An Alarming Tale

Many of us have been here before, we only have one remote fob and it’s on its last legs, it only works when in close proximity to the passenger side windscreen pillar, it takes two or three goes to work, you've tried a new battery, and even the age old technique of holding it against your temple (yes, apparently it does magnify the signal) doesn’t work any more.

And then the inevitable happens, the day arrives when it gives up the ghost completely, and no matter what you try, you’re locked out of the car. At which point you rush into the house and log on to Pistonheads to ask someone for the ‘secret way in’, or if you are away from home you call the AA (who struggle to help, as they aren’t that familiar with TVR’s), so you’re left with no option but to break into your pride and joy.

After breaking, you can start the car, but usually the alarm starts going off, then you have to work out how to disable it, or take a hammer to it!

Hassle that you just don’t need, and hassle that you can easily prevent.

If you have the original code for your alarm then you can contact someone like Carl Baker at http://www.tvruk.tv/ who can supply a replacement fob with instructions how to code it in.

If you don’t have the original code, you could try and ask your local TVR dealer to track it down through the cars history, and if they can find it, then contact Carl to supply a replacement etc. However, I wouldn’t recommend this, as the records back at TVR are very poor, or no longer exist, believe me I tried this route to no avail.

If neither of the above work, again I’d strongly suggest you don’t even bother with the second option, then you need to remove the alarm unit from the car and send it off to Carl who will reprogram the unit and supply two brand new key fobs. Whilst this might sound like a daunting task, it really couldn’t be easier, and you don’t need to be a mechanic.

The alarm unit is located in the dashboard, at the passenger side. To get to it is easy:

1. Prize off the plastic caps and remove the two cross head screws holding the glove compartment (more an elasticated flap really) in place.

2. Ease the glove compartment down, to reveal an access hole to the underside of the dashboard.

3. Feel around under the dash to locate and then remove the two 10mm nuts shown at points 1 and 2 (shown on the diagram below), you don’t have to worry about the infamous third nut to gain access.

4. Once these nuts are removed, ease the top of the dash upwards first then ease it forwards slightly just enough to gain access to the alarm unit (already removed in the picture below).

5. Unplug the alarm unit from the wiring loom; you’ll need to disconnect two large white plugs and three smaller ones to get the unit out completely. The two large plugs can only go in one way, and the three smaller ones are colour coded, red, white and black, so you don’t have to remember where they came from.

6. Now you have the alarm unit out, package it up with plenty of bubble wrap, and send it off to Carl for reprogramming with any fobs you have by registered delivery. Be sure to give Carl a ring first to arrange payment etc.

7. In the meantime, the immobiliser can be turned off from the steering column and you can still drive the car, but you won’t be able to lock it.

8. A few days later you should receive the unit back, and refitting is the reversal or removal, about 10 minutes is all it takes.

Now you have two working fobs once more, which work from a reasonable distance, but more importantly you have the peace of mind that you’re not going to find yourself stranded one day by what really is a really simple problem to prevent.