinder breaking, or steering wheel modding will defeat that.

Did I mention that its totally free?

Hi Guest,

In all seriousness, I did this all the time for three months anyway,............... Until they just towed it away!............ Never did find it.

But it is a good idea.

Maybe you could get your key button switch, which you use to lock the car, to switch on the engine demobiler, ready to start the car as you get in? Using a system of say three long 'clicks' to actually do this rather than the toggle switches?

Keep a duplicate key button in your pocket so you can turn the engine off if you get hi-jacked ?

Just a thought.

Take care.

Have you seen spark plug wires on any of the current Coil on Plug engines?

Any car that new is likely to have some sort of theft deterrant system, if not standard then at least as a purchaseable option.

Hello, like some have said already use hidden switches. My take is this, use SPDT switch breaking the circuit to the out side connector with center going to circuit you want to control, Then tie the other side of the switch to ground. This prevents the thief from hot wiring the circuit at the device. Sparks everywhere.

Another neat idea is tie the ignition switch through a relay with the relay controlled with the brake pettel depressed "brake lights on" to power the relay also can use a multi connector and plug with jumpers in it to interrupt the circuits power, ground, and source. With out the plug no start. This was used on my wife's car. It came from a rental program. Without the plug it would not start. The plug controlled three relays which controlled the fuel pump, starter circuit and injector/oil pressure sensors. The relays were mounted under the dash in different places. The plug had 8 terminals. The way it was wired there was 12vdc, ground, signal "brake pettel depressed" and looped through to relays. The harness took care of the rest of the wiring needs.

This plug system works good for the rental companies, remove plug and if someone has a key to the car it won't start without plug. You could even set up a system with one or two plugs. If you were to have someone park your car just leave it running and remove one plug that controls the start circuit with the "break depressed" when you turn it over to the parking attendant."warn them not to turn off the car before parking or they won't be able to start it." Then when you retrieve your car give them the plug to install and tell them to step on the break pettel before starting it.

And any other time take both plugs with you.

Also another idea with this system is to tie the ignition switch into a timer with 2-4 alarms horns inside the car like 2 under the dash, seat, under the hood and in the trunk. Make it so unpleasant the thief has to leave and with several horns/alarms sounding it would be hard to stop them all quickly.

Charles

If you can't afford secure parking why spend $$$ on a vehicle, insurance, registration and maintenance take the bus...

Get a realistic looking stuffed animal dog that looks like it is curled up and sleeping. Put it on the floor of the passenger side. Get some realistic looking plastic dog poop. Place it on the middle of the drivers side seat. That should lower your risk quite a bit.

A regular car alarm that I had installed in 1985 has a kill switch with remote control and door alarms with vibration sensor for if someone wants to steal your tires and a nice loud siren with different alarms. But unfortunately most people ignore car alarms because they set off accidentally and sound pretty much the same.

I plan on improving mine with a very loud amplifier and a Star Trek Red Alert sound. Plus if the bad guy gets into the car a high pitched near ultrasonic at high volume will not be pleasant to listen too while he/she is trying to hot wire my truck.

one of my best friends was told no more insurance coverage for thefts. his 5 ton kept getting stolen. he home made exactly what you are asking about. he added another key switch and 5 rocker switches. 3 position, not 2. just to thoroughly confuse anyone who tried. many tried but could not get the combination. just in case, he switched wire colours midstream before junctions/ switches. just don't forget your combination.

Just install one of these. Problem solved!!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ee3L9BQQ4Gs