This popped up on the DIC today. Service Column lock......any ideas?

 

Have it replaced or buy the bypass.

 

Nothing seems to be broken. Have what replaced?

 

The column lock. It's a well-known problem with the 05s. Column lock eliminated by GM after the 05s. Been many old threads on it here.

Here's one:

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...=+Column+Lock+

 

Congrats on the new '05!

I'm sorry that you happened to get one that hasn't been fixed by now.

 

As a fellow '05 owner welcome !. Only the 05 C6 has a steering lock built into the steering column. IF "Nothing seems to be broken" and you can drive the car and turn the steering wheel then disconnect the battery wait a few minutes and reconnect. The message should go away and be sure the battery is fully charged, get a battery charger, and put the car in reverse when you turn it off.

The permanent fixes are to buy a bypass or install the GM fix. As I understand it, the column lock is a signal to ECM and a mechanical lock that prevents the wheel from turning more than a few degrees.

 

the 05 auto cars do not have a column lock.

 

Little detailed info. neglected here so far.

 

First, I always put the car in reverse when I park it. When I disconnect and reconnect the battery will I have other issues like the windows not going up when the doors are shut? I went to find out when I could get this fixed the first available date they could give me is Aug. 7th. I would hate to park the car for 1/2 of the summer. I can get a bypass for about $75 so I will get it for the interim. I am trying to understand all this so any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to respond.

 

Having 05 sometimes could be of a headache, but when everything is working it's a great ride.

Here is you owners manual incase you don't have it!

http://www.c6registry.com/Technical/manuals/2005OM.pdf

 

Yes, you will need to reset the window indexing whenever a car battery is disconnected, then connected.

VERY, VERY rarely will the clock in your car need to be reset after a battery connect.

 

I've owned an 08 and now an 05 (I actually like the 05 better, but that's another story). I've disconnected the battery sometimes for week or more since I do all of my own work and I'm slow. I've never had any problems on my 05 with window indexing, losing the clock or anything. I always set the eBrake and use seat position memory perhaps that has something to do with it.. Even if you lose your "indexing" you can always get it back. If your clock is part of the Navigation System I have no experience with that.

 

Since you do all your own servicing I guess you have no experience with Buyavette service department. I went there to get an idea on some service, like costs and when they could do the work. He wanted $900 to install a new drivers side window regulator, he said the part cost $520. $285 to fix the column lock issue. $800 for a new harmonic balancer. $400 to fix the HUD by cutting the air duct and $900 to do it the right way. He could set me up for service Aug. 7th I went home and found the OE window regulator for $280. This left a bad taste in my mouth, I understand they make money but doubling the part seemed quite excessive. Have you ever installed the drivers side regulator or fixed a HUD? I've seen a few videos on youtube and I have good mechanical skills so I think I will do these two things and save enough to have them do the harmonic balancer. I bought the car there and am very happy with it but these relatively small issues are aggravating. It is a 15 year old car and I bought it with 32k on the odometer, I guess I naively thought it would be a while before things started going on it. Thanks!

 

Sadly, that does not stop the column lock from failing. It's got plastic parts in it which eventually grind away and fail. So, no matter what you do, that locking mechanism is bound to fail at some point.

When you start the car and hear that "ziiiiiiip!" noise from the steering wheel, that's the column lock unlocking. If it does not unlock fully, the ECU will not send power to the starter and you're stuck until it magically resets itself when you disconnect the battery and reconnect it. I don't think the lock is what resets but the ECU. All I know is when mine failed many times, I disconnected the battery for a few minutes, reconnected it and the car started.

When you get the chance, disconnect the battery cables and clean them and the battery terminals until they shine. Then reconnect and you should be good for a while as a really good electrical connection at the battery seems to override the column lock for a while. It's almost as if too low a voltage does not provide enough juice for the column lock to fully unlock. At least that is what happened to me. Until I bought the column lock eliminator and that resolved the issue.

Good luck.

 

Actually, I don't think those prices are too bad (not great). Its my OWN PERSONAL BELIEF (emphasis 'cause I don't want to get flamed) that if you own a sports car that half the fun is doing your own work.

I've done a HBalancer and a HUD before (remove dash method) . None of it is that hard IMHO. PM sent

 

Old solution was to use a column lock elimitor, but GM now has a way to bypass the system completly, and firmware flash the SCLM out as well.

If you can get the lock to unlock, and someone has a Tech II or MDI around you, then pretty much a walk in the part to do the firmware flashing yourself. I can pull it off with Tis2000, but may need to pay for a 2 year subscription for the car for $40 to get the firmware file through TDS instead.

As for dealer, their cost is around $400, and they swap a new lock ring on the steering column that take the actual lock out of play even if it locked, then do the firmware flash.

 

Maybe a dumb question but I have to ask...

Does the GM way to disable the lock column work on +2005 cars ?

I have an euro 2008 Z06 with the column lock from the factory due to EU regulations and would like to disable it...

I have a Tech2 I use for diag but only with TIS2000.

TIA

 

The bypass will NOT fix the problem. I just fixed mine permanently. You have to go to your local chevy dealer and tell them you want the latest BCM software installed. There is a drop down box they can check that permanently disables the column lock system. It is 1 hour labor. I had the bypass, and it will not solve the problem. And if you wait too long, more expensive problems will arise.

 

The eliminator will not fix the problem. Resetting the battery will not fix the problem. See my post in this thread.

 

It will for many for quite some time. Maybe not permanently as others have posted here that it still failed some time later. However, for a hundred bucks and a half hour of time, it sure does put it off for a while. It's still worth doing and lasted for me from the time I installed it to the time I got rid of the car. So, for me, it WAS a permanent fix.