The security light seems to always activate on itself everytime I hit a pothole or bump on the road. it's turns off after awile, but sometimes the problem gets annoying becasue after several times i turn off or on the car it won't turn on at all. It will actually kill the switch. And I have to wait from 10 to 15 minutes before it turns on again. I haven't even bothered to fix the broblem, because I know it will be expensive. And just to let you know this problem had been previously fixed with the warranty th car had when I firts purchased it.

The 2002 Chevrolet Impala should have it's own website...YADF.COM. That is short for Yet Another Design Flaw. A myriad of problems ranging from leaking upper and lower intake manifolds (which kill your starter over time), to low quality rotors, to the icing on the cake...THE PASSLOCK. I must say it is an awesome theft deterrent. I would never think about stealing one of these pieces of crap.

In my database entry, I indicated that I have not fixed the problem. That does not mean that I have not attempted to fix the problem. At first I thought it was my keyless entry causing the problem, because it was beginning to fail. In retrospect, the keyless entry system was probably working fine. It was an aftermarket system installed by the dealer, so I removed it. They also incorrectly wired an aftermarket CD changer, so I thought it was a safe bet that it wasn't installed correctly either.

It reduced the frequency of the failure, I thought. It has happened so many times, I do not recall the variables. Lately high ambient temperature (100F +) seems to aggravate it, but I do not think that was a catalyst on numerous other occasions. I had taken to carrying an 8mm socket in my car due to some "battery" issues. I had to clean corrosion off the positive terminal frequently (about once a month). This took 10-15 minutes. I am guessing that this masked my real problem the PASSLOCK.

I have done the battery disconnect thing and it doesn't work consistently. My next try will be pulling and replacing the CLSTR/BCM fuse. If that provides consistent results, then I will install a momentary, push-button switch in the dash for convenience. I will post the results here.

Update from Apr 25, 2011: I bypassed the passive security for some temporary relief. I wound up paying the dealer for a new BCM (probably wasn't necessary, since they seem to know very little about the cars they sell). It worked fine for a while. Then my fuel pump quit activating consistently on start. I would have to turn the ignition off and on 5-10 times. Once I heard the whir of the fuel pump, I was usually good to go. The fix was to take out the ignition switch, disassemble it, clean the tumbler with WD-40 (just in case), clean the contacts (again), and lube the pins that pop up to engage/disengage the contacts. I noticed that some of them were sticking when I turned the key (with the tumbler back in). It probably would have been better to get a new ignition switch, but the dealer irritated my by telling me that my catalytic converter was the problem. Not sure what the catalytic converter has to do with the fuel pump...Anyway, Christine runs like new.

I am 9 payments away from a 4 year loan on my 02 impala ls and it wont crank. only when it wants to. and when it does, it runs like theres not a problem in the world, then i turn it off and im stuck again. its dead silent once the key is turned all the way to the start position.

my father is a great mechanic and we have completely gutted and tore apart this car from the starter, to the relays. the fuses and the ignition box. we changed the ignition box, key core, and the little yellow module attached to the core, it has the same problem. theres no signal getting to the starter. we gave it to the chevy dealership who wanted 600 for a pcm and it wouldnt even start so i could drive it off the lot. of course it started for them just before i got there....either way it wasnt the main computer. so dont waist time or money.

so we tryed a push button to start the car as a secondary ignition. we connected it straight to the battery to skip all the security stuff, and it worked every time!!! for two seconds. then the security feature catches up to it, kills the gas, and turns off the engine. secondary ignition methods..(aka wireless remotes) sell a tiny bypass module for any security feature your car may have, normally comes with the kit. does ANYONE know if that works, ill go buy one right now!! but something is def blocking that path and all it needs is to be bypassed or disconnected.

BUT I HAVE FOUND SOMETHING THAT I WOULD LIKE SOMEONE TO TRY!! if you look under the hood there are two small boxes (mine are blue) on the left side that have thinner cables coming in one end and out the other. these boxes are actually connectors that can be seperated if you properly unlock the clasp. (BE CAREFUL NOT TO PULL WITH THE WIRES) the battery needs to be plugged in or this will not work right, and you will shock yourself if you pull the cables apart. ok...the top box closest to the radiator is where the ignition switch sends a signal to the starter. (its where we were able to connect the push button switch). and its where the chevy mechanic told me he was checking to find the problem. it seemed to be fine so he said it just had to be the computer itself. the second connection box back by the engine coolant tank...i curiously disconnected and reconnected it and with that, it works almost 85% of the time now!! its easy. its like a plastic belt buckle that you gotta be careful pulling straight out and it will sway backwards. pulling back ALL the way is enough to disconnect everything. dont even try and seperate it. sway the buckle forward and kinda lock it down, you can hear the fuel injectors reseting and if you sit inside the car, the instrument pannel seems to 'wake up'.

Anyways make sure everything is tightly locked and secure the box back in its little plastic mounting so its all clear before you try and start up. but if this box resets the fuel injectors and the instrument pannel, what else does it do? security features maybe?? any results on whether this works for you will be appreciated and i would know the time i took to write this didnt go to waist.

and PLEASE LET ME KNOW when chevy puts out a recall and installs those tiny bypass modules so the security feature allows the starter to do its thing. thank you

Hi All, I thought I was the only person with this problem, until I found this website by accident. Then POW, when this problem first started I didn't know what to do. I knew the battery was good, the starter, and starting system. After driving the car all day, had to stop home for a few minutes. Went back to the car, when I tried to start it, and I got NOTHING. I said to myself, how can a battery goes from strong to nothing, without any warning. No tick tick tick, nothing. So I tried to jump it, nothing. Tried this for 2 days and nothing, then I called AAA to have it towed to dealer.

When the AAA driver got there I told him what happen, then he tried to jump it with his jumping system, NOTHING. I had a strong horn sound, entry remote working , light are bright, air is working, but no radio - Strange! So the AAA driver used the manual way to open the car, put the key in and out to lock it, and lock it a few times. I'm watching this, and I'm saying to myself 'this isn't going to work, just tow it to the dealer'. Put the key in the ignition and started up, damn it work.

Thought my problem with was over, a few months goes by and here I am stuck in the the same situation. Get out car for a few minutes and go back to car and nothing. Still I had all the power working, accept the radio. Getting ready to call AAA again, then I remember what the AAA driver did. So I put the key in to lock it , removed the key and put it back in to unlock it. Did this a few times, put the key in the ignition and damn it started.

Been do this for 2 years everytime this happen , on June 9, 2010 my wife had to used the car. She tried to start it nothing, but this time she told me her remote entry isn't working either. Since I been doing this so long, I knew I was going to go out there and do the key thing and get her on her way. But the entry remote was not working, that was a NEW added situation this time, I tried everything and nothing.

So I called AAA to have it towed, driver worked on it for awhile and nothing happen. When the car got to the dealer and they took a look at it, I got the call telling me that the car computer isn't communicating, and before they can go any further. A new computer module had to be used, just to get it communicating. And that might not be the problem, after going through other option and finding out none of them will work.

I had to agree, and buy a new module at 350.00 and labor was 200.00 total 594.00 with tax. THIS IS JUST WRONG CHEVROLET. When you have loyal Chevy customers saying they are going to get rid of there Chevrolet and go with another manufacture. I'm in the same boat, I've had Chevy most of my life. I'm getting rid of this headache really fast. Chevrolet you just lost me forever.

This Keyless Entry Remote need to be a recalled, and all owners who had to pay need to be refunded. Oh by the way, a year ago this happen to me. Had it towed, got the service agent call telling me I need a new Ignition switch. You know what I had to to do, buy a new switch at 300.00, that 900.00 I have spent on the car not starting. I bet my switch was good, and this computer module was going bad then. And the tech couldn't really find the real problem.

I bought this car in 2005 with only 36k on it it happened the first week i had it, then it happened once a year then it graudated to evey 6 months or so, the last few months it has happen evey couple of weeks, now its every day, . it is very expensive to fix and until a couple of days ago they could not find the problem. Eveytime i took it in and it was put on a diagnostic machine it would showm nothing wrong.

Does anyone know if GM ever recalled this model. I have always bough GM cars this is my last i will never buy another.

I bought this 2002 chevy impala in 2009. Love the impalas but i will tell you i took the car to chevy when i got in it one day and it wouldnt start. Needless to say they told me it was the ignition switch that was causing a malfuntion....$3,000.00 LATER AND I STILL HAVE THE PROBLEM!!!!

WHY IS CHEVY WANT TO RUN EVERYONE AROUND ABOUT THIS...AT LEAST DONT CHARGE ME TO FIX IF YOU KNOW THERE IS NO SOLUTION! ITS SUCH B.S. I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER CHEVY AGAIN. I SHOULD HAVE LISTENED TO THE WARNINGS.