keys and stuff

[shineydave]

now here's a strange thing. there's been talk of matching keys to immobilisers lately and i thought i was lucky because i still have the white tag attached to the spare keys with what i thought was the SKC.

so today, after 2 years of ownership i dug out the spare keys and thought i had better try them, i've got 2 flip keys, 1 normal key and a plastic emergency key. both flip keys work but the other two don't even though they will turn on the ignition. i connected vag-com and went into instuments and found there's only 2 keys adapted so i thought i'd have a go at adapting the other two.

but the SKC doesn't work, now there's 2 numbers in the tag, one on a black background with the format A****** and a second number on a white background with a two line format with a 2 digit number above and a 5 digit number begining with a 0 underneith, this was the one that i thought was the SKC. does anyone else who has a SKC recognise this format?

the only explaination i can think of at the moment is the dash has been changed at some point and only two keys have been adapted. if this is the case i'll have to query my local dealer to see firstly if there's a record of this being changed and secondly, whether they'll adapt the remaining two keys FOC. (or give me the correct code so i can do it)

i wouldn't have thought the car would lose the adaption of the 2 spare keys over it's lifetime.

[MarkB]

The 2 other keys are only good enough to open a door and disable the steering lock. They don't have the electronics to do the imobiliser.

Also, the numbers you have aren't the ones you need. They stopped issuing the required numbers a few years before your car was sold.

[shineydave]

well it's all a bit strange because i've just checked with a mate down the road who has the plastic key and hers starts the car. i looked on ETKA and it shows the plastic emergency key with transponder so that would indicate it will start the car. the other thing is it doesn't mention in the handbook that these other two keys won't start the car, just that the emergency key should only be used as a temporary measure untill a regular key can be obtained. i'm assuming you've tried yours and yours doesn't start it either so maybe we both have the same problem.

can anyone else with the emergency key confirm whether it does or doesn't start the car

[MarkB]

I think I only have the plastic key and just thought there's no way it's big enough to house the transponder.

You won't see the transponder keys in the adaption will you? Isn't that just for the central locking. Or am I now talking out of my ?

[shineydave]

i got some info before i started from the ross-tech site that said you can see how many keys are paired with the immobiliser in instruments (17). mine says 2 keys and only 2 of the 4 i have work so i'm guessing that's right. i know where you're coming from though because i think it works similar in the central locking module in that any remote controls are listed in there but that's a completely seperate system.

[derdle]

I thought you could use the plastic keys as an emergency measure, but you had to unlock the car and start the engine within 20 seconds for it to work?

Paul

[shineydave]

just tried that with mine, opened car, key in ignition, car turns over, starts for a second then dies, another few seconds and the alarm kicks in.

as far as i remember the alarm kicking in is normal when you open the door manually, it's in case someone screwdrivers the lock, you have to start the car within a certain time but obviously with these keys not being coded to the car they won't start it so the alarm kicks in.

so it would seem that if the emergency and service keys don't have chips in them then they are completely useless other than for testing the alarm

[Philws4]

Am i right in thinking that one of the keys (maybe the plastic one) is a 'valet' key and therefore can only be used to make very small journeys!!!!

Or have i had too much to drink

[shineydave]

nope, the plastic one is an emergency key which i beleive should be fully functional, the other spare key which is like a conventional key has a spanner symbol on it and is for leaving with your mechanic when the car is being worked on, that only opens the doors and ignition but won't open the boot, seat backs or glovebox

[shineydave]

so just had a 10 minute conversation with a local dealership who tells me NO B5 model cars were issued with the SKC number ever (?????) also they suggested that the 2 "spare" keys could be fixed and not rolling code keys so they might not be able to match them to the car even though they are genuine audi keys that were supplied with the car and open it as they should, another strange assumption. they also say that they can't release the SKC as it's all done by secure internet connection, is that not just for the later cars with the 7 digit SKC? they also said they couldn't check to see whether the dash pod had been changed either so all in all a pretty poor result.

they did however offer to have a go at matching them but at 45 quid and vat but no guarantee that it would work i declined their kind offer

[PaulF]

Bought my car with one key only. Purchased a valet key at a VW garage as local Audi did not do them then got it programmed by Audi on the internet link. When you get keys programmed they all have to be done at the same time. It is possible that yours have not all been coordinated.

[shineydave]

they certainly haven't but i'm trying to establish the reason why, either they've never worked from new or the dash pod has been changed and they were overlooked. sadly my local stealer can't or won't look to see if the pod has indeed been changed, either way if they're genuine keys then i think the dealer should match them FOC as one way or another the reason for them not working all boils down to them.

unless of course the keys can loose the immobilisor pairing over time but i would have thought that was unlikely

[Virdee Autos]

As has been mentioned all keys have to coded at the same time upon replacement of any component that uses the immobiliser.

The 7 digit code on your plastic tag is no use to you. Even when the 7 digit code was available from VAG (prior to the internet connection business), that code would only work on "that" day, and had to be entered with the corrosponding dealer no., importer code, and more importantly the date. This can easily be seen when you select the "7 digit SKC" option on VAG-COM. Thus this code cannot be used the next day/week/year. And which brings me onto saying that, because you do not know when the SKC on the plastic tag was issued (date), you cannot use this and makes this SKC totally useless.

The earlier cars which had the 4 digit code were not a problem, and keys for this could be coded at any time, as long as the 4 digit code was present, as these did not use any date, dealer number, or importer code. But these have all been replaced in the newer vehicles by the 7 digit SKC.

I think the only way you maybe able to tell if you've had a replacement instrument cluster is by removing it, and seeing if you can find a sticker with the part number, and more importantly if the part number ends in a "X", which will dictate an exchange unit, and hence a replacement. If this is the case, then I guess you could take it up with Audi to get the remaining keys coded FOC.

Apart from that I think it will be a trip to your dealer to get them done. Saying that there are a few independant people who can do this, some locksmiths around the London area for sure, but sometimes these people are more dearer than the dealers!

HTH