Chuck Tribolet

I'm installing a remote keyless entry in my '87. How the
heck do you fish the wires from the door lock switch in
the door to the instrument panel? I've got the door
trim panel off, but can't see a way to fish things through.


Chuck

LaVidaLoca

Don't think you need to do that. If I recall correctly the switches from both sides go to the door lock/unlock relay in the dash. You can hook up your remote there. Much less work.

Midnight 85

There is a tool that works perfectly for that but all I know it by is a pick up tool. It is about 2 ft. long and looks like a manual choke cable or heater control cable. It has a push button on one end that when depressed pushes three little prongs out the other end. Run the tool through the door, push button and place wires in the prongs, release button & drag wires back through door. Sorry for the **** poor description, I'll see if I can find a pic.

http://www.mytoolstore.com/kd/kdspec10.html#2391
This isn't a very good pic but it tells the mfgr, (KD) and the part number

Chuck Tribolet

There is no door lock/unlock relay in the dash. The
wires I need to pick up go from the lock/unlock switch
in the passenger's door to the lock/unlock switch in the
driver's door. The wire through the dash doesn't have
a lot of slack to work with. Also, batee.com and
several folks here say to do it in the passenger's door.


Chuck

LaVidaLoca

Think my memory was rusty. Maybe it was not a relay that had the connections to the door switches but the Theft Deterent Module. At least the dash is where I hooked mine up.

Chuck Tribolet

There's a lot of stuff that goes to the TDM, but the
lock/unlock wires there are between the two solenoids
and are shorted to ground by the lock/unlock switch
in the passenger door.

batee.com talks about removing the door trim panel
but doesn't go into how to fish the wires.

Chuck Tribolet

Or Lisle 31140. Unfortunately, I can't get it around
the Bose speaker box.


Chuck

jon0108

coat hanger. run it through, attach wires to it and pull. Or an electricians snake

Chuck Tribolet

Electrician's snake was the first thing I tried. I spent
about an hour messing with it. I suspect the coat
hanger would have the same problem.

I've got the wires through with the grabber. The
problem was that it wasn't making the corner around
then Bose speaker box to get to the correct part of the
door jamb. I put about a 10 degree bend in the grabber
and then when it hit the door jamb it deflected down.
I'd loosed the metal piece that holds the rubber bellows,
so then I reach in and feel it. I finessed it out a bit,
grabbed a piece of 1/8" nylon line and fished that
through the door. Then I came in from the instrument
panel side with the grabber and repeated the process.
I then pulled the wires through with the nylon line.


Chuck

jon0108

Glad you got it. It seems like you know what your doing. Sometimes you just have to step away from the project and take a break. Anyway, when its done your going to love that keyless entry.

Chuck Tribolet

I can't just step away. I have to have the car driveable
again on Thursday next week to drive to Tucson.
Anyway, just soldered the first connection. The only
thing that's questionable at this point is getting the
headlight switch out to hook up the parking lights, and
I'm pretty sure I can do that.

Thanks to all for their help on this. I'm building a web
page as I go, which will hopefully help the next fellow.


Chuck

rons85

Why wouldn't you just do it the easy way and connect right to the door lock Relay, which lives behind the OIC in the middle of the dash, next to the theft deterrent module? There's even enough room in that center section to hide the box for the aftermarket keyless entry unit. And it's a cinch to run the antenna wire along the top of the dash, the horn relay is right there, etc...

The only hard part is hooking up the "trunk" release, with that relay way back by the rear window latch nechanism. I tied onto the hatch release switch in the center armrest, but it would have probably been less work to just run a wire all the way to the back, to the relay. Taking the center console apart is a PIA.

Raidmagic

I know you already did it but I thought I'd throw my .02 in there. I fished my door speaker wires through with a coat hanger. Just bend the end so it won't rip the rubber then tape the loop with the wire on the way back through. I don't have the bose boxes anymore either so that helped.

Chuck Tribolet

There is no door lock relay. The door lock switches
directly fire the door lock solenoids.

My theft deterrent module is in the middle of the
passenger's side of the dash, down low.

It's not going to be a problem running a wire to the
hatch release -- the center console stuff is already
loose because I had to replace a window switch. And
you REALLY don't want to tie directly to the hatch
release solenoid. If you do that, the hatch can be
opened on the freeway. Somebody's kid will be
messing with the spare set of keys and do it. The
switch in the console is interlocked so that either
the ignition is off or the parking brake is on (manual
transmission) or the transmission is in Park or Neutral
(automatic). So there will be a relay somewhere that
simulates pushing the hatch release button.

BTW, folks, current state is that I can lock and unlock
doors, and the car still starts. The wires are all fished
up top of the dash. I'm going to mount the control
unit on top of the heater duct in the middle of the
dash with Velcro. I'm not real happy about that
because it's a hot place, but I figure the Velcro will
provide some insulation.

I still need to hook up the parking lights and
hatch release, and then put all the interior stuff
back together again.

I'm again comfortable that I'll make my Wed. night
deadline (leaving on a 2000 mile round trip at 0 dark
thirty Thursday). I was a bit nervous about that
yesterday (though the car was drivable, though
missing a lot of interior panels).


Chuck

Chuck Tribolet

Not having the Bose boxes would have made it a lot
easier. But they are there, and I had to work around
them.


Chuck

LaVidaLoca

Good work. Hearing the clunk of the solenoid is always a relief.

I went back to my keyless entry manual, my factory service manual, and Eckler's to check my memory. Guess I am not totally senile (yet).

The 84 and 85 have a different lock / unlock switch than later years. (did not know that) The 84 / 85 used a relay to reverse the polarity to the solenoid. Later years deleted the relay and went to a toggle type switch with enough contacts to do the job without a relay.

So it was a piece of cake to put the keyless system on my 85 by connecting to the relay in the dash.

Explains the confusion in the door lock relay location.

Chuck Tribolet

That CLUNK was indeed a good feeling.

It's almost all back together now. I still have to install
the panel over the passenger's feet, install the hatch
release relay, and bolt down the center console. I've got
some pictures in my Nikon that I'll download when I
get chance.


Chuck

larry93lt1

Looks like you've finished ahead of schedule.

Be safe on that 2K round trip and Happy Holidays.

I'm considering putting in a keyless entry on the '92. It was sure nice on the '93.

Chuck Tribolet

I did pretty much finish today. It's all back together,
but I decided to defer the hatch release relay until after
the holidays.


Chuck