Push button ignition installed, pictures!

Push Button Start Version 3.0

The Volkswagen has been back on the road (details here) and it has been tonnes of work and tonnes of fun but there is one problem I guess I have been avoiding. I have had an intermittent "no crank" problem. I have tried, "everything else" and I guess I convinced myself that my circuit was "working" but when I got down to looking for the "starter relay" in the car I realized that there wasn't one and that all the current to fire the starter solenoid had to pass thru the ignition switch, or in my case, the undersized relays I had wired in place of the ignition switch.

It is time to re-visit this modification and replace all the relays.

I am not sure what the amperage rating is on the relays I used, I will check when I have a chance to pull them out, but this is what I am putting in:

20/30A relays on the accessories side
30/40A relays on the starter side

I believe these are rated for working/peak amps. Also, all of the wires are 14 gauge and there will be no solder joints.

Looking forward to installing this in the car after the kids go to sleep tonight:

di that by accident trying to set up a ignition on switch to run fans on my mk2 loved it that and a panic button on the hazard lights.

like this and glad you're keeping it current.

deejaaa said:

like this and glad you're keeping it current.

Click to expand...

Thanks! Speaking of current, turns out the old relays I had installed were a mix of 5 amp and 10 amp rated units. Also, I found I had used vampire clips for the power and ground connections to the relays, which is not ideal.

All of that is gone and replaced with nothing but butt crimps, insulated spade connectors, and the more robust relays.

I made an eight minute video where I finish wiring and enjoy testing the new circuits: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAEgvzgDgIQ&feature=youtu.be

Here is the final, or should I say, most current, product. V3.0 installed:

That's not that bad.

Thanks for sharing.

Long Term Update

Wow! It has been six years since my ignition barrel broke!

I just noticed it has been over a year since I installed version 3.0 and I thought I could provide an update:

Version 3.0 Update: Still works the same as 2.0! For the past year I have had intermittent "failures of the starter solenoid to fire", but I am pretty sure it has nothing do with my wiring because it started happening four years into version 2.0 and there was no change after updating all of the wiring and solenoids to version 3.0. I tried a few things documented in my "re-build thread" but I have given up! Its a joke between me and the kids. Half the time I go to start the car I have to hit the push button trigger three or four times before it fires. Then we all yell, "First try, every time!"

So the Volkswagen is still on the road, as our daily driver, and the Minivan is our backup for when we need to go somewhere as a family (six of us) or with grandparents (eight of us) or we need air conditioning, or the Volkswagen is needs work - which is not often recently.

Good times!

EVEN LONGER TERM UPDATE

Five Years Later: Version 3.0 Still works! Never got rid of that intermittent "no-crank" though.

I had been living with the intermittent "clicky-no-starty" condition for for 9 years now. Its the running joke of the car. Starts on the "first try, every time", I always say aloud, when I get a few clicks of nothing before it cranks.

Yesterday, it got worse: I could not even get the starter solenoid to click. I tried jiggling the wire on the back of the starter but got nothing. I left it for a few hours, came back and it started right up. Weird, eh?

YES I have replaced the starter, checked the grounds, swapped the relays under the dash. Nothing seems to make a difference. Normally it cranks within a few clicks, or right away, but only recently has it refused to do anything.

Finally I decided to try something completely different:


There is a button and a relay and they accomplish two things, one is obvious, another is not so obvious. If you are into circuit diagrams and puzzles see if you can tell what I am trying to accomplish here, otherwise I will explain further down.



Here are the button and the relay installed right in between the battery and the starter, +12V is fed thru the big yellow inline fuse holder:



Okay, the first function is the most obvious: PUSH THE BIG RED BUTTON and send 12V from the battery directly to the starter solenoid.

The second function is to take the "vehicle start signal" and run it through a relay to give it more juice. Follow the white wire under the battery tray and it connects to the wire that used to plug into the back of starter solenoid. That wire now energizes the relay which sends 12V from the battery directly to the starter solenoid.

So far it cranks with the button or the push button ignition inside the car and the "clicky-no-starty" condition has not happened again.

You might notice in the photo that one of wires is disconnect from the BIG RED START BUTTON. That is for safety, just in case the big button where to melt or a tree were to fall on the hood, the starter will not be energized. In an emergency I can reconnect the start button. Ideally though, the relay will have cured the "clicky-no-starty" problem and I can remove the BIG RED BUTTON completely.

Will post updates.

Good times!

One Week Later: The relay works great! Haven't had a single hesitation to start in a whole week (it used to be daily). I haven't used the big red button since it was installed, just using the push button ignition on the shifter which has new found power from the extra relay which drives current to the starter.

I went ahead a removed the BIG RED BUTTON and just left a loose wire that I can connect from the relay's normally closed contact. This way, if I need to, I can just connect that wire directly to the battery positive to easily "jump" the contacts on the start solenoid (just like the old timers used to do with their screwdrivers).

I made one by mistake by tapping the wrong wire. Fun times i think it was a horn

Hello everybody, I need some assistance with a Start Stop system. I want to install in my Golf 4 such of a kit, but I have no ideea which are the correct wires according to my plan. And where can I find the rest of the wires? Oil detection, Handbrake, Immobilizer, Footbrake, Doorlock and the rest from the second layer of wires. Can anyone help me with some info? Thanks.