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Thread: EWS Delete Issues for Track Car - Bush Button Ignition

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    EWS Delete Issues for Track Car - Bush Button Ignition

    Need some help with an EWS delete in a track car that was recently rewired with a master cutoff switch and reprogrammed ECU for EWS delete. All was well this morning when I started some electrical work, but by the end of the day, I encountered what appears to be an EWS system issue.

    For background, the car is a M44 z3, with ECU reprogrammed for EWS delete. Even after installing the EWS, I had to bypass the EWS module with 2 of the wires to get the engine to run. The EWS module itself isn't installed or plugged in. I've had no issues with this till today.

    I installed the master kill switch, hooked everything up, and all was well (started, ran, all accessories fine). I was cleaning up a bunch of lose wires, and removed the steering wheel to gain easier access to the footwell and to prep for a new SParco steering wheel. During the steering wheel removal, I noticed a small screw that was on the underside of the lock cylinder and when I unscrewed it, the entire ignition key/lock mechanism came out. While trying to reinstall, one of the wires to the EWS ring came out. I didn't think much about it given I had the EWS delete, but then found it wouldn't start after everything was reinstalled. I also fixed the broken wires to the EWS but when I turn the power on, the only lights that come on the dash are the mileage and trip, and the SRS warning (not an issue to discuss here). Car wouldn't show any accessories or run the starter.

    I had thought the EWS would eliminate the need for the key ring to be active or connected. Ultimately I'd like to just disconnect the entire ignition wiring to link it to my kill switch and toggle with the push-button start feeding the rest of the system at start up. How have others done this in track cars? I hoped the EWS delete would have minimized these issues but that doesn't seem to be the case.

  2. #2
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    One other interesting/puzzling aspect of this is that when the kill switch is turned on, the dash is acting as though the key is in the accessory setting - dash lights and odometer/trip lights are active, but I can't turn them off regardless of key position. Prior to the key cylinder being removed, this was not an issue and I'm unable to get these to turn off regardless of how the key is positioned - if I remove the lock cylinder and manually turn the cylinder from the internals, same situation results. Kill switch is wired correctly and worked in the morning so I know that's not the issue. Seems very much related to the lock cylinder position which is the puzzling aspect of things.

  3. #3
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    What happens when you remove the ignition switch and use a screwdriver to operate it? Sometimes there is some play in it or in the shaft between the ignition lock and ignition switch, this is resulting in car acting up. Just an idea.

    The EWS has nothing to do with the cluster. This seems to be a power issue. Maybe also the "engine ground".
    Martin Voigts
    BMW cars indy and locksmith
    1997 E36 318iS Sierrarot
    2012 Ford Mondeo

  4. #4
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    I've tried to turn the ignition without the lock in place and I get the same results. I'm thinking its a grounding issue somewhere. I need to backtrack all of my wiring to determine what happens when I disconnect things in reverse. If I did anything, I grounded something that wasn't previously grounded, which is an odd result since the only wires I grounded are designed to be grounded. That said, there's a lot of stuff I've disconnected so maybe I've grounded something that can't be grounded anymore.

  5. #5
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    Turning the ignition without the lock (do you mean tumbler) in its place and turning directly the ignition switch are two different things. If the shaft is worn or broken, it won't turn the switch properly.

    Tracing back what you have touched is never a bad idea anyway. Did you touch the plus pole under hood? This is the place where the wiring from battery splits to alternator/starter and to the front power distribution box, ignition switch etc. With the 4-cylinder there is also a 80A fuse on the thinner wire from the battery (F97)
    Martin Voigts
    BMW cars indy and locksmith
    1997 E36 318iS Sierrarot
    2012 Ford Mondeo

  6. #6
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    Didn't do anything with the positive leads in the engine bay and the fuse on the batter side is fine. The tumbler is gone - I'm going to remove the ignition connections as well and see if I can hot-wire the car since the EWS is deleted. I'll probably reverse my electrical work first though.

  7. #7
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    Swapped out the battery terminals to make sure it wasn't a bad connection, then disconnected the ignition harness and this time the onboard computer lit up and shut off and the entire system went dark. Didn't have much time to do much else but put the battery on a charger to make sure I'm not suffering from a dead/weak battery and will start to check the grounds and undo all the electrical in reverse order (at least as much as I remember).

  8. #8
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    Think I may have bricked the ECU. Need to run through a few tests but at this point everything I've done was reversed and no change. I've yet to jump the ignition wiring to see if there's an issue there but all other tests show the kill switch has been installed correctly and I'm unable to find a reason for the system to be functioning the way it is right now.

  9. #9
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    Have you check all fuses? Its possible something got shorted and blew a fuse.
    Cars: '98 M3 Coupe - Daily Driver
    '98 M3 sedan - Track car:

  10. #10
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    Its solved - must have been something I did to the position of the ignition switch separate from the tumbler. I ended up bypassing the ignition switch entirely so that its just a push button. I configured it slightly different than some I've seen. I ran the accessories to my kill switch, a run toggle, and a push button - it simplified the overall items I had to turn on to start the car and since its for track use, I'm not so worried about the accessories being separate and having a dedicated toggle. Now I'm mainly trying to figure out if there's a way to run some dedicated power to the ECU between operation to avoid it having to relearn. Here's the wiring connections - had a bunch of help from a guy named Jordan who has a DIY site with a similar setup using a Z8 push button.

    starter diagram-wrelay.jpg
    Last edited by modifiede30; 07-08-2018 at 10:17 PM.

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