This 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix had already been diagnosed with a faulty ignition switch. The faulty switch was not allowing the blower motor to operate properly.
Now on to changing the ignition switch. Disconnect the battery.
The first step is to remove the lower trim panel under the steering column. There may be some screws at the bottom of this panel that have to be removed. This car did not have any. With the bottom edge loose the panel can be slid towards the driver’s seat to disengage the retaining clips.
Now that the trim panel is out of the way. There are several 7 mm headed screws that have to be removed.
There are four 10 mm headed bolts that have to be removed that are further up in the dash and an extension will be needed.
The panel removed. Notice how far up in the dash the interior mounting edge is.
Pull the tilt lever from the steering column. For more detailed pictures of how this comes out please click here.
There are a couple of torx screws that have to be removed from the bottom cover and then it can be pulled down.
With the bottom cover removed the upper cover retaining screws can be removed. A torx socket will be needed.
The one on the outside is a two step process. First remove the screw.
Then remove the extension with a pair of pliers.
Next disconnect the gang connector near the bottom of the steering column. There is a 7 mm headed bolt in the center of the connector.
After separating the connector halves you will notice that the connector is made up of three pieces.
Using a small screwdriver spread the outer connectors away from the main body. Sorry about the blurred picture.
Slide the connector out of the main body. Repeat this step for the other side of this connector.
Next lift the upper shroud and insert a curved and pointed device as shown in the next picture.
Look closely with a light and locate the small hole in the aluminum housing above the lock cylinder.
Rotate the lock cylinder to the full crank position and then depress the retaining pin in the hole that you located earlier. Pull the lock cylinder from the housing.
This is a view of the above mentioned hole and tool with the cover removed so that you can get a better idea of its location.
This vehicle has a factory anti theft system that uses a transponder in the key. The black part that I am pointing to is the receiver antenna. Release the clips and slide it off of the housing.
Remove the screws that hold the ignition switch in place. The cream colored piece to the right with two wires attached is the key buzzer switch. To remove it use a small screwdriver to depress the locking tab, rotate it and lift off of the housing.
When removing the forward screw you will also be removing the lock cylinder shift interlock solenoid.
Finish removing the switch by cutting the wires ties that hold it to the other harnesses and install the new switch in reverse order. Make sure you secure the harnesses back together with new wire ties.
Update July 11, 2011: Well it was bound to happen, a bull in a china shop had difficulty reinstalling the lock cylinder and has now messed up his steering column. Wants to blame poor information from this site. I cannot stress enough that all of the work performed by me, on this site requires an extreme eye towards detail and a gentle touch. No part of this repair in particular should require any force or coercion of any kind!
Some extra things to keep in mind:
The new ignition switch needs to be indexed into the exact position, as the old switch was in, when it was removed. The ON position
The key tumbler assembly needs to be checked, to make sure the locking bar drops flat and evenly towards the center of the tumbler assembly when the key is installed. If it does not, DO NOT INSTALL IT!
There is a retaining bar/panel that holds the springs in place for the individual tumblers. If it is not fully installed and flat, no protrusions past the outside edge of the tumbler housing, DO NOT INSTALL IT!
These two tumbler pictures are for a similar design and not specifically for this vehicle.
This last tidbit of info requires some thought before performing. If the ignition tumbler was giving any signs of sticking or hanging up, I perform one extra step. In the slot that the locking bar rests in, take a small file and bevel the leading edge of the slot, so that a worn tumbler assembly will work without sticking. A very small amount of grease helps as well.
The red wires are power supply to the ignition switch. When the switch is in the crank position the yellow wire has power applied to it from the ignition switch. Power leaves the ignition switch and travels to the safety neutral switch. If the switch is in the park or neutral position it is then sent out on the purple wire to the starter “S” terminal. My thinking is that you may be looking at the wrong yellow wire under the dash. Sometimes the size of the wire is not as expected. One other thing just to be sure what is the year make and model of your vehicle? I am under the assumption that it is the same as the one in the article.
Sparky,
I must be lost, the reds you told me to check have power, the yellow does not, and the purple does not, where do they pick up their power from? or are they supply wires? all the fuses are good, the fuseable links are good off the starter, I cleaned the grounds. Im not sure where to go here. Sorry Am I missing a something?
Yes, the yellow wire from the ignition switch and the purple wire from the starter “S” terminal meet at the safety neutral switch. However you stated earlier that you have no power on the yellow wire from the ignition switch in the crank position. Therefore the problem is either in the power feed to the ignition switch or the power feed from the ignition switch to your test point.
Sparky,
Thanks so much for your continued support, Heres what I have done, I checked all the yellow wires I could under the dash, The unit has been removed but I found no evidence of a yellow wire being cut, I traced the 12ga yellow wire from the connector under the dash out the fire wall and to a connector on the driver side strut tower, I checked power both with the key on and in the crank position and nothing on either side of the connector, That wire leads to a electronic control on the trans, so I traced the Purple wire off the starter back to the same control unit on the trans just a different connector, I also checked on the positive side of the starter on both sides of the fuseable links and I have power on both sides of the links. Is it possible the unit on the trans is bad? It will not start in park or neutral but you can start it with either a push button starter or jumping the starter solenoid. Thanks again for your help. Todd
Look closely at the add on unit and see if it connects to a factory yellow wire. Many times the yellow wire will be cut and hooked in series with an anti theft or remote start system.