Steering lock ADR

[ando1]

Hi guys, new to the forum but thought I'd add my two cents...

I used to own a manual 1976 Saab 99...its ignition was in the centre console, underneath the handbrake lever, and you couldn't remove the key unless the gearstick was in reverse...I'm pretty sure there was no steering lock. Also, there was a latch on the gearstick below the gear knob that you had to pull upwards in order to engage/disengage reverse - I assume that was connected to a simple gate mechanism.

That car pre-dated ADR 25, but I think that those two features combined would still make the car compliant with the requirements today (if an immobiliser was added of course).

It shouldn't be too difficult to adapt that same type of mechanism to a dash mounted ignition...wire the ignition to one solenoid that would lock the reverse gate, and have another solenoid (or other mechanism) that would prevent the key being turned off past ACC unless the gearstick is in reverse. Since neither of those solenoids is connected to anything related to forward motion, a failure also wouldn't cause any safety risk whilst driving.

Wouldn't that setup meet the ADR requirements and eliminate the need for a steering lock? I'm a newbie to this, so may be over simplifying...any thoughts?