Kia Soul Forums :: Kia Soul Owners banner

2014 Base Soul Keyless Entry Install?

108K views 133 replies 49 participants last post by  PUBLuigi 
#1 ·
Has anyone here done this? I just added factory cruise control to mine last weekend so now that that's out of the way, I'm looking to add keyless as well. I understand factory keyless would likely be quite expensive so I have no desire to go that route. I'm looking for a simple lock/unlock button. I don't care about horns, lights, or even individual door locks. Just a simple lock all doors with the push of a button, then unlock them all with another push.

I see a couple of write ups on 2012 base model installs of a cheap aftermarket kit. I'd be fine with that. I'm just looking for any experience specific to the 2014.

Thanks!
 
#3 ·
Hey Tunes12,

My friend and I both bought base manual Souls and this was our very first DIY upgrade. Thanks Shaggy for linking my original thread. I actually was able to install a basic Viper alarm system with ease. Once you have identified the color-coding of the car, the rest is pretty easy. However, I don't know if I would recommend this to a first time alarm installer. It can be trickier than you think. I wired in the dome light supervision which allows the internal lights to come on for 60 seconds after the car is unlocked. It is tedious to wire up, but way worth it in my opinion (most pro-alarm installers do not include it). I also chose to omit the cheesy alarm siren and hooked it up to the factory horn instead. With those two features, it really feels like a factory installed alarm. No complaints yet. Although I had to do some real bad things inside of an Audio Express to get them to share the wiring schemes with me. :sneakiness:
 
#5 ·
Very cool! While I'm not a wiring expert I have tackled anything and everything car related in the past. I'm sure that once I know what wires I need to tap into, I can wire in the rest. Having said that...I would just be doing a basic keyless lock/unlock. I have no need for an alarm, lighting, siren, etc. I'd actually be fine with all 4 doors and trunk unlocking, then locking with the push of the button.
 
#8 ·
2014 Soul keyless entry expirence

OK. I finally got my keyless entry installed. It took about 1.5 hours for my 2014 Soul base and about 20 minutes for my wife's 2014 Soul base.
First I purchased two of the Bighawks keyless entry systems from Ebay. $30.00 for both, including shipping.

Wire Electrical wiring Electronics Technology Electronic device


I wanted to keep is simple, so I altered the wiring so the only connections I had were Lock, Unlock, Power, Ground, and 2 wires for parking lights. All other unused wires were removed from the plug of the keyless entry.

Wire Cable Electrical wiring Electronics Networking cables


The blue, yellow/black and black wires from the keyless entry unit were tied together. I plugged this connector into the black box and I was ready to begin wiring into the car.

Wire Technology Electronic device Cable Electrical wiring


I removed the fuse panel and the plastic panel from under the steering wheel. I mounted the black box under the dash using plastic wire zip ties. The below picture shows the wires in the car that I attached into.

Cable management Electrical wiring Electronics Wire Cable


The 2 purple wires for the parking lights from the keyless entry system attached to the Green/black and the Brown/black wires on the large white plug in the picture above.
The red wire for constant 12v power from the keyless entry system attached to the yellow wire on the large grey plug in the picture above.
The black wire for ground from the keyless entry system attached to the screw to the left in the picture above.
The yellow unlock wire from the keyless entry system attached to the yellow/black wire on the small white plug in the picture above.
The brown lock wire from the keyless entry system attached to the red wire on the small white plug in the picture above.
That’s it. Six wire connections and I have keyless entry for $15.00 and it functions flawlessly.
I hope this helps others who have been looking for information regarding 2014 Kia Soul base aftermarket keyless entry installation.
I'm not on this site every day, but if you want a PDF of the above with pictures, please message me with your e-mail and I'll send it to you.
 
#12 ·
OK. I finally got my keyless entry installed. It took about 1.5 hours for my 2014 Soul base and about 20 minutes for my wife's 2014 Soul base.
First I purchased two of the Bighawks keyless entry systems from Ebay. $30.00 for both, including shipping.


I wanted to keep is simple, so I altered the wiring so the only connections I had were Lock, Unlock, Power, Ground, and 2 wires for parking lights. All other unused wires were removed from the plug of the keyless entry.


The blue, yellow/black and black wires from the keyless entry unit were tied together. I plugged this connector into the black box and I was ready to begin wiring into the car.


I removed the fuse panel and the plastic panel from under the steering wheel. I mounted the black box under the dash using plastic wire zip ties. The below picture shows the wires in the car that I attached into.


The 2 purple wires for the parking lights from the keyless entry system attached to the Green/black and the Brown/black wires on the large white plug in the picture above.
The red wire for constant 12v power from the keyless entry system attached to the yellow wire on the large grey plug in the picture above.
The black wire for ground from the keyless entry system attached to the screw to the left in the picture above.
The yellow unlock wire from the keyless entry system attached to the yellow/black wire on the small white plug in the picture above.
The brown lock wire from the keyless entry system attached to the red wire on the small white plug in the picture above.
That’s it. Six wire connections and I have keyless entry for $15.00 and it functions flawlessly.
I hope this helps others who have been looking for information regarding 2014 Kia Soul base aftermarket keyless entry installation.
I'm not on this site every day, but if you want a PDF of the above with pictures, please message me with your e-mail and I'll send it to you.
AWESOME. Thanks for documenting this. I was planning on tackling this in the near future and this looks like it'll make it a breeze!
 
#10 ·
I know you can find a large selection of alarms and keyless entry units on eBay. I would highly recommend DEI products. In my experience, they seem to hold up the best. Out here in the desert, it takes a tough alarm to with stand the scorching heat and DEI has never let me down. They make Viper, Python, Avital, Clifford, and more. I have posted a link from eBay for an Avital basic alarm (same one I installed in my Soul). It is $37 brand new with free shipping out of Los Angeles, CA. If you don't want the alarm portion you can forgo the siren. I hooked mine into the factory horn so it sounds like a stock alarm.

Avital 3100L 3 Channel Car Alarm System w 2 Remotes and Keyless Entry | eBay
 
#11 ·
As far as the "bighawks" system, just about all the Ebay cheap keyless entry systems use the exact same Chinese box. I have the exact same box and mine came under a different label. So if you want one of the cheap ebay systems I wouldn't worry too much about brand. Mine works well though in hindsight I probably would have sprung for a little better system that had a little more range, but I'm happy enough with what I put in.
 
#14 ·
Mine came today and is installed using the Richsmag method (Thanks!) I used Quick Splice things... I originally bought the blue ones but they were too big for the wire sizes. You need the red ones (22-18). One thing to point out is that the package came with no instructions and the wires are NOT labeled. Make sure you follow the Richsmag instructions in this post. Also, when I finished it did NOT work! I was a tad concerned until I read the instruction page on the Ebay item I purchased. There is a little button inside the unit (had to pry off cover) that you must push so it can "learn" the remotes. Not too shabby for $15 and an hour in the garage... we'll see how well the product lasts (I am tempted to order another as a spare).
 
#15 ·
Done! If you follow the steps Rischsmag mentions and remember to push the button in the box as mentioned in the post above to "learn" the remotes, you'll be good to go. I used a different ground bolt and I found open threaded bolt holes way up underneath on the left side of the firewall just above the hood latch. I used one of those holes to bolt the box to the car in addition to some very strong double sided tape. It's VERY secure.

Works like a champ! We'll see how long this cheap unit lasts but its pretty unbelievable for under $12 shipped.
 
#21 ·
I used the Quick Splice connectors you speak of in your post. But I could not find the red ones (22-18), I had to use the blue (18-14) but I took special care when connecting those.
So when I go back & troubleshoot I will make sure to connect the Lock / unlock wire with the red quick splice connectors or Solder them.

I did put the blue, yellow/ black & black wires together.
 
#20 · (Edited)
Ok, I'm probably going to sound stupid asking this question but..........why didn't your souls come with keyless/alarm/etc? I got the base as well and it all came with the car. Key fob, alarm, lights, etc. Of course I got mine early (at the end of 2013). Did they make changes? Or is this dealer dependent?

*Edit* Looking back I see the people talking about doing this add-on have M/T. If this is the case then are you kidding me? A transmission means the difference between having factory keyless or not? WTF is that all about? If I'm wrong then ignore my rant. :D
 
#22 ·
Ok, I'm probably going to sound stupid asking this question but..........why didn't your souls come with keyless/alarm/etc? I got the base as well and it all came with the car. Key fob, alarm, lights, etc. Of course I got mine early (at the end of 2013). Did they make changes? Or is this dealer dependent?
Not sure, But my dealer/ salesman told me they just dont come stock with the 2014 Soul Base Manual Trans.
I bought mine in the end of MAY 2014.

I knew it was an option I wanted but was not going to pay extra for it.
 
#24 ·
Well, I had this huge rant wrote out about how idiotic it is to not include that stuff just because of your tranny choice. This is 2014, not the 50's/60's/70's. Especially being a $15k+ car. However, this is off-topic and should be saved for another post. :D

To Lock though (heh, had to laugh at this one. Lock is having problems with his locks. :D ) I agree with others, go back and check every single wire very carefully. If you have a multi-meter with continuity tester on it that would help as well. If not they can be bought at most big box places for pretty cheap. Good luck man!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lock
#25 ·
Troubleshooting steps for the Keyless entry:
Universal Car Remote Controller Central Door Lock Locking Keyless Entry System C | eBay
I followed the steps in the “Richsmad” description.

For all the connections I used the Blue Quick Splice Connectors 18-14 gauge
http://tiny.cc/dpfdix


When I push the Lock & unlock on the remotes the parking lamps flash like they are suppose to and I can hear the unit under the dash make a ticking noise like the unit is functioning properly, but the doors do not lock or unlock.

I disconnected the lock & unlock wires & tried another splice method with same results.
I changed the Splice connectors for the Lock & Unlock wires with the Splices listed in the Link:
TELECOM SPLICE CONNECTORS RED 3W 100PCS | Legend Performance Technology
They may or may not be this exact splice connector but this is what they look like.

I checked and verified the ground. I used the bolt listed in the Richsmad description.
(When Disconnecting the ground and pushing the lock & unlock on the remote nothing happens)

I confirmed by the method listed above that the blue, yellow/black & black wires were spliced together & connected to ground.

I purchased 2 of these units one for me and the other for my wife’s car. I left the wiring in place and hooked up the second Unit and programmed the 2 remotes for that unit and I get the same results.
This seems odd to me that 2 units shipped to me would be bad. I am leaning on my install being not 100% somewhere.

I used a multi-meter and placed the one lead on the Units lock lead and the black wire on the ground. When I pressed the button on the remote I see that the Voltage drops.
I did notice from the Link” billaz” posted “Ready Remote™ | AutoCommand®
This link shows that the Power Lock & Power unlock have “-“connections. So I would assume this is what it is suppose to do.

I guess my next steps will be to completely remove the connections and Splices and Solder everything in place. But I have a wife & 4 kids 2 of which are small and require a lot of attention and working a fulltime job I have very little time to work these projects without constant interruptions or re-tasking.
 
#29 ·
Hi everyone! I've been eyeing the Soul for a few years and finally got around to bringing one home! I would have opted for a nicer package, but since I wanted a stick, I got that and figured I could add in some extras little by little. Imagine my shock when I got the keys and there was no remote. So a quick search on Google brought me here. I have already ordered and received the Bighawks system and plan on installing it sometime tomorrow. I really appreciate the writeup, but wonder if anyone wired this up to include the trunk release? The package states it will accommodate that. Also, it seems that all this does is just remotely relay the power to each of the circuits. I know the locks are centrally-controlled since I can lock and unlock all doors from turning the key in one of the doors. Is there not a simpler solution that would control this, or is that an alarm module and missing from my Soul?
 
#30 ·
Don't know how to answer your questions but there are threads on remote locks for the 2014/15 Soul models as well as the existing wiring for steering wheel controls for the cruise control. You should be able to find them with the search function, plenty of info on those mods. Where in Louisville?
 
#33 ·
Finally got around to getting my keyless entry system installed the other night. Works great! Those tiny wires are bundled together very tightly, so separating the individual wires to tap was a bit challenging, but not too bad. The system may not be as robust as the factory option (or non-option in our case), but it's functional and can't be beat considering it cost less than $20 including materials to install. A big thanks to Rich for the writeup and pics! :applause:

When I have the time, I'm considering making a couple of modifications and will be sure to post my results and instructions should anyone else decide to do this as well:

The first is to add a relay to honk the horn when the car is locked. Hopefully it will be as simple tying into the lock signal (brown wire on unit).

Also, I believe dome supervision can be added by tying in a timer relay hooked up to the unlock signal (yellow wire on unit).

Could use some input on this one: Since the remote trunk release isn't needed/used in this setup, we have an extra button on the remote that can be used for something else. The way we have this installed, the unused orange wire should output +12V for one second. Anyone have any ideas on a good use for this? I'm thinking maybe another timer relay hooked up to the headlights or something. Maybe there isn't any real benefit here, but I hate to waste a good remote-controlled button! Of course I realize that the cost of relays and wiring complications are adding up here and perhaps I should have considered a different unit, but I already have this one and these mods would be applicable for anyone else who has this unit.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top