Keyless ignition, start button and coded keypad
 

A lot of people have fitted an aftermarket start button, in fact Mazda do one for the coin box. But, you still need the key to turn the ignition on. I needed a better solution, so after much searching I have used a couple of aftermarket kits to produce a keyless ignition, start button and coded keypad and the best bit.....No keys needed.
Here's a quick video of it working.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kn8R9zFsxHg

HOW TO/DIY, NOW!!! :yumyum:

Great work, what was the approximate build cost?

Must have been a lot of work, but that is a seriously legit no key set up you have there!
Props to you!

The set up I used was a combination of two aftermarket kits. The keypad is from a company called Asianwolf and costs $50.
http://www.asianwolf.com/car-alarm-smartkpl.html

The Keyless ignition and Start button is from Digital Guard Dawg. I went for the PBS 3 unit and integrated it with my current alarm. It comes with a standard button for $359 or you can have a variety of different buttons for an additional cost. I went for the Lexus button as it suited the RX8 best. I paid $400 all in including shipping to the UK. The guy gave me a nice discount, so I would buy on the phone rather than online and talk the guy down. http://www.digitalguarddawg.com/KEYL...--PG-1temp.htm

The fitting is fairly easy if you are familiar with vehicle wiring, or get a car alarm place to fit it for you. The installation instructions are straight forward and easy to follow. Estimated fitting time is 6 hours. I fitted mine in about 7 hours. The car is still drivable at any stage of the install, I did mine over two afternoons and drove it in between. There are a couple of issues with my set up and the way I have integrated the keypad and start button, but I can advise anyone of the options and pitfalls I encountered.

Good luck to anyone choosing to do this and if you need any help just ask.

Props to your install, very nice work. Do you have any sort of bypass for valet or vehicle service?

Yes the keypad has a valet mode built in, I use it every time I get the car washed, serviced or parked. full instructions and options are on the Asianwolf website.

http://www.asianwolf.com/car-alarm-smartkpl.html

This is kind of sweet. It reminds me of Transporter (2?) :wiggle:

Thanks for sharing, good job.

I can't wait to do a similar setup in my car, thanks for the info OP!

Wow very cool just like transporter movie NICE Mate

Great work and attention to detail!

Thanks for the comments, I have to admit that the Transporter movie gave me the initial idea. I'm also looking into a biometric fingerprint reader as an alternative to the keypad, it would hold up to 9 fingerprints and have a keypad back up. It may work out more expensive, but it may look very cool.

wow thats bad ass! thanks for sharing

Just done a better video showing another function. I also now have a neat blank for the ignition switch.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_0ObDR-CaI

Just waiting for delivery of a fingerprint scanner to replace the keypad. It has a backup keypad to add and remove fingerprints and put the system into valet mode. Should have it fitted in a week or so.

Hi I'm completely new with the mazda rx8, just bought it 2 weeks ago. I completely admire your keyless modification. I would like to know the screen that you have in your car is it from the company or did you put it in yourself.

question ... you still have to have the key on you right? what I mean is, ... how are you locking the car doors when you get out?

No, you don't need your key, the digital guard dawg keyless entry and ignition, is very similar to the current rx-8 keyless system, it uses a card fob.. you put it in your wallet and forget about it, when you approach the car it unlocks, when you push the button it starts (*twist the nub if your talking factory keyless..*) it's done through RF.. The guard dawg system actually uses one of your keys (*the old ones did anyways*) its in a metal box with the rf reciever thats normally attached around the key hole, then the box is hooked up to a relay that bridges the signal for the key to the rest of the ignition system when the rf fob (*card*) is present... so now that your confused by my horrible explanation, you might have a better understanding of aftermarket keyless entry and ignition

EDIT: Think of it as a three part system

A) Actual key and rf ring inside metal box hidden in car
B) Ignition system
C) RF Card

A is not connected to B until you present C.

normally C is the key and you there is no gap between the key hole (*rf reciever*) and ignition system. but with ECUs being so easy to brick if you try to start a car without the key (*for obvious reasons*) it was easier to keep the key present and very hard to get at... sooo in a metal box you could technically weld shut :P I also believe you cant bypass the relay for the rf card by hooking the rf wires up to the ignition like normal, they did an incredible job as far as security goes actually, I highly recommend digital guard dawg

PS: props for adding in the keypad, classy! :P

this is cool. It is like Transporter. Id do something like this in the future.

Thanks for the comments guys,

To answer some of the questions:

The screen is a touch screen linked to a Car PC, I used the OEM flip up hood and changed out the screen. Lots of others have similar mods, both here and the UK.

The Digital Guard Dawg system has a few options for getting in the car. As a standalone system, an RF card is used to bypass the factory unit, I already had an aftermarket alarm with an auto start function I wanted to retain. I use the remote from this system to unlock the car and then the button to start.

Which ever system you choose, the steering lock has to be bypassed. The key barrel can be removed or a key with the head cut off can be inserted and turned to position 2. Having the key in the car does nothing but disable the steering lock as the electrics have been disconnected.

The key pad is an extra security measure that ensures only the driver is able to start the car, the thief can steal your key fob or card and still wont drive away. I hope to replace the keypad with a fingerprint scanner as it will be a little more secure.

i'm going to guess, electrical engineer. :)

A very clean looking solution to keyless start, well done.

Not an electrical engineer, just a keen amateur. I'm actually a search and rescue helicopter winchman, but we have to know how the aircraft works and how to service it, so I have picked stuff up over the years.

I've just taken delivery of my new fingerprint scanner, which turns out to be more than I had thought. It is also a start button, so could replace everything I have currently fitted. As a standalone system it would serve as a keyless solution.

I will not use all its functions as I only want the security feature of the scanner to replace my coded keypad. I'll have to figure out how to do this in the best way before I put it in the car, but I will post up a vid when I'm done.

Make 2 of them... :)
How many fingerprints can the tool store?

The unit can store up to 30 fingerprints, but I would think that each person would input a couple of fingers off each hand, so it could hold the details of 7 or 8 different people.

For me 30 is too much, I don't have 30 fingers.

this is pretty bad ass man. Thanks for this, and for making my wife want to kill me for spending this kind of money