Push Button Start & Kill Switch

[MOOSEonTHAloose]

Alright, so my key got stuck in my tumbler or w/e you call the thing you put the key into and turn to start... So with this happened I think I'm suppose to pull the steering wheel off to gain access to it. So I had some ideas in mind...

While I got the wheel off, I'ma swap it out for a fatter grip wheel.

If I'ma remove the tumbler and hafta replace it, I figure WHY NOT DO SOMETHING COOL... So I figured a PUSH BUTTON START ignition would be friggin awesome. Can it be done? Is it simple? Keep in mind I have a carburated manual Jeep... Am I lookin at something that would be too much a pain in the a$$ to do or would this totally be worth the time for a "different" kinda thing. I'd never get a key stuck again...

Now going along with a PUSH BUTTON START I'd like to have a KILL SWITCH for it also... Don't want to have her start up by accident nor have her stolen cus the top will be off quite often. Most I'll do is a bikini top. I live in Arkansas but work in Memphis, TN and spend alot of time in the city too... Always top 3 in most all criminal activity in the nation. Stealin a lil ol Jeep wouldn't be ISH for some dumb F'er to do here. So I wanna do a KILL SWITCH that is sleek, it flows, and is either not reachible while in the drivers seat (i.e. - and on/off switch that'll be turned to the appropriate position from outside the vehicle) or something quite hidden and not obvious at all that IS accessible from the driver's seat...

So now, anyone with thoughts, diagrams, pics, anything to guide me to gettin this accomplished?

[ckritcoad]

I like the idea of a kill switch. Recently I was driving my CJ out of my work parking lot and my accelerator got stuck and I ended up rolling it...the 350 was too much for my brakes and I couldn't shift into neutral...a kill switch would have been real nice

[my-jeep-earl]

If you have a point style distributor (not electronic) you can run a wire from the "DIST" side of the coil into the tub with a male/female wire connector that can be unpluged easily (under the dash) terminated to a GROUND.
Pluged together no matter what you do, that engine won't start. Unpluged, it will start & run normally. A cheap anti theft idea!

[Ininkus]

My wiring completely bypasses the ignition solenoid/key. Mostly the PO's doing, but when I rewired it I decided to stick with it. What I have is a missile style toggle that powers ignition, right next to a second one that powers the electric fuel pump, and then a black plunger button that fires the starter. Works really well, and if you get in a jam I can have the ignition and fuel pump off in about a half second.

If you are worried about theft (if your jeep looked like mine you wouldn't be) there are all sorts of tricks; battery cutoff, fuses, etc that will at least deter someone from stealing. Usually I just lock the steering wheel with the key - I'd love to see someone steel it and then drive off with the wheel locked. [if your jeep is nice you might not find it all that funny though ]

[MOOSEonTHAloose]

Originally Posted by my-jeep-earl

If you have a point style distributor (not electronic) you can run a wire from the "DIST" side of the coil into the tub with a male/female wire connector that can be unpluged easily (under the dash) terminated to a GROUND.
Pluged together no matter what you do, that engine won't start. Unpluged, it will start & run normally. A cheap anti theft idea!

You got anything that could show me how the is accomplished and the switch used?

Awesome, great ideas... The Jeep isn't very nice, yet... I bought it on my b-day a few Fridays ago and the engine didn't run and the tranny or tcase is locked up. It's got a GM 350 with a points n rotar dizzy. It's also a manual type fuel pump off the side of the block. I got the engine runnin nicely and those engine make for great stolen cars in my area. A missle style switch would be an obvious lookin switch that does w/e it's plugged to do. Some fool with plenty of time @ a Walmart parking lot would just flip switches til he got it goin. I had an idea last night that I told my g/f about. Some how rig the window knob to be like my kill switch. Have it off while I'm out somewhere would disable it from starting, screw it back in would restore battery and alternator power. And it'll be very cool and not obvious at all since it's actually part of the vehicle.

Does anyone have any diagrams, nothing specific, just a general wiring for a push button start and kill switch? I like the idea of a dizzy cut off...A plunger type push button, I wonder if that would fit into the old key tumbler thing hole.

How would I be able to get the push button to work w/o a key? I recall my XJ using rods that move up or down into certain positions to create the connections needed on the ignition switch to start.