# Immobiliser problem



## teccer (Jun 6, 2010)

I've had this problem since I bought this van, (hymer 694, 2002 fiat 2.8 td) about every 30to 40 times I try to start the van the immobliser light stays on and the motor won't start, I have to keep switching it on & off until it does, 3 years ago I took it to an auto electrican and was told as it was factory fitted he could do nothing about it,
another guy told me to spray wd40 down the ign switch, not sure if it worked or not as the same thing happened within 30 startups.

I've heard of 1 guy who bought a new control box £300+ and it still never solved the problem.

surely if the control box is faulty it just won't work, mine is intermittant

has anybody had this problem and how did they get over it???


last year all the time I was in spain for the winter I left the key in the ign' it worked all the time so somehow it was an improvment but not a good idea even though I had the key covered with a hinged flap.

coming down to spain this winter it's gone back to the old problem again.

could it just be a bad wire connection?

I've even tried taping the master key to the outside of the ign' switch ,that doesn't help either, 

(a friend has an iveco van with only 1 programmed key ,he has that taped to the outside of the switch and a normal unprogrammed key works, so he has two spare unprogrammed keys that work)


any advice welcome
teccer


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## inkey-2008 (May 24, 2008)

I have seen reports on the forum that it can be the reciever around the barrel of the lock that is either coming loose or breaking.

Andy


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## kandsservices (Sep 5, 2010)

Its normally the ring that plays up as far as tapping the master key to the barrel it wasnt close enough for it to read the transponder it could even be the key thats playing up.To programme a new key you will need all the keys that you have aswell as the master key as they all need to be coded in to the vehicle at the sametime hope this has helped.
Kev



Cant inform you how to reprogramme keys as its a security issue.


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## gaspode (May 9, 2005)

A multitude of things can affect the immobiliser circuit, not just the ignition key sensor. A favourite is the fuel cut-off solenoid (the one that cuts the fuel supply in the event of a collision). That is also in the immobiliser circuit and loose connections on the plugs and sockets to the sensor have been know to cause the immobiliser to malfunction. It's usually situated on the bulkhead, right behind the battery and is susceptible to disturbance if the vehicle battery is removed or if it's not properly secured.


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## joedenise (Jul 20, 2007)

Hi gaspode

that happened to us a couple of years ago rescue driver didn't have a clue but phoned fiat dealers and they told him to press the end in.

joe


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## eddievanbitz (May 1, 2005)

Or remove the immobiliser!

Eddie


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## Stanner (Aug 17, 2006)

eddievanbitz said:


> Or remove the immobiliser!
> 
> Eddie


You can't - if you know how to you will make your fortune.

The Fiat Code system cannot even be by-passed or disabled.


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

eddievanbitz said:


> Or remove the immobiliser!
> 
> Eddie


I tend to agree with Eddie here. Immobilisers are more trouble than they are worth.
Cutting the hands off thieves would be a better deterrent.

Ray.


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## eddievanbitz (May 1, 2005)

Stanner said:


> eddievanbitz said:
> 
> 
> > Or remove the immobiliser!
> ...


Really?:roll: Van Bitz used to offer the removal as an option. I have informed a number of members of Motorhomefacts how to remove the CODE immobiliser, they simply have to send me a photocopy of their V5 to prove ownership and I will send instructions back to that address.

We got involved due to the CODE system causing problems with vehicles like ambulances and the like

We no longer would offer this service commercially, hence why I choose to assist FOC

For the record it didn't make us a fortune lol

Eddie


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## Snow (Dec 22, 2008)

I had the same problem several years ago with my Bess E600. I also spent Several hundred pounds on labour and a new control box. I eventually cured the problem myself. I found there was a large-ish voltage drop between the battery and the van body. I cleaned all connections to the body to no avail. The solution in my case was to run a new earth lead. It might have been a coincidence, but it worked!!


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## Stanner (Aug 17, 2006)

eddievanbitz said:


> Stanner said:
> 
> 
> > eddievanbitz said:
> ...


Must a different Code immobilisor to the one fitted to cars then.
I tried everywhere to get one by-passed/removed on a Marea and drew a blank, even from the places that claimed to be able to get past anything - you should have advertised on the Fiat forum it was one of the most asked questions.


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## chrisndeb (Feb 7, 2007)

Hi All

It is possible to remove the immobiliser, I have done it after it cut in as I was driving and would not re-start.

They are a pain in the bottom ,made to go wrong im sure.

Have Fun 

Chris


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## eddievanbitz (May 1, 2005)

Stanner said:


> Must a different Code immobilisor to the one fitted to cars then.
> I tried everywhere to get one by-passed/removed on a Marea and drew a blank, even from the places that claimed to be able to get past anything - you should have advertised on the Fiat forum it was one of the most asked questions.


Hi Stanner

We only work on motorhomes so don't know what would have been fitted to cars.

If it was the red key CODE system then it can be removed.

It is not the type of work that we would advertise for, we did it when our customers were having problems.

As the vans get older the job gets trickier due to components getting brittle and seized so we no longer offer it as a service.

Hence why I offer the information to owners should they wish to remove.by pass the system themselves, once, they have proved ownership

Eddie


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## Stanner (Aug 17, 2006)

eddievanbitz said:


> Stanner said:
> 
> 
> > Must a different Code immobilisor to the one fitted to cars then.
> ...


Yes it was the 1 red 2 blue key Code 1 system and if I had a £1 for everybody who said they could do it, until you asked them to actually do it, I could buy a large round of drinks.

If you could do it and the van system is the same as the car system - you could have made a fortune from Marea/Bravo/Brava/Punto owners via the Fiat Forum.

I spent £500 and still had a system that tried it on every so often - but I learned that it was just bluffing and would give up before I did if I just kept trying.

The general view (never proved wrong SFAIK) on FF was that it wasn't by-passable.


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## eddievanbitz (May 1, 2005)

Stanner said:


> Yes it was the 1 red 2 blue key Code 1 system and if I had a £1 for everybody who said they could do it, until you asked them to actually do it, I could buy a large round of drinks.
> 
> If you could do it and the van system is the same as the car system - you could have made a fortune from Marea/Bravo/Brava/Punto owners via the Fiat Forum.
> 
> ...


Just shows what rubbish can be on forums then doesn't it!

I have no interest in cars at all especially Fiats.

The diesel pump will not open the fuel valve until it recieves a digital signal from the immobiliser conrol unit. The unit gets a "code" from the transponder in the ignition key.

When the ignition key is in the keyswitch it is inside a "ring" that clips around the keyswitch.

When the ignition is in the ON position the transponder is excited by the radiated power transmitted by the ring. This produces a digital signal that the ring collects and sends to the immobilisation control unit.

If this is the correct signal a digital signal is sent to the decoder embedded in a waterproof unit, fitted onto the end of the fuel pump with shear bolts!

The trick is to by pass the potted decoder on the end of the pump and know where to connect into the circuit board!

How do I know this? nearly 25 years of working at the top of my game in the security industry, being the security consultant for Interchange in MMM for about 14 years and working closely with Thatcham and advising about teh policing policy for the new Approved Thatcham Installation scheme backed by all the major insurers.

The CODE immobiliser CAN be by passed!

By the way, you wasted £500! :wink:

Tell you what, I having nothing to prove, owning Van Bitz makes me very happy with the reputation that we have strived for, but if you still doubt me I am happy to explain how we do it to a trusted third party say Nuke so he can verify it for you.

The last thing I am going to do is to post the exact connections on this forum as as you have already stated


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## Stanner (Aug 17, 2006)

eddievanbitz said:


> Just shows what rubbish can be on forums then doesn't it!
> 
> I have no interest in cars at all especially Fiats.


Apart from that episode with the immobilisor they have never let me down unlike Citroens/Fords (especially Fords!)/Vauxhalls etc.

I must have been very lucky with my long line of Fiats & Lancias then.



> The diesel pump will not open the fuel valve until it recieves a digital signal from the immobiliser conrol unit. The unit gets a "code" from the transponder in the ignition key.
> 
> When the ignition key is in the keyswitch it is inside a "ring" that clips around the keyswitch.
> 
> ...


I knew the theory - but now you tell me the last bit a couple of years too late.



> How do I know this? nearly 25 years of working at the top of my game in the security industry, being the security consultant for Interchange in MMM for about 14 years and working closely with Thatcham and advising about teh policing policy for the new Approved Thatcham Installation scheme backed by all the major insurers.
> 
> The CODE immobiliser CAN be by passed!


I don't doubt your bona fides one bit



> By the way, you wasted £500! :wink:


I realised that at the time and got a fair bit refunded on the basis that it was abortive work and the fault wasn't cured. I just made them remove the useless new bits and refit the old ones. As it still did the same whichever part was fitted they didn't have any counter to my argument.



> Tell you what, I having nothing to prove, owning Van Bitz makes me very happy with the reputation that we have strived for, but if you still doubt me I am happy to explain how we do it to a trusted third party say Nuke so he can verify it for you.
> 
> The last thing I am going to do is to post the exact connections on this forum as as you have already stated


Too late now, the car got smashed up by the friend who had it on loan a month or so ago (in the last freeze up). If that wasn't the case, I'd happily pay you to prove it could be done.


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## ponsaloti (Jan 17, 2010)

I agree,this is the usual way to get around immo on ducato's and similar but, IF THE VEHICLE IS STOLEN, THE INSURANCE COMPANY WONT PAY OUT. 
The other problem is when someone sells or buys one of these vehicles, this information isn't volunteered.

Could be an iffy chip in the key. Two possible chips used on this year ducato. Cheap key (ID11 chip) is £30, the other one (ID48) is bought from dealer using VIN, costs approx £130 + codes +cutting+ programming and takes 5 days + to arrive.

Could be iffy ariel (reader)
could be water ingress at elec connections at immo box ,ecu, fuse box.
Could be you have more than one chipped key on your keyring. Ariel could be seeing two codes.

Good Luck


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## Stanner (Aug 17, 2006)

From what I've found it seems to be done on Ducatos but I can't find any reference to anyone doing it with the 1.9 car engine.

Could the fuel cutoff bit be different on that pump? From what I've read the fuel cutoff bit on the cars is hidden away under the pump and needs the pump to be removed to get to it.


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