Hey everyone,
About ten minutes ago my dad shut off his 2004 srx v8 and took the key out of the ignition. As he was walking away from the car it started up by itself. Now it is running and with out a key in the ignition and we can't get it to shut off. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Im assuming you put the key back in the ignition, turned it to the on position, and then off? If that doesn't turn it off, then I have no idea.

Can you program the nav system so the car drives itself to the drive-thru, buys beer, and brings it home to you?

I suspect the problem is in the steering column wiring. The starter circuit doesn't require you to keep the key turned to the start position until the car starts. Something probably caused the start circuit to become energized, even for a moment, and the car started itself.

That seems odd for sure, do you have any aftermarket equipment on this vehicle such as a remote start?

That seems odd for sure, do you have any aftermarket equipment on this vehicle such as a remote start?

Nope. Nothing aftermarket. Everything is stock. The car eventually turned itself off. Then after it was off I went to unlock it with the remote and it started up again. If you leave it alone for about 5 minutes it will go off by itself.

Can you put it in gear and drive it without the key when it starts itself? Or is it locked up, as if it was started with a remote start (WHICH I KNOW IT DOES NOT HAVE) ? Maybe this will help narrow it down...

Can you put it in gear and drive it without the key when it starts itself? Or is it locked up, as if it was started with a remote start (WHICH I KNOW IT DOES NOT HAVE) ? Maybe this will help narrow it down...

When I tried to put it in gear, as soon as I stepped on the brake pedal to shift out of park the car turned off. At least now I know a quick way to shut it off when it does this. My local dealer was closed down by GM so I'm going to call the nearest cadillac dealer tuesday morning to schedule an appointment.

So, it is operating just like a remote start..... shuts off unless you insert key before hitting brake. Is steering wheel locked when it is running by itself with no key in ignition? Still trying to figure this one out for you. Is dad the first owner?

So, it is operating just like a remote start..... shuts off unless you insert key before hitting brake. Is steering wheel locked when it is running by itself with no key in ignition? Still trying to figure this one out for you. Is dad the first owner?

Yes the steering wheel is locked when the car is running by itself with no key. My dad is the second owner, he bought it with about 20,000 miles on it and now its has close to 68,000.

When I tried to put it in gear, as soon as I stepped on the brake pedal to shift out of park the car turned off. At least now I know a quick way to shut it off when it does this. My local dealer was closed down by GM so I'm going to call the nearest cadillac dealer tuesday morning to schedule an appointment.

So, what did you find out? It isn't nice to keep us hanging like this on your little mystery! ;)

It has some sort of remote start on it.
A highly complicated sequence of events must take place in order for that vehicle to start.
There is no way on Earth that it is happening randomly for no reason.

The fact that a remote button press activated the starting of the vehicle and pressing the brake made it stop clearly identifies the installation of a remote start.
There should be a sticker under the hood that indicates a remote start is installed also but it depends on who installed it.

Next time try opening the hood, I bet it shuts off then too.

The more I hear, the more it sounds like a remote start. Hitting the brake to turn the engine off and turning off by itself after 5 minutes were both features I had in the Astrostart I had installed on my 04 Denali. That unit never started itself, but the remote start and computer on the truck would occasionally get out of sync and the remote wouldn't unlock the doors. It sounds like someone traded / sold the SRX with the original remotes and no one ever checked if there was an aftermarket remote starter.

Called the dealer and they are saying the same thing you guys are saying, that someone must have installed some kind of remote start. I looked under the hood for any kind of sticker or indication that there is remote start and I found nothing. We have had this car for 4 years now and this is the first time this has happened. When my dad purchased the car the dealer never said anything about it having remote start. The guy that my dad spoke to today said that pressing the unlock button once and then pressing it again and holding it for 4 seconds would start it if it had remote start installed by cadillac. I tried that about a hundred times in different variations and nothing. I cant seem to duplicate it starting by itself, it only does it randomly.

"Cadillac" does not install remote start systems.
It either comes from the factory with remote start, which would include a button on the remote (not available for the year and model you own) or it doesn't have it.

In most places it is required by law that the doors have to be locked in order for the vehicle to have remote start, it is far more likely that it is presses of the "lock" button that activate the feature.
On the factory systems you must press lock then hit the remote start and hold it for 2-3 seconds.

There is no way on Earth that the factory theft system would allow the vehicle to start without the key in the ignition unless someone had wired something in.
Often times they move the theft antenna and hide a key within range in the dash.
All this can be a real nuisance if you don't know it is there, yours is a good example as to why.

Look around on the lower part of and underneath the driver's side of the dashboard for a small switch. Many remote starts have a disable switch in that location. Another suggestion would be to take the car to a reputable car alarm shop and have them inspect it for a remote start.

Do you have an OEM Caddy Remote - or is it an aftermarket remote?

Many aftermarket remotes will remote start the car if the Lock AND Unlock buttons are pressed together at the same time. I had a Ford Explorer with this setup. Every now and then - with the remote in my pocket along with change and a pocket knife, it would accidentally start the car.

I have an Ungo Remote for my Mustang GT, and it has a big red button, pressing the red button remotes starts my car. Sometimes - with the remote the keys wadded up in my hand will start the car.

Or - - your neighbors new garage door installation is using the same frequency as your aftermarket remote start - so every time you neighbor opens/closes his garage your car will start! <smile>

Or - - your neighbors new garage door installation is using the same frequency as your aftermarket remote start - so every time you neighbor opens/closes his garage your car will start! <smile>

Stranger things have happened.

Maybe worth a test with neighbor's assistance.