Key Reprogramming

I have just been quoted £250+vat for a new key at the OPC (60 quid for the wee metal bit FFS!!) I noticed there are a couple on ebay and even one with a remote. Can these be reprogrammed if I buy them and are the OPCs willing to do so or are they likely to say no so I can be fully rogered!! Anyone else done this or have any other suggestions??

the key fobs on 996 can only be reprogrammed if the long bar code is present with the fob. blades aren't usually that dear is it gold or something.. the problem you will come across is that porsche gb hold the code for your alarm ecu and charge you for the privlege. when i worked at opc it cost £70 for fob £15 for blade and £50 to programme it in for you but that doesn't come to £250 the robbin dogs..

A month ago I had a new remote key for my 2003 Carrera from OPC Cardiff.The invoice cost breakdown was: Remote control 67.68 Blank key 55.34 Labour 45.00 V.A.T. 29.40 Total cost £197.42 The private seller (friend) that I bought the car from paid for the key.

I had to get a new key cut with new remote in September :-( (extra expense I did not need/want to spend on boring stuff!!) I did it at Charles Ivey in Fulham (which reading this forum is rated as quite expensive, should perhaps have gone to Chelsea Carrera) It cost:- Spare Key Blade £57.05 plus VAT Spare Key Head (Beeper) £89.74 plus VAT Labour to code it all with car £37.50 plus VAT (Half hour) Total £184.29 Plus VAT sigh! TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, the F-ing new key blade didnt fit the lock in the door as it seems a previous owner had changed the locks, the garage tells me there is no way of finding out what lock is in the car as porshce only have a record of the original one! Does anyone know if a locksmith can cut a key from my working one? I will try to contact previous owners

i purchased a blank key blade and a new fob from ebay USA for around $100 then had blade cut at my local key cutter £5.00and the fob programed at opc. £50 +the vat. decent saving if you can be bothered.

I am very interested to hear this Rich, because of the problems I have had with an earlier owner changing the locks and not notifying Porsche in Germany. Presumably the local key cutter cut yours off your existing key? If so I can get one cut off the working key I have! I hope I have understood you correctly! Edward

ditto Edward. I only got one key with mine and OPC colchester will cut (sic) me a deal on a new one but we're still looking at nasty end of £175 odd. I've already got spare blade but see that you can get key with fob from ebay US from $75. But someone told me that US fobs would have different electronics, frequencies or something....??? You had no issues/problems with US fob Rich?? Oh, and don't you need original bar codes etc Rich??

This is indeed an interesting point re: different frequencies etc. However from what you say Rich seems to work fine! I dont think you need a bar code to program the fob, I dont have one and had a fob programmed at an Indy, they ordered the code from Porsche Edward

USA use 315MHz remotes, and the UK is 433MHz. I have seen brand new 433MHz remotes in US eBay in the past, so that's probably what Rich bought. You need the barcode label to program the alarm module to the remote, along with the programming codes for the car from Porsche.

Thanks Richard My early 996 has the 1 button remote, if I got a 2 button head would it still work do you know? what does the second button do?

second button opens the bonnet not sure if backwards compatible with yours but don't see why not :?:

Good news (for me anyway!!). Some kind soul handed mine into the rozzers and I got them back!! Get it right up ye Glasgow OPC!! :thumbs: