Attempted Hotwiring of my 89 VN Calais

[Jibbles]

Hey guys,

I've got a few questions for you. last night some f***wit broke into my car and tried to hot wire it. 1st question, is it possible to unlock the the VN by removing the outside door handle? (it looks like its been levered away). the other thing is the ignition switch is currently just hanging from the dash, no longer attached to the barrel. is it easy to reattach? I tried simply pushing it back onto the barrel and turning the key but i got no response. I am new to the world of auto electrics so any help on what else they may have disconnected or broken would be much appreciated.

[W84N01]

Best advice i can give you...........get an auto elecy out to give it a once over.

When the little pri**s tried stealing my VC Brocky a few years ago, they set the alarm off and cut alot of wiring trying to get her started (I had her wired up like fort knox LOL).

but i got my elecy mate to come out and he gave her a full going over, and am lucky he did. they got shitty when they couldn't steal her, so they started randomly cutting wires.

Got her back on track thou. Better to be safe than sorry.

Get someone out to check it out.

[Warranty Void]

Until you've got the door fixed pull the fuel pump fuse from the fuse box under the bonnet whenever you leave the car overnight.
As for the ignition, get a new assembly from the wreckers and change over the lock barrel.

[Brett_jjj]

The VN calais models had the deadlocking feature (standard on later models) where you turn the key in the drivers door lock and extra 45 degrees after its locked which then deadlocks it.This electronically jams the latches of all the doors and they cant be unlocked or opened, you cant even unlock it from the inside if the window is smashed.Just worth a mention,if this was set they shouldnt have even been able to open the door to start off with.Even if the door handle was broken.

[sleepa]

I am pretty sure the ignition switch is usually held on to the barrel by 2 screws, they might have taken them out, or more likely just pried it away. You can stick your key in the end of the ignition switch (not the barrel) and turn it like normal to see if it starts.

My Gf's car got stolen once and while I was replacing the barrel (they stuck a screwdriver in) she still had to drive it around so we just had the ignition switch and the steering wheel, no covers. Was like that for 3 weeks (those barrels are a bitch and a half to get off) and no-one tried to steal it

[donboy2000]

My wifes vn lexcen got knocked off from our driveway when we got it back they had pulled the steering column shroud and removed the the actual ignition barrel from the switch and used the heater knob as a key. As far as getting in is concerned . The top of the door was flexible enough to fit an arm down to the lock.

[Jibbles]

thanks guys. upon closer inspection, the ignition switch has 2 plastic clips that they snapped holding it on. also i tried just using the key in the ignition switch but there seems to be no electronics working anywhere in the car. it doesnt do anything. somehow there is no longer any electricity running to anything.

[Brett_jjj]

It has probably blown the main 60A fusible link,these are under the bonnet,under a cover in front of the fuse and relay box,they look like a square type of fuse and are different colours.The main 60A middle one has a small bolt through it which has to be removed before it can be pulled out.This small bolt is behind a small plastic cover below the fusible links.

[Jibbles]

you guys are brilliant. i'll check the fuse tomorrow when i can get my hands on a spanner. thanks heaps for your help

[Jibbles]

quick update, turns out no fuses were blown and the only reason my car is still here is because the battery went miraculously flat in the 6 hours before it was stolen. luckiest flat battery ever. thanks anyway for your help. its currently in at the autos getting dodgy wiring fixed.

[TheIceman]

question is, was the car deadlocked when you left it when someone broke into it??

from my days as a motor mechanic, i have dealt with lots of vn-vs break in repairs, when asked, was the car deadlocked or just locked, most people say, huh?? whats deadlock?? these people are the people who had their car successfully broken into or stolen cause they had no idea how to deadlock their car.
majority of people who answered yes to having it deadlocked the repair was only a window or door handle, no entry was ever gained to the vehicle.

Mate of mine with an VN SV5000 has had about half a dozen people try to steal his car, not a single attempt ever gained entry into it due to the fact he always deadlocked it.

[Brett_jjj]

question is, was the car deadlocked when you left it when someone broke into it??

from my days as a motor mechanic, i have dealt with lots of vn-vs break in repairs, when asked, was the car deadlocked or just locked, most people say, huh?? whats deadlock?? these people are the people who had their car successfully broken into or stolen cause they had no idea how to deadlock their car.
majority of people who answered yes to having it deadlocked the repair was only a window or door handle, no entry was ever gained to the vehicle.

Mate of mine with an VN SV5000 has had about half a dozen people try to steal his car, not a single attempt ever gained entry into it due to the fact he always deadlocked it.

Agreed,anyone who has tried to break into a commodore when its deadlocked will know its nearly impossible to open them.The only way we found is to smash a window and tear a hole in the door trim to gain access to the lock actuator.Even when access to the door lock actuator is made,the actuator is electronically jammed in the lock position and is impossible to open manually.A mate bought a wrecked VS that had been deadlocked and the key had been lost.It took ages just to get into and open 1 door.Theres no way anyone stealing a car would have enough time ,or be able to be quiet enough to do what we had to do .I always use my deadlocking feature on my VS,I just wish you could deadlock the VS with the remote like on the later models.The deadlocking feature was first fitted to the VN calais,and was later made standard across the whole range.

[joely1991]

The Dead-lock feature.. does it unjam the loks if the battery is disconnected? if so they could jst break the window, reach in and pop teh bonnet and disconnect the battery?

[TheIceman]

The Dead-lock feature.. does it unjam the loks if the battery is disconnected? if so they could jst break the window, reach in and pop teh bonnet and disconnect the battery?

nope, its electrically deadlocked mechanically, needs to be electrically undeadlocked mechanically. its like you putting a long piece of wood on the sliding rail of a sliding door, you cant open it, it is mechanically jammed. you need to physically remove that piece of wood before the door can open. same thing on the door locks, you need power to remove the jamming mechanism. dicsonnecting the battery will do nothing.

[Brett_jjj]

They stay deadlocked ,even with no power.

[sleepa]

Does anyone know with the remote deadlocking if you can set it up so it deadlocks on the first press of the lock button instead of the second press, coz I forget to press it twice sometimes.