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My fix for the so called “Gorilla Spring” Ignition switch: The very first issue that I had with my “new” PV444 in 2016 was a stuck ignition switch. If I turned the key two clicks to the right, the key would be stuck and I could not turn off the car without risk of breaking the key. I would resort to “stalling” the car and then disconnecting the battery if I inadvertently turned the key two clicks to the right. Then I had to remove the switch from the dash to remove the key and then with a screwdriver, to turn back the switch.
The prior owner had fitted the car with a bypass start button, so that the key only needed to be turned one click to the right. But I often overlooked this nuance in my ham fisted efforts to start the car.
This weekend, I addressed the problem once and for all by installing a new Bosch ignition switch. I used switch # 0 342 309 006 with numbered screw terminals.
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The first order of business was to determine if I could use the switch by removing a small trim ring on the dashboard. Otherwise the new switch would not fit. This trim ring was just held in place with 4 tabs and fairly easily removed.
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The second order of business was to understand how the switch was wired. I took a photo of the wiring at the back of the switch, and with a wiring diagram identified the various wires. I had an extra red wire, however, that I think was supposed to wire the supplemental electric fuel pump - but this wire went to the fuse box and was redundant to the green wires as near as I could determine, so I ultimately deleted this extra red wire.
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Initially I planned to just replace the switch, but in the end, I sacrificed the coil as well.
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I first cut the old switch off at the armored cable.
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Then, to expose the ignition wire, I cut the armored cable off at the coil. This revealed the ignition coil wire, which unfortunately had become very brittle with age with the insulation cracking in several places. I attempted to re-assemble using the original coil, but I felt that I had a continuity problem with the wire and eventually I abandoned this plan.
Instead, I gutted the coil and used the coil housing to host a new 6 volt coil.
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The original internal coil wires were packed in a plastic insulation material, not oil as I expected. After cutting off the top of the coil, I resorted to heating and burning this plastic with a propane torch, melting the plastic in the process. This was dirty, outdoor work but it allowed me to dig out the old coil wiring and the plastic. Internally, there were two sets of outside shims. I separated these and would use two of the pieces to shim in the new coil assembly.
![]()
I wired the new switch as follows: Terminal #30 – red, power in, hot; Terminal #50 – Grey – Starter solenoid; Terminal #75 – Green, accessories; Terminal #15 coil and fuel pump.
The supplemental electric fuel pump was tied in at the fuse box (was fused) and would pump if the key was turned left for accessories or turned right for the coil. I didn’t like this. I just wanted the fuel pump to be activated when the car was powered up for driving. So I tied the fuel pump into Terminal #15 with the coil.
I test fit the new coil in the car, shot the carbs full of starter fluid and with my fingers crossed, I turned it over with the starter button that I have left in place for now. The engine quickly (and happily for me) caught fire.
![]()
Tonight I’m painting the external casing and I will likely use a dab of epoxy or a spot weld to make sure the coil is firmly held within the casing. But I was pretty happy with the result and the fact that this annoying problem will be a thing of the past.
![]()
The prior owner had fitted the car with a bypass start button, so that the key only needed to be turned one click to the right. But I often overlooked this nuance in my ham fisted efforts to start the car.
This weekend, I addressed the problem once and for all by installing a new Bosch ignition switch. I used switch # 0 342 309 006 with numbered screw terminals.
The first order of business was to determine if I could use the switch by removing a small trim ring on the dashboard. Otherwise the new switch would not fit. This trim ring was just held in place with 4 tabs and fairly easily removed.
The second order of business was to understand how the switch was wired. I took a photo of the wiring at the back of the switch, and with a wiring diagram identified the various wires. I had an extra red wire, however, that I think was supposed to wire the supplemental electric fuel pump - but this wire went to the fuse box and was redundant to the green wires as near as I could determine, so I ultimately deleted this extra red wire.
Initially I planned to just replace the switch, but in the end, I sacrificed the coil as well.
I first cut the old switch off at the armored cable.
Then, to expose the ignition wire, I cut the armored cable off at the coil. This revealed the ignition coil wire, which unfortunately had become very brittle with age with the insulation cracking in several places. I attempted to re-assemble using the original coil, but I felt that I had a continuity problem with the wire and eventually I abandoned this plan.
Instead, I gutted the coil and used the coil housing to host a new 6 volt coil.
The original internal coil wires were packed in a plastic insulation material, not oil as I expected. After cutting off the top of the coil, I resorted to heating and burning this plastic with a propane torch, melting the plastic in the process. This was dirty, outdoor work but it allowed me to dig out the old coil wiring and the plastic. Internally, there were two sets of outside shims. I separated these and would use two of the pieces to shim in the new coil assembly.
I wired the new switch as follows: Terminal #30 – red, power in, hot; Terminal #50 – Grey – Starter solenoid; Terminal #75 – Green, accessories; Terminal #15 coil and fuel pump.
The supplemental electric fuel pump was tied in at the fuse box (was fused) and would pump if the key was turned left for accessories or turned right for the coil. I didn’t like this. I just wanted the fuel pump to be activated when the car was powered up for driving. So I tied the fuel pump into Terminal #15 with the coil.
I test fit the new coil in the car, shot the carbs full of starter fluid and with my fingers crossed, I turned it over with the starter button that I have left in place for now. The engine quickly (and happily for me) caught fire.
Tonight I’m painting the external casing and I will likely use a dab of epoxy or a spot weld to make sure the coil is firmly held within the casing. But I was pretty happy with the result and the fact that this annoying problem will be a thing of the past.
