Weird ignition switch issues? Or something else?

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Old Mar 13, 2025 | 11:56 AM
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twokexlv6coupe's Avatar
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Weird ignition switch issues? Or something else?

I know the typical faulty ignition switch symptoms are; no crank/no start problems. This is not that. In fact it's almost the polar opposite- while driving, the engine cuts out.

Situation #1: A month or two ago driving home from work, 1/4mile from home doing 25mph, I must have went to scratch my right knee when my hand accidentally hit the keys in the ignition. All electronics and the engine die for a split second, then immediately came back. Weird, I thought, more of a minor inconvenience and not dangerous what-so-ever.

Situation #2: Driving home last night 5pm rush hour traffic in north jersey, 80mph in the fast-lane on the 3-lane highway, with a Ford Raptor on my asssss. There's a huge dip in the highway, where when you hit it at that speed it feels like you completely bottom-out the suspension. It feels like your stomach drops into your lower intestine. You know the feeling. It's the size dip that makes you realize that H&R sports are the perfect drop and any lower would mean scraping tf out of the A-spec kit.
Welllllll, immediately after the dip, all electronics and engine die. And the highway starts going uphill afterwards. With no engine. And a Raptor on my ass. FUCK! I'm forced to get into the left-hand shoulder due to rush hour traffic in the two right lanes, the shoulder barely wider than the car.
Pop the hood, battery terminals are tight. Chassis ground that bolts to the transmission, albeit a bit frayed, is connected on both ends. Battery cables at the fuse box and alternator are nice and tight, too. That's all that I think to check, since 10 cars a second are flying by me @ 80mph, mere inches from me. Butt-pucker-factor = exponential. I just wanna make it home to see my toddler and newborn.
Get back in the car, turn the key to II, dash and electronics come on like normal. Go to start the car, and she starts up like nothing even happened.

On the drive home I convinced myself that it was a finicky ignition switch. Maybe that huge dip simulated extra weight (stress) on the keys just like when I bumped them earlier.
So to test this in a controlled, predictable manor, I waited until there wasn't a car around in sight, in the slow lane doing 60mph, turn the key off and just coasted. This is essentially, exactly what happened.

Could this be the ignition switch? It's not like it slowly sputtered like a dying fuel pump. It was just instantly off.
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Old Mar 13, 2025 | 03:52 PM
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Originally Posted by twokexlv6coupe
So to test this in a controlled, predictable manor, I waited until there wasn't a car around in sight, in the slow lane doing 60mph, turn the key off and just coasted. This is essentially, exactly what happened.

Could this be the ignition switch? It's not like it slowly sputtered like a dying fuel pump. It was just instantly off.
I wonder what would happen if you performed the same controlled test; however, instead of turning the key 'off', you just 'jiggled' it, while still switched 'on' & driving to see if the issue presents again?
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Old Mar 13, 2025 | 06:20 PM
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From: Space Coast, FL
Originally Posted by zeta
I wonder what would happen if you performed the same controlled test; however, instead of turning the key 'off', you just 'jiggled' it, while still switched 'on' & driving to see if the issue presents again?


Also some members have reported a corroded positive battery cable (internal that is under the rubber) that causes issues. I had this happen on my 2007 MDX. Check your connections at the alternator too.
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Old Mar 20, 2025 | 10:01 AM
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twokexlv6coupe's Avatar
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See, this is why you two get paid the big bucks running this place!

It's not all the time, but occasionally it takes surprisingly little effort to switch the ignition back to II, almost as if the spring-back pressure from III is too strong. So now I'm getting into the habit of after the engine is running, twisting the key ever-so-slightly more towards III.
That, and, maybe I could lighten up the extraneous junk on my keychain, even though it's not much.
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Old Mar 23, 2025 | 08:46 PM
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From: Space Coast, FL
Originally Posted by twokexlv6coupe
See, this is why you two get paid the big bucks running this place!

It's not all the time, but occasionally it takes surprisingly little effort to switch the ignition back to II, almost as if the spring-back pressure from III is too strong. So now I'm getting into the habit of after the engine is running, twisting the key ever-so-slightly more towards III.
That, and, maybe I could lighten up the extraneous junk on my keychain, even though it's not much.
might be time for a new ignition cyl, the spring could have been weakened like with the chevy recall for the weak spring in the ignition cyl!

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