immobilizer problem, dealer can't fix

djdaveo · Post by **djdaveo** » 22 Oct 2016, 11:34

hello everyone,
my name is dave, i have a 99 s70 that was purchased used... it came with 1 key which has been lost... i went to the volvo dealer & had a new key made, & the dealer tried to program the key but failed to do so... the reasoning was that the ecu had been replaced & without the original key there was no way to program the new key... what are my options, other than junking the car? it was running good until this happened... thank you for any advice you may have...

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 22 Oct 2016, 14:57

That doesn't seem right to me. The new key should come with a code sticker with numbers that get entered into the software order and VIDA should interrogate the the system for the rest of the information that it needs to build the software download package. I think there is a maximum of 5 keys and if all of the slots are already programmed then they can just delete one of the old ones to make room for it.

You hate to delete the last key that you had on the off chance that you find it again but it sure beats not being able to use it at all.

I really wish some enterprising hacker would come up with a way to defeat the antitheft on these things. It is nothing but a huge PITA and you are a slave to the dealership to get anything done with it.

...Lee

Post by **BEJinFbk** » 22 Oct 2016, 16:44

Might be worth getting it to another dealer.

Post by **sleddriver** » 22 Oct 2016, 18:01

Wow...what a HUGE bummer to have to deal with.
+1 on trying a different dealer.
Good luck.

beigg · Post by **beigg** » 22 Oct 2016, 20:52

djdaveo wrote:hello everyone,
my name is dave, i have a 99 S70 that was purchased used... it came with 1 key which has been lost... i went to the volvo dealer & had a new key made, & the dealer tried to program the key but failed to do so... the reasoning was that the ecu had been replaced & without the original key there was no way to program the new key... what are my options, other than junking the car? it was running good until this happened... thank you for any advice you may have...

Look into having an aftermarket remote entry system installed. A system that would "override" the OEM's module and omit the factory fobs.

Post by **misha** » 23 Oct 2016, 13:57

@beigg
Aftermarket system can do nothing about this.
Btw...when aftermarket alarm system(or additional alarm system) is installed in a car it is installed in the way that it it will not interfere with factory alarm system or immobiliser.

It have it's own ecu,own frequency,own hopping codes and own remote fobs.

If factory immobiliser locked the car...aftermarket fobs or alarm system can't do anything about it and can't override the factory system.

Factory security and immobiliser can be disabled and override completelly....but that's different story and requires professionals in that business.
His problem is not only a keyless entry....he can't start the car without chipped key.

I'm with others.....change the "stealership" and find the one which knows something.

Post by **scot850** » 23 Oct 2016, 14:21

Problem is now most of the dealers don't know how to repair the older cars unless they have older mechanics who worked on the old cars when they were reasonably new. I have lost count of how many dealers have told owners I have known with 98 V/S/C 70's that new need to program their keys as they are shipped, but few if any 98's here were.

If the ECU has been changed that could be an issue on a 99 as they have the chipped keys that are coded to the car. If the ignition barrel is the original then the key should be replaceable, but needs to be coded to the car. If the car ran previously before the key was lost, then the car should be able to be re-programmed. The dealer software should read the ecu and work from there. The only issue may be if the software is looking for a particular VIN# and the change in ECU is causing a conflict.

Check with another dealer if that is an option and see if they have any 'older' mechanics that worked on the cars and know the software.

Neil.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 23 Oct 2016, 16:33

If the car ran before, with the old key, then the ECU / instrument cluster / immobilizer / ETM had to all be happy with each other. I can't come up with a reason why the new key won't work unless the dealer simply won't do it due to a VIN mismatch. The VIN lives in the instrument cluster and I suppose if the instrument cluster, the ECU, and the immobilizer all got changed out at the same time then you could have a situation where the computer reports one VIN and the car carries another on the chassis.

Just a thought, check around under the steering column, under the key, or even take the collar off of the steering column and look around the key for a tiny chip that looks like a small pill taped somewhere around the antenna ring around the key. The system can be tricked into using unchipped keys so long as the matching chip is in proximity to the antenna. It is not unheard of to remove the old chip and tape it to the steering column so that many copies of cheap, unchipped, keys can be used to start the car.

If that had been done then a newly programmed key likely won't work since the antenna is picking up more than one code at the same time and the computer doesn't know what to do with it.

...Lee

Post by **misha** » 23 Oct 2016, 18:18

Lee have a good point on this.
Everything is possible.

Post by **stephansvolvo** » 23 Oct 2016, 18:59

Ozark Lee wrote:If the car ran before, with the old key, then the ECU / instrument cluster / immobilizer / ETM had to all be happy with each other. I can't come up with a reason why the new key won't work unless the dealer simply won't do it due to a VIN mismatch. The VIN lives in the instrument cluster and I suppose if the instrument cluster, the ECU, and the immobilizer all got changed out at the same time then you could have a situation where the computer reports one VIN and the car carries another on the chassis.

Just a thought, check around under the steering column, under the key, or even take the collar off of the steering column and look around the key for a tiny chip that looks like a small pill taped somewhere around the antenna ring around the key. The system can be tricked into using unchipped keys so long as the matching chip is in proximity to the antenna. It is not unheard of to remove the old chip and tape it to the steering column so that many copies of cheap, unchipped, keys can be used to start the car.

If that had been done then a newly programmed key likely won't work since the antenna is picking up more than one code at the same time and the computer doesn't know what to do with it.

...Lee

holy crap! I would have never thought about this! This is another reason why I love reading in this forum.