Problems with remote central locking

Hi, I'm hoping someone can offer a little help, my remote central locking has been playing up recently... I assumed it was just the key fob battery as led was very dim, swapped it for a fresh battery all seemed ok for a week, then things go wrong! it's a standard porsche alarm/key, single button, the key works fine in the lock, so central locking working ok, and the led comes on the key fine, have put another new battery in it today. If I lock the car with the key the dash alarm light arms as normal.. any ideas?, is this an opc or can an indy sort?, or am i missing something, maybe a loose wire/bad connection, something got wet with all the rain?! thanks for any thoughts!

I sounds like it could be a problem with the remote transmitter that is flattening the batteries quickly. Do you have another remote key that you can try using for a while?

thanks for the reply, no I've not got another key to test, something I've been meaning to get sorted, The key fob led works fine, the battery is brand new, the alarm works, and flashes on the dash and the central locking works.. just not from the key fob... I've also noticed when I unlock via the key/doorlock the alarm beeps a couple of times, if I dont put the key in the ignition the alarm sounds, is this normal? Does anyone know where the alarm unit is, maybe something has come loose or any other suggestions?, is there an aerial or anyway to reset the unit / re pair keys? cheers brumbrum

If you unlock the car with the key, you have 10 seconds to switch the ignition on before the alarm goes off. (Take a look in the Drivers Handbook.) The alarm control module is under the passenger seat. The aerial lead is in the passenger side A pillar. To reset the remote, there is a process which involves removing the remote battery, putting it in the wrong way (reverse polarity) for a few seconds, and then putting it back the right way. If you want the exact procedure, send me a PM with your email address and I'll send you the full instructions. I have to say that it doesn't work very often. To reset the control module, you would have to disconnect the car battery for a few seconds. To prevent the alarm going off when you disconnect, turn the ignition on (but don't start the car) before you disconnect the negative terminal. It still sounds like a dodgy remote to me. Best bet would be to get a diagnostic check done by someone with a Porsche Tester. They will be able to tell you if the control module is reading the remote when you press the button.

Cheers Richard, Although last night and this morning the alarm went off as soon as I opened the drivers door, not even giving me 10secs, does this seem like a key fob issue?, I could try the disconnecting the battery to reset the alarm unit but dont have the radio code! Any recommendations of where to take the car in cheshire/staffordshire to get it looked at?, someone with a porcshe tester? thanks

JMH Automotive in Holmes Chapel or NineMeister in Warrington perhaps. A diagnostic check will show if there are any faults on the system, so will be a good starting point. The alarm shouldn't beep or go off when you unlock the car with the key, so something is wrong somewhare. It may be a fault with the module which is causing both problems, but I wouldn't be surprised if it it is two separate issues. Yours isn't a cabriolet by any chance? Have you checked to see if the carpet is wet under the passenger seat? That's a common and sure-fire way of lunching the control module. Common problem on Boxsters, where the front or rear drains block, and flood the module, which is conveniently positioned at the lowest point on the floor pan. :roll: :roll:

Cheers Richard, it's a coupe, I've just checked for water under the seats and everything is dry.. I also found the following article for the boxster to see if the key can be re-paired, may help someone else, did'nt work for me.. http://boxster.wikia.com/wiki/Alarm,_Keys,_Remote hopefully it's just something simple like the key has lost sync and needs re-pairing, I'll get it over to jmh next week.. fingers crossed! don't want it eating into the RS fund too much!

It might be worth giving the remote battery reversal trick a shot, just in case. You can't re-pair the key to the car without the remote code. The keys are originally paired at the factory, and they don't keep a record of the remote codes. If your control module has 'lost' the code for your remote, you are stuffed, I'm afraid. Good luck.

How old is your 996, I have 1 98 3.4litre 996, again I only have one key (need to get a new one!), the remote keyring drains batterys in about 2-3 days (luckily i stocked up bumper box on Amazon of ten short term!). My 996 also starts alarm immediately, I wonder if they changed this on the later ones. My Independant dealer Charles Ivey in Fulham says must replace the remote, £380 for new key and new remote for old key.

The alarm on my 98 C2 used to go off immediately if I unlocked it with the key after the 5-day timer. I don't recall unlocking it with the key on any other occasion, so I don't know if it did it all the time. I followed all the tips such as unlocking with the key and immediately pressing the remote, but nothing seemed to work. It was so seldom I locked the car for 5 days that I just lived with it, and prepared myself. I thought it was just a quirk on mine.

The car is a 2000 model, so maybe the same alarm as you guys, I've been quoted £250ish for a replacment from my local OPC, it's going into an indy tommorow to be plugged in to see whats happening, also going to have the activate the locks at 5mph coded, fingers crossed! I'll post an update tommorow Brumbrum

Hi, The car went over to JMH at Holmes Chapel today, very nice guys... but looks like the key is knackered, apparantly Porsche won't supply the codes needed to add a new key anymore so booked in the morning at local OPC cost so far £105 for key head only, need coding and blade from OPC .. :roll: expecting another £150ish brumbrum

Porsche WILL supply the programming codes for the alarm system to independents, if they go through the right procedure. They would need a copy of your V5C, to prove you own the car and a letter stating that you give consent to the release of the codes. That's what my indy does, and hasn't had any problems. It's hassle, but not impossible.