DIY Replacement of Ignition Cylinder + Wiring Harness. Are Universal

I have an old Kia Pregio Van that needs a new Ignition Barrel, and probably everything down to the wiring harness. I narrowed this down by taking one off another car, which was easy enough, just plugged it into the wiring harness, turned the key and the car started–problem solved!

Found on Google some universal ignition switches. Has anyone installed these before? Are there instruction involved which show you where to splice each wire to?

Other option is to take the part out of a salvage yard, but first one I came across, the owner wanted $200!

Been googling this but found a lot of stuff that is common sense, but not helpful for someone who wants to DIY

An ignition lock cylinder can be replaced by a locksmith, car dealership, an independent repair shop, or car-repair chains like Pep Boys[3] or Sears[4] . Both the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence[5] and the International Automotive Technicians Network[6] provide a searchable directory of repair shops.

I would guess the Pregio has more than 3 wires going to the ignition switch. Anything I’ve ever worked on does as well. With the wiring diagram for this car, you may be able to figure out how to properly wire the switch. Considering how simple the switch is, the van could be stolen in less than a minute so why bother with the key switch?

Given this statement, is your problem fixed? Or do you still need a lock cylinder?

You will likely need to get the new cylinder matched to your key.

If not the chip in the new key will not allow your car to start and may even trigger the security computer into “theft Mode”;
In that case you would need to have the car towed to a dealer and pay them to correct your problem.

Yosemite

[quote=“Yosemite, post:3, topic:99585, full:true”]
You will likely need to get the new cylinder matched to your key.

If not the chip in the new key will not allow your car to start and may even trigger the security computer into “theft Mode”;
In that case you would need to have the car towed to a dealer and pay them to correct your problem.

Yosemite
[/quote]This van was manufactured from 1995 to 2006. If the OP’s is an earlier one, I doubt it has this security feature.

I’d stick with replacing it w/the proper part if at all possible. I had to do that w/my truck one time, pretty simple diy’er fix. Ignition switch configurations are make/model/year specific. Have you checked at Rock Auto? They may have it mail order. Or at a Kia dealership? I don’t understand the $200 price for a used one. Do you have one of those “pick and pull” places there in your area? If so, you can find out if they have a wrecked version of your vehicle there using the pick & pull web site. And the parts prices are often listed there too. I don’t see pick and pull charging $200 for that part, more like $25-$35.

An auto electric specialist could probably wire you in a custom ignition switch, but that’s not something a diy’er would usually do unless they were an experienced electronics hobbyist or electrical engineer etc. Suggest not to attempt this on your own unless you have the needed expertise b/c a mistake could damage something very expensive.

That vehicle doesn’t appear to be available in the US and is considered a commercial vehicle in Europe. The ignition switch may be as basic as a 1960 Ford pickup.

is your problem fixed? Or do you still need a lock cylinder?

If I can find the part, or a replacement, yes. That one came from a friend’s car.

If not the chip in the new key will not allow your car to start and may even trigger the security computer into “theft Mode”;

It’s an old van. There’s no chip,

This van was manufactured from 1995 to 2006. If the OP’s is an earlier one, I doubt it has this security feature.

Yes, exactly

Rock Auto? They may have it mail order. Or at a Kia dealership? I don’t understand the $200 price for a used one. Do you have one of those “pick and pull” places there in your area? If so, you can find out if they have a wrecked version of your vehicle there using the pick & pull web site. And the parts prices are often listed there too. I don’t see pick and pull charging $200 for that part, more like $25-$35.

I’m in Australia mate. I agree $200 is crazy. Just called Kia dealer and they quoted $240

Does your ignition turn? It is uncertain if you need an ignition lock cylinder or ignition switch, they don’t fail at the same time and are usually sold separately.

Do you have the wiring diagram for the ignition switch circuit? If so, post it here. There is definitely a a work-a-round sol’n to this using commonly available parts, but the question remains whether that sol’n would be any less expensive after paying parts and labor for a custom job, rather than just forking over the $200 for the correct part. And the work-a-round probably wouldn’t be as secure, might make it easier for a thief to steal the car.

The ignition does turn, yes. I’m not sure how much cheaper a barrel and switch assembly would be.

I don’t have any wiring diagrams, unfortunately.