I pulled out my 2001 (6sp vert) garage queen from it's winter hibernation for it's annual state inspection and oil change today. Stored with a Battery Tender on my Red Top.
Got the dreaded Service Steering Column / turn off ignition and pull key for 10 seconds...no luck. Had GM recalls done, but still have the after market by=pass sitting unused (yea I know!). I pull apart the dash to find the extra harness and decide to call AAA for a tow to the dealer thinking it may be my 5 year old battery amongst all the other possibilities.
Now for the shocker at the dealer...they diagnosed the problem as the GM recall harness and removed as a warranty charge back to GM (@$130.00) on my nine year old vette. I am the original owner and have (I know - shame on me!) just 10,400 miles. The dealer indicates the "faulty" GM by-pass caused the bad code; battery and everything else OK!
Now - Do I go ahead and install my Column Lock by-pass from Corvettes of Houston?

 

^^ What are you waiting for?? Someday, somewhere, when you least expect it, IT WILL HAPPEN. It's easy to do, 15 minutes tops.

 

I did the corvettes of houston kit on my last car. My new car had the factory "recall" fix done to it. Although the steering column does still lock.....i'm scared. Do you guys recommend I get the kit? I just want to make sure I'm not wasting my money on the CoH kit.

 

My car had the recall done 3 times and it still failed. If you have have a custom tune on the car make sure you ask to have the Column Lock removed from the program, which will prevent the 2 MPH fuel cutoff from getting tripped.

 

Okay, I'm ordering another kit then for this car........I'm sold.

 

NEED HELP IMMEDIATELY - STRANDED
The car is an 02 with M6, had the factory recall done - locking plate removed and the K harness.
I have installed a CLB , removed the factory K harness and yet still the car is giving a column lock error message and currently has my fiance stranded on a cross country trip. She has pulled the 23/25/29 fuses, reset the codes, and still not letting her drive. Any immediate suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Did you have someone tune out the fuel cut using EFI Live or HP Tuners? That's the best and only reliable way to make sure you don't get stranded, along with removing the locking plate.

 

not tuned, will do when i get the car back home.....


still stranded.

 

The car is rolling after the batt disconnected for an hour and recharging it. Thanks

 

I have a 1999, have had the recall done 2 x by chevy dealer , last in 2004 --is this common, every 16000 miles it dies ???

 

I would like to first thank Cscokd for this sticky. On Saturday I went out to the garage to start the car and the battery was dead. So I put the battery charger on the car and put the chager in start mode and as soon as I turned the ignition the battery literally blew up and scarred the hell out of me. I ran over and disconnected the charger and saw that the cables were on correctly and the battery was smoking and battery acid was everywhere. I threw baking soda on the acid and made a huge mess. I took the battery out and took it back to AutoZone where I just bought it six months ago. They give me a replacement battery at no charge and never asked me why the side of the battery is blown out.

While im out getting a battery my dad also a corvette owner and forum member is at my house cleaning up all the battery acid that leaked all over the wiring harnesses beneath the battery. We disconnected every harness under there and cleaned it with CRC electrical cleaner. I also used the air compressor to dry out the compartment. I put the battery in and went to start it and of course the dreaded pull key wait ten seconds and I knew what was coming next and just like clock work "Steering Wheel Lock" on the dash. Now I have a 2001 ZO6 and can move the steering wheel freely without it locking, so I no the recall was done. The car starts but wont go over 2 MPH.

I go on the forums and find this sticky and try every trick such as pulling the fuses and checking the fuses and nothing. The further I read on I start hearing about the K harness. I leave the car alone and the next day I take apart the dash and find the K harness which was tucked way behind the steering wheel. I take the k harness out and saw that the recall was done in 12/05 and I literally threw it out into the driveway and reconncected the car to stock. I cross my fingers and the car starts and no error message. The car is back to normal. I left the car apart and went to COH website and ordered their by pass. This has been the most frustrating two days but I got to say this forum once again saved me tons of money. On a side note I will be purchasing a sealed battery. Thanks again.

 

When buying a used 02 Z06, how can I tell if the car has the CLB fix from Corvettes of Houston (or similar) vs the dealer "K" harness. I understand Ill have to remove the driver knee panel to tell visually, but this is going to be first on my list once I pick my car up.

Thanks ahead of time.

 

Thanks for the info, I'll be sure to add it to my checklist!

 

I have not read all the post, so excuse me if this a repeat. My 99 locked up on me yesterday. Tried the solutions that I read in the early post, with no success. Instead of admitting defeat and have it towed, I removed the bottom cover of the column. I could see the the edge of the lock ring and see the pin. With a small screwdriver I was able to work the pin out of the lock and restore the system. Orderd a CLP today. Hope this helps someone.

 

8Vette7
I have a 2003 - the relay at top of BCM (top right) and directly beside the fuse box has the purple, green and 2 orange wires - but it looks like they it came from the factory that way (all the wires are taped together as they come into the relay head- no splicing). Is that the same relay you are talking about... I'm assuming since this is a later model it came from the factory that way?? and still needs to be bypassed?

Has anyone else that's done an 03 or higher noticed this?

Thanks again

 

Chuck (8Vette7),

What a pleasure to get to talk to someone with such great knowledge about Vetts, particularly as it relates to such a widespread problem as the CLB (along with all it's variations)! Took the car out and it runs like a champ.

But even more, thanks for your time and willingness to help out in a time of need !

First class member that makes this forum so good!

Thanks again!!
/Bob

 

morning gentlemen, I'm about thirty pages into this thread and noticing some discrepencies with my current issue. i work at a shop and a customer brought us a car.

99 auto vert with a "service steering column" message.
recall has aparently been done (steering wheel turns freely with key out, "K harness" present under knee panel.

things I've noticed while reading this thread that I am NOT getting are the "remove key for 10 sec" message or any kind of fuel cut.

are there any other known causes for the service column lock message to appear without any of these other symptoms? After reading this sticky I'm going to recomend to our customer the CLB upgrade regardless but need to be sure i fix the current issue first and foremost.

thanks for any advice

Angel

 

Checked and checking, thanks! I'll let you know what we find in the same PM

 

I have read the write up and found that my ’99 MN6 has had the recall, it has all of the symptoms “Service Column Lock”, no wheel lock, 2mph cut off., etc.. I went to my passenger footwell and bypassed the circuit. I replaced fuse 23 because it was blown, and I also checked fuse 25 and it was fine. It still has all of the symptoms, so what should I do? Does this mean the K harness is bad? Or could this be a BCM problem? Should I just replace the K harness with one of the aftermarket ones? Should I just tow it to the dealer? Lastly, what would it cost to just have it tuned to not shut off the fuel up to 200 mph?
Thanks.

 

CLB kit for only $35.95

http://www.adaptiveperformance.com/CLB.htm


thoughts? anyone have this one?