Non-functioning PKE module
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,117
Likes: 1
From: Central NJ
Non-functioning PKE module
So today I called the dealer about the car im picking up this saturday, I asked if they had any problems with the car and they said that it was brought in when it had 27k miles for a problem (which they found out to be a bad pke module), the service tech is also sending me a copy of everything that was done maintenance wise.
My question is where can I get a replacment PKE module? Also,does anyone have experience with aftermarket alarms? I have a wiring diagram for my 96 CE, but will the aftermarket alarm enable the stock OEM security feature? Or will it not work because of the bad PKE?
I know on some cars that the solder goes bad (on the electrical componets) and that you can simply heat up the old solder and let it cool, this will fix some problems, what fails in these modules and is it fixable?
My question is where can I get a replacment PKE module? Also,does anyone have experience with aftermarket alarms? I have a wiring diagram for my 96 CE, but will the aftermarket alarm enable the stock OEM security feature? Or will it not work because of the bad PKE?
I know on some cars that the solder goes bad (on the electrical componets) and that you can simply heat up the old solder and let it cool, this will fix some problems, what fails in these modules and is it fixable?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 5,620
Likes: 206
From: Orlando FL
I would not say re-soldering will not fix a problem. But let me just say from personal experience that this particular circuit card is very well made and is a coated card to prevent corrosion. It is unlikely you will fix it with soldering. It is a pretty sophisticated card with 7 IC chips and one special function chip.
I would say most of the time a chip goes bad and some are proprietary meaning there are no useable part numbers on them. It is easier the find a used box somewhere and new ones can be had.
This is one source but not the cheapest. I never really searched the marker, I got lucky and found one close by to me.
http://www.artscorvetteparts.com/
I would say most of the time a chip goes bad and some are proprietary meaning there are no useable part numbers on them. It is easier the find a used box somewhere and new ones can be had.
This is one source but not the cheapest. I never really searched the marker, I got lucky and found one close by to me.
http://www.artscorvetteparts.com/
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,137
Likes: 5
From: Howard PA
If you're still interested at all in fixing your orginal PKE system I'm going to copy and paste this from one of my old posts. It's really long but answeres some of your questions. I'll help you out if you REALLY want to install an aftermarket alarm/keyless/remote start system but I'm going to persuade you think long and hard about it because it will not be easy for either of us through a PM or email system.
I'm a 24 year Electronics Technician and I have a lot of experience in car electrical systems. Just so you know you can interface a different keyless with the stock PKE installed, again though it might be beyond your scope and it would be much easier to get the stock system working correctly.
Anyway here's what I went through to fix mine...
I'm a 24 year Electronics Technician and I have a lot of experience in car electrical systems. Just so you know you can interface a different keyless with the stock PKE installed, again though it might be beyond your scope and it would be much easier to get the stock system working correctly.
Anyway here's what I went through to fix mine...
After many trials and tribulations with programming over and over and getting nowhere I decided to buckle down with the book.
Mine never flashed the sequence to look for the first fob. So reading the book it said to ground pin 8 of the DLC and look for the codes with the key in but not on. I didn’t get any codes, nothing happened. Then I thought about it a while and realized I never heard a “key in ignition warning” chime! Looking at pin A4 on the PKE module with a voltmeter revealed no change in voltage when I stuck the key in the whole way. I needed to disassemble the wheel and get to the ignition switch.
Disassembling the wheel isn’t a very easy task; I had to build my own tool to get that round clip out from the wheel lock mechanism. If you ever decide to remove your wheel be care full not to spin the airbag mechanism around. There’s a procedure in the book if you need to recalibrate or reposition it. Basically take it off and don’t **** with it!
On to the key switch, we’re talking about the switch that runs the chime along with some VATS operation and PKE not the chip reader. You have to remove a lot of stuff to get to it. It’s white in color and has two arms extending from it that contact the turn signal mechanism. I brought out the voltmeter again and looked for continuity across those two arms when I stuck the key in. It was making some contact but really high like 2MEG!
I pulled that switch out to look at it closer. (Remove the key or that switch won’t come out easy and you could break the whole thing, it just pulls right out) The contacts inside this switch were dirty. Taking this thing apart is a delicate operation; you have to pull the inner arm out first and then the outer arm. There are clips that hold both these arms in place. I fashioned a paperclip into a device to push the catches out of the way then pull the arms out. I cleaned the contact areas of both these arms with 400 grit sandpaper. Reassembled the switch reinstalled it and checked continuity again with the key the whole way in. I then had 0 ohms across it and the terminal A4 on my PKE module was switching from 12 to 0 as I ran the key in and out. This is after re-installing the turn signal mechanism to make the proper connections.
I then grounded pin 8 of the DLC once more and got a code of 13, “transmitter not in range” this told me the PKE receiver was now functioning correctly. Then I ran through the programming sequence again for the fob. It still didn’t work, never recognized the fob. I knew the receiver was working and waiting for a fob now because the light was giving me one flash about every two seconds. It never did that before I fixed the key switch.
So I took the fob down to my workbench (did I mention I an electronics tech?) re-soldered every connection including the IC and every feed through. As I was working on soldering everything one of the ends of a chip capacitor fell right off. It was a filter from the IC right to the antenna. Since the end fell off I couldn’t even measure it to see what it was, damit! I took a wild guess from another old key fob I had laying around. Don’t ask me what value it is I just used something that looked close from the doaner key fob. It may not even be needed, might just be for noise reduction, who knows. Anyway I finished soldering everything and went back out to try it. Low and behold everything works now to perfection. After it programmed the light started flashing two times about every two seconds waiting for the second fob. I pulled the key and walked away from the vehicle with the fob and heard the pleasing click of the doors and honk of the horn.
This whole thing took me about a day and a half to accomplish but it’s well worth the effort if you ask me to have the factory set up working properly.
BTW, pulling your dash cap to get to the PKE receiver really isn’t that hard or complicated. It’s just kind of time consuming. I did also remove the PKE receiver and re-solder the connectors going to the printed circuit board. None of them really looked bad but sometimes you can’t tell by just looking. I did them anyway for good measure.
Mine never flashed the sequence to look for the first fob. So reading the book it said to ground pin 8 of the DLC and look for the codes with the key in but not on. I didn’t get any codes, nothing happened. Then I thought about it a while and realized I never heard a “key in ignition warning” chime! Looking at pin A4 on the PKE module with a voltmeter revealed no change in voltage when I stuck the key in the whole way. I needed to disassemble the wheel and get to the ignition switch.
Disassembling the wheel isn’t a very easy task; I had to build my own tool to get that round clip out from the wheel lock mechanism. If you ever decide to remove your wheel be care full not to spin the airbag mechanism around. There’s a procedure in the book if you need to recalibrate or reposition it. Basically take it off and don’t **** with it!
On to the key switch, we’re talking about the switch that runs the chime along with some VATS operation and PKE not the chip reader. You have to remove a lot of stuff to get to it. It’s white in color and has two arms extending from it that contact the turn signal mechanism. I brought out the voltmeter again and looked for continuity across those two arms when I stuck the key in. It was making some contact but really high like 2MEG!
I pulled that switch out to look at it closer. (Remove the key or that switch won’t come out easy and you could break the whole thing, it just pulls right out) The contacts inside this switch were dirty. Taking this thing apart is a delicate operation; you have to pull the inner arm out first and then the outer arm. There are clips that hold both these arms in place. I fashioned a paperclip into a device to push the catches out of the way then pull the arms out. I cleaned the contact areas of both these arms with 400 grit sandpaper. Reassembled the switch reinstalled it and checked continuity again with the key the whole way in. I then had 0 ohms across it and the terminal A4 on my PKE module was switching from 12 to 0 as I ran the key in and out. This is after re-installing the turn signal mechanism to make the proper connections.
I then grounded pin 8 of the DLC once more and got a code of 13, “transmitter not in range” this told me the PKE receiver was now functioning correctly. Then I ran through the programming sequence again for the fob. It still didn’t work, never recognized the fob. I knew the receiver was working and waiting for a fob now because the light was giving me one flash about every two seconds. It never did that before I fixed the key switch.
So I took the fob down to my workbench (did I mention I an electronics tech?) re-soldered every connection including the IC and every feed through. As I was working on soldering everything one of the ends of a chip capacitor fell right off. It was a filter from the IC right to the antenna. Since the end fell off I couldn’t even measure it to see what it was, damit! I took a wild guess from another old key fob I had laying around. Don’t ask me what value it is I just used something that looked close from the doaner key fob. It may not even be needed, might just be for noise reduction, who knows. Anyway I finished soldering everything and went back out to try it. Low and behold everything works now to perfection. After it programmed the light started flashing two times about every two seconds waiting for the second fob. I pulled the key and walked away from the vehicle with the fob and heard the pleasing click of the doors and honk of the horn.
This whole thing took me about a day and a half to accomplish but it’s well worth the effort if you ask me to have the factory set up working properly.
BTW, pulling your dash cap to get to the PKE receiver really isn’t that hard or complicated. It’s just kind of time consuming. I did also remove the PKE receiver and re-solder the connectors going to the printed circuit board. None of them really looked bad but sometimes you can’t tell by just looking. I did them anyway for good measure.
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 1,867
Likes: 3
From: Pasadena Maryland
If you are sure you need a PKE box I have one. I bought one after going through the troubleshooting flow chart in the manual. After going through the entire procedure and following all the steps I came to the conclusion that my PKE box was bad, so I bought one. When I installed the new box nothing worked. It turned out that I had two wires that send ground or 12 volts from the passenger side door to the drivers side door that were cut or broken? I ran two new wires and everything worked fine, I installed the old PKE box and it worked fine so I left it in. As you know they sell for $350.00. If you are sure that is what you need I will sell you the new box for $200.00.
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,117
Likes: 1
From: Central NJ
If you are sure you need a PKE box I have one. I bought one after going through the troubleshooting flow chart in the manual. After going through the entire procedure and following all the steps I came to the conclusion that my PKE box was bad, so I bought one. When I installed the new box nothing worked. It turned out that I had two wires that send ground or 12 volts from the passenger side door to the drivers side door that were cut or broken? I ran two new wires and everything worked fine, I installed the old PKE box and it worked fine so I left it in. As you know they sell for $350.00. If you are sure that is what you need I will sell you the new box for $200.00.
