Help with warning buzzer please!
Thread Starter
Former Vendor
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 378
Likes: 0
From: Moroso Performance, Guilford, CT, 203-453-6571
Help with warning buzzer please!
Hi,
My '78 sits a lot. It is fairly new to me, so I am still learning it. I keep it on a trickle charger so the battery is always ready to go just in case I want to drive it.
Within the last month, the "key is in the ignition reminder tone" has started going on at random. The key is NOT in the ignition. Usually I have to disconnect the battery to get it to stop. It seems to stop for a couple/few days, then it will start ringing again.
Any idea what could cause this? Where I should look?
Thanks for any help as usual!
Rick
My '78 sits a lot. It is fairly new to me, so I am still learning it. I keep it on a trickle charger so the battery is always ready to go just in case I want to drive it.
Within the last month, the "key is in the ignition reminder tone" has started going on at random. The key is NOT in the ignition. Usually I have to disconnect the battery to get it to stop. It seems to stop for a couple/few days, then it will start ringing again.
Any idea what could cause this? Where I should look?
Thanks for any help as usual!
Rick
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 7,123
Likes: 433
From: Gladstone MO
C3 of Year Finalist (appearance mods) 2019
The switch is in the column under the ignition lock cylinder. It may be gummed up and sticking. Not hard to get at, but you'll need to pull the steering wheel.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 8,837
Likes: 1,028
Intermittent faults are the hardest things to troubleshoot. I am not sure of 78, but in 81 the key buzzer and seat belt buzzer are 1 unit. It is transistorized. Judging from the many failures I see here of pulse wipers, tachs, dome light timers, and such. I would start there. Unplug the thing, and have it checked out.
I would also suggest purchase of the Helms manual, as it has a checklist to troubleshoot this item, and it's circuits.
I would also suggest purchase of the Helms manual, as it has a checklist to troubleshoot this item, and it's circuits.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 113
From: Saginaw Michigan
Here is a link to a paper on trouble shooting the key buzzer system. However, as mentioned above, intermittant problems are very hard to figure out, unless you can catch it while the malfunction occurs.
http://jimshea.corvettefaq.com/wp-co...rDiagnosis.doc
Jim
http://jimshea.corvettefaq.com/wp-co...rDiagnosis.doc
Jim
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 4,757
Likes: 2,506
From: Buckeye, AZ
St. Jude Donor '12-'13
I have the same problem on mine. While I would l like to think it is the electronics, I do not believe that is it, as I have opened the module and is just a couple of transistors and resistors. From what I have read I believe it is the switch. I have read that simply by lubing the lock it will lube the switch as well, so I may try that. I really don;t care about the lock alarm, but this module also acts as the headlamp alarm. While I have never locked the keys in, I have left the lights on. I am going to fiddle with mine this weekend. I may even go so far as to remove the steering wheel again to pull the switch and replace it if I ahve to.
Team Owner
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 37,637
Likes: 3,118
From: Crossville TN
Your first course of action is to spray some WD-40 or PB Blaster (cleaner/degreaser) into the steering column lock assembly. Just put the little extender tube in the key slot and shoot a few times. You may want to aim it down, as the switch is below the slot. Then push the key in and out of the slot, and turn it to "ON" [not START] a few times to get the fluid down in the switch. The switch is "exercised" every time you insert the key, so this should loosen things up....IF the switch is just gummed up. Oh, don't squirt oil or graphite in there; that may be what stuck it in the first place (or just an accumulation of airborne oils/vapor0. Hope that works for you. Otherwise, you can disassemble the column to fix it correctly--or just pull the proper lead off of the horn relay [where the buzzing comes from], if you just want to stop it from buzzing.
Team Owner
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 37,637
Likes: 3,118
From: Crossville TN
A continuity check of the offending switch (via the appropriate wiring) would determine if the switch was intermittent...or if it was stuck and the relay was intermittent (which is what I suspect). I still think the first attempt should be the easiest thing to try.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 6,001
Likes: 113
From: Saginaw Michigan
WD40 is not a lubricant. You can use it to clean things but the lock cylinder should be lubricated. The steering column engineers at Saginaw told me that a drop of synthetic motor oil on the tip of the key should be worked into the lock cylinder to lubricate it.
If you need to remove your key buzzer switch or the lock cylinder, complete instructions can be found at www.corvettefaq.com
Click on Jim Shea Steering Articles
Click on Corvette Steering Papers
Scroll down to the Standard (non-adjustable) or the T&T sections.
The information is in Paper #1 and Pic #1 as well as the Steering Wheel Pics for your type steering column.
Jim
If you need to remove your key buzzer switch or the lock cylinder, complete instructions can be found at www.corvettefaq.com
Click on Jim Shea Steering Articles
Click on Corvette Steering Papers
Scroll down to the Standard (non-adjustable) or the T&T sections.
The information is in Paper #1 and Pic #1 as well as the Steering Wheel Pics for your type steering column.
Jim
Thread Starter
Former Vendor
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 378
Likes: 0
From: Moroso Performance, Guilford, CT, 203-453-6571
Alright!
Thanks for all the input and info! I printed Jim Shea's article and I will start disassembling this weekend.
Thanks again everyone. I think I should be able to figure it out!
Rick
Thanks for all the input and info! I printed Jim Shea's article and I will start disassembling this weekend.
Thanks again everyone. I think I should be able to figure it out!
Rick
