keyless entry and ignition

I've ran across a decent 1986 944 that a man wants $400 for. The catch is that he doesn't have the key and the ignitions been taken apart and a screwdrivers been jammed in it. It doesn't have power locks as of now. This is where my imagination starts to have a little too much liberty. I was wondering how much work and money it would take to install a keyless entry and ignition system. You walk at the doors and they unlook and you push a button and the ignition starts. Would this add a ton of weight? Even if I got rid of some of the locking mechanisms and reduce some weight?

The 944 I started with had a remote entry, although the last owner never fully hooked it up, dont ask I dont know. It can be done the make a generic setup for many cars.

For the setup you are talking about it involves more complicated wiring and computer brains. You have to install a computer that has a sensor to locate your keys in range, put the electric door pops in, and hope it all works. Not to include the price of haviing it done if you dont do it yourself. Some weight but not alot will be added.

Push button ignition is easy. Go to orielly's get a couple toggles and a push button igintion, run the wires from your ignition to them where ever you have them and it works. I had to do it in a saab once since the ignition was part of the shifter console in the middle.

Sounds like you want a remote starter. I recently installed a remote starter in a 2005 Chevy Tahoe and it came with 2 x 2-way LCD remote key fobs that could pop the rear hatch, unlock all doors, turn on interior and exterior lights, turn on AC or heat and start the engine.....and even more, the computer sends confirmation back to you on the LCD screen. Many units have an integral alarm system. They also sell versions for manual transmission vehicles.

Cost is about 150 to 300 for a decent one. Manufacturers include: Viper, Scytek, Clifford among others. Range is up to a mile for the top end models.

would that 2x2 starter actually allow me to get rid of some weight since I wouldn't need doorhandles, the control consol, but at the same time how hard would it be to get into your car if that little thing died? I'm just looking for an alternative to replacing the ignition and the key since half the stuff probably doesn't work anyway.

Weight! You have a V8, who cares about weight!

....touche.

Uh... So you want the doors to open for you too? Then youll need door poppers. At that point, you will need alot of fab work and wiring. Most installers will include an emergency switch at the bottom of the door that you hit if the poppers or control fail.

Its a crap load more ( A LOT ) work to install this kind of setup than simply fixing the ignition and such. The door handles are cast aluminum and weigh pretty much nothing. There will be no weight savings. There will be miles of wiring to do what you want though!

Skywalker put in poppers, they are very cool!

....yeah, and depending on which ones you get, they may not fit or not have enough umph to open the doors. I am finding out that the the operation of the doors is a lot harder with new weatherstripping on than with no weatherstripping. Unless you have the patience/time/money to deal with 'pimp-my-ride' problems - don't try this at home.

Poppers sounds really cool. But I spend my winters in Minnesota so then my doors will freeze shut and then I'd be SOL. I also would really like decent weatherproofing so that kinda eliminates poppers. So I think I'll go with the 2x2 keyless entry setup. Anyone have any experience with the viper iphone or blackberry setup?