remote central locking help

[justin31]

i recently brought a 1997 passat which came with a remote key fob but wasnt working(no working L.E.D.when pressing buttons) ,the prevous owner said that when he brought the car it wasnt working either but he never bothered trying as he didnt mind just using the key.I replaced the batteries and hey presto the fob lights up when i press the lock or unlock button.

I tried to open the car with the fob but nothing happened so i looked in my owners manual and noticed a special procedure:

-Hold lock or unlock button for 1 second
-Unlock car using the key
-Press unlock or unlock
-Now the key should be reconised and will work

I did this about 10 times(in the wind and rain i must add) but nothing.Thinking the fob might not be giving out a signal i went to my local scrap yard and managed to get another fob with exactly the same serial number and frequancy.I know for a fact that that fob was working so i treid the sync'ing procedure on this key fob but that didnt work either.

Ive read about using 2 keys to re-program a fob but i was only given the 1 key when i brought the car.

ive been to my local VW dealer and they wanted £58 just to look at the car and from ive read from other people with the same problem it could cost up to £200 to get it sorted when infact it can only take a few minutes to fix.

i cannot afford to pay those prices and was wondering if there is any other possable ways i can try to get the remote central locking working?

ive heard that dissconecting the car battery for a few minutes will reset the ecu (MMC) along with any miss matched key fob codes?

i have the older style key fob which has 2 buttons and is NOT the newer flip blade style.after a bit of searching on the web ive also found it that these fobs also work on some fords.

I am desperate to get the remote working as i have a baby sue in a couple of weeks and it will be a nightmare if i keep having to poke around trying to get the key in the lock to open the car.

Thanks for looking :Blush2:

P.S.all electrics work fine and no signs of water or water damage to ECU/MMC

[Hex69]

i recently brought a 1997 passat which came with a remote key fob but wasnt working(no working L.E.D.when pressing buttons) ,the prevous owner said that when he brought the car it wasnt working either but he never bothered trying as he didnt mind just using the key.I replaced the batteries and hey presto the fob lights up when i press the lock or unlock button.

I tried to open the car with the fob but nothing happened so i looked in my owners manual and noticed a special procedure:

-Hold lock or unlock button for 1 second
-Unlock car using the key
-Press unlock or unlock
-Now the key should be reconised and will work

I did this about 10 times(in the wind and rain i must add) but nothing.Thinking the fob might not be giving out a signal i went to my local scrap yard and managed to get another fob with exactly the same serial number and frequancy.I know for a fact that that fob was working so i treid the sync'ing procedure on this key fob but that didnt work either.

Ive read about using 2 keys to re-program a fob but i was only given the 1 key when i brought the car.

ive been to my local VW dealer and they wanted £58 just to look at the car and from ive read from other people with the same problem it could cost up to £200 to get it sorted when infact it can only take a few minutes to fix.

i cannot afford to pay those prices and was wondering if there is any other possable ways i can try to get the remote central locking working?

ive heard that dissconecting the car battery for a few minutes will reset the ecu (MMC) along with any miss matched key fob codes?

i have the older style key fob which has 2 buttons and is NOT the newer flip blade style.after a bit of searching on the web ive also found it that these fobs also work on some fords.

I am desperate to get the remote working as i have a baby sue in a couple of weeks and it will be a nightmare if i keep having to poke around trying to get the key in the lock to open the car.

Thanks for looking :Blush2:

P.S.all electrics work fine and no signs of water or water damage to ECU/MMC

Have you checked the CCM under the passenger seat. Search for plenum chamber in this sub-forum, it's the Passat's achilles heel.

[justin31]

Have you checked the CCM under the passenger seat. Search for plenum chamber in this sub-forum, it's the Passat's achilles heel.

yes mate ive found it and it all seems ok

[Hex69]

Including the wiring to and from it?

It's inclined to corrode causing all sorts of issues, like those that you've mentioned.

[justin31]

Including the wiring to and from it?

It's inclined to corrode causing all sorts of issues, like those that you've mentioned.

yes mate all checked and ok

[Hex69]

yes mate all checked and ok

Then I'd be inclined to get a fault code read, and see what it returns.

[justin31]

i temped fate by saying theres no water,ive had a lok and there is some dampness to the wiring and around the ccm.