Friend's BA remote is locking my AU... FRUSTRATING

[IboughtanAU]

Hi guys, I'm quite new here.

Only other Ford I own is my father's XW GT, and this AU is the newest of the Fords I've played with so far. Have had experience owning 2005 BMW M5, 2000 Mazda RX-7, Valiant Charger, etc. But no new Falcons until this AU came along...

Anyways, I have a 1999 AU1 Falcon sedan, base Forte model, in very good condition. I've been slowly fixing it up as an every day car, and its quite good for what it is.

It runs the older Smartlock style of "security" system.

A friend of mine has a BA Falcon, XT base model sedan. One of the very first BA's, an ex-taxi that is really shagged and has done in excess of 695,000kms.

Anyways, he can be a bit of a tool. His favorite prank involves parking next to my AU and then locking his BA with his remote. This makes my AU lock the doors as well, often with my keys in it........

Now, I bought the AU off him, in order to save what is a very good, well looked after vehicle.

I am wondering if he has got inside my AU and programmed his BA key to my AU, really slyly, so he also has "control" of my car? Would this have been possible? Because I thought that BA keyfobs and AU1 were not compatible at all.....?

He keeps locking my AU1 and unlocking it with his bloody BA remote, and he thinks this is hilarious as hell.

I've had enough of this. Is there a way to get my AU to "unlearn" his goddamned BA remote and then only learn my AU remote?

In any case, I honestly thought that AU1 and BA remote and security systems were not compatible at all, so how the bloody hell is this even possible? What has he done?

Sincerely, very unamused AU owner.... :/

[AU1XLS]

Surprised a BA remote can work on a AU series 1 as you have already mentioned
How about recoding your remotes as per instructions in glove box manual

[IboughtanAU]

Originally Posted by AU1XLS

Surprised a BA remote can work on a AU series 1 as you have already mentioned
How about recoding your remotes as per instructions in glove box manual

I know. Its bizarre. And he's not an entirely nice sort of person.

I dont have the glove box manual for the car.. Can you point me to the procedure? Really all I need is a way to get rid of his BA remote out of my car's memory.

[AU1XLS]

Originally Posted by IboughtanAU

I know. Its bizarre. And he's not an entirely nice sort of person.

I dont have the glove box manual for the car.. Can you point me to the procedure? Really all I need is a way to get rid of his BA remote out of my car's memory.

If someone doesn't beat me to posting the instructions to reprogram remotes I will in the morning

[IboughtanAU]

Oh and I might add that his BA remote is the original remote for his car. It is a factory BA remote fob, not a universal remote or anything special.

I dont understand how it can even operate the central locking on my AU as the security systems work on completely different principles, I thought???

[foxtrot3]

Hi. Try this, Sit in car, turn key to acc position and push rear demist button 3 times, doors will lock/unlock, push any button on remote, doors will lock/unlock once, push any button on next remote, doors will lock/unlock 2 times. 3 remotes= 3 lock/unlock cycles and so on. When you run out of remotes turn key off and doors will lock/unlock as you leave programming mode, check all remotes work. Cheers MD

[Uncle_Ken]

Your friend isn't a Jedi Knight by any chance called Luke?
UK

[IboughtanAU]

Okay so I think I worked it out, given the circumstances. Bear with me while I explain.

I bought this AU1 from the guy, and he had his BA parked there at the same time he owned the AU.

The BA is extremely rough, has 695,000 ex-taxi Kms on it, and its knackered to hell. Never had rust inhibitor in it, and all the welch plugs are basically corroding out of the block etc, the DOHC six goes through a 5L jug of oil every month, its been poorly converted to LPG and backfires and flames, etc.

Now, I actually think he bought one of those "universal" Ebay remotes that work on BA and AU. The night before the car was sold to me, I think he's got in the AU and on the sly, programmed the universal remote to the AU as well as his BA, so he would be able to lock/unlock my car any time he wants to, after he sold me the car.

I did state earlier that I reckoned his BA remote was the original one, but after seeing it earlier, I think it is actually one of those universal cheapy ebay AU/BA things. And that may be how it works with both cars the way it does.
My understanding was that AU1 Smartlock uses a different protocol to later BA-onwards Smartshield system.

I think what I have to do now is get my AU1 smartlock remote, sit in my car and re-program it, and this will erase all other remotes from the AU1's BCM memory, as you guys have stated.

Its extremely frustrating, as I need to be in close quarters to him, due to family. And he loves to lock/unlock/lock/unlock my AU with his BA universal remote.

He's being a bit weird about it, because when I questioned why it was happening, his smarmy response was "You really dont know Fords, do you? Its common knowledge that any Ford remote can lock and unlock any Ford from EA to BA in Australia. Thats just how they are."

I am 28 and a mechanical engineer, specializing in large hydropower turbines, and I have an advanced diploma in mech engineering. On the side, I've built many many Clevelands and Windsor engines, even a couple of Chrysler 383 & 440 engines and some of my own personal two and three rotor Mazda engines.
He is 21 and not off his P plates yet, nor does he work.
I'm not going to be taken for a fool over something as simple as him having programmed a universal remote to my car, and then him proceed to tell me he's extremely technical, because he has learned how to "program" a Ford remote fob, and he believes this is some sort of black art. Because its not....

[IboughtanAU]

And thanks to everyone who replied so quickly. I have googled the fob learning process and its very easy so I will do it tonight and hopefully that puts an end to his universal remote wearing out my bloody central locking actuators.

Lock,unlock,lock,unlock,lock,unlock,lock,unlock... . Its not funny anymore

[Uncle_Ken]

Good to see you have an idea what happened.
UK

[Jastel]

I very much doubt he would have an "original" remote...if I get 6months to a year from them as a taxi I would be happy....

You can program a nearby car by accident when programming the car you want to do. I always drive my car to an isolated spot, (nearby park) and program there...if I do while my other taxis are around I can reprogram all of them or just some of them.

Do it away from other fords...don't know about BA programming AU etc but BA remotes work in FGs so it may be possible.

[IboughtanAU]

Well I must be doing something wrong. I cant get anything to happen.

1999 AU1 with Smartlock, so I tried this:

• Got in, closed the door. All doors closed and unlocked.
• Insert key in ignition, turn it to Accessories.
• Within 5 seconds, I press the demister button 3 times (on/off/on)

Nothing happens. Door locks dont move, nothing at all?


I am sure that the demister button is located top right area of the centre finish panel, and has a rectangle graphic on it, with wavy lines across it? Or is this a procedure for previous model (EF sort of Falcon?)

Am I doing something wrong?
There is also no light or indication that the demister button is on or off- IE how do you know when the demister is turned on or off? Should there not be some sort of light or indication or something?

I know I must sound really stupid. But when such a simple thing defeats me, I figure it has to be my fault for not doing it correctly?

[IboughtanAU]

I peeled the centre finish panel away from the dash, carefully... I found that the demister button was unplugged and some electrical tape was put over the end of the demister plug, which was hanging loose behind the dash.

I took the tape off the plug and plugged it back into the demister button.

Hey presto, the learning procedure actually works now!!!!!! I did the procedure and I think I've erased his fob in the process.

Also, I found out something else interesting. This car is built July 1999. It isnt an AU1 as I thought. It is an AU1.5, and it is actually a Smartshield car. I confirmed this by the small transparent decal on the rear quarter window I had never noticed before.

This explains why the BA Smartshield fob was able to be programmed to my car. My car is Smartshield.

This also explains why my 'Smartlock' fob (EF looking old fob) works with my car. It is right on the changeover point from Smartlock to Smartshield, and either remote type will actually learn to this car.

Having sorted this out, I am now confident that his remote fob has been erased from my car's BCM. No more shenanigans....
And I also can go out and confidently buy a nice new Smartshield fob (BA looking fob) confidently knowing it will work with my car. And ditch the old Smartlock EF type cruddy fob it came with.

I bet there are not too many AU's that will accept either Smartlock or Smartshield fobs happily. But mine turns out to be one of those 'bitsa' cars that was built right on the changeover period... What a fluke.

[Gaz]

With the car on does it demister work?

check it's plugged in behind the switch

[Gaz]

Hah, what a guess.

Good you got it sorted, rekon he unplugged it to be a *****

[IboughtanAU]

I reckon so Gaz. The electrical tape wasn't exactly old. And it was bright blue.
Saw a roll of blue electrical tape on the bench, at the house I picked the car up from, not two days before I got it. Only just clicked now though

[Uncle_Ken]

Good to see your happy
and
Welcome to the forums

UK

[IboughtanAU]

Thank you UK and everyone in this thread

I do intend to make an introduction thread about myself and my AU very shortly. I just rushed straight into this topic because it was a bit urgent, especially the past two days, and I apologize for not introducing myself fully yet. I will sort that on the coming weekend

[JC]

Good result. The only hint of truth in his statement about Fords is that any Tibbe type key (that's EB through to BA2) will lock any Tibbe door using the key in the lock. They will not unlock though. He has obviously purposely coded your car and his to the same remote, so what you have done should side step that.

Better yet, you can now throw his keys in his car, and lock his door with your key using the door lock. You could even bet him $5 that you can unlock it, and when it doesn't work, pay him the $5 and say "sorry, I thought it would work"! That will be a fine trick to show him. If you care, you might check to ensure he has a spare set to unlock, but if you don't care, (and if he's a bit of a d#*k, then I wouldn't care too much) then watch him struggle to open his car!

[supershifty]

Originally Posted by JC

Better yet, you can now throw his keys in his car, and lock his door with your key using the door lock. You could even bet him $5 that you can unlock it, and when it doesn't work, pay him the $5 and say "sorry, I thought it would work"! That will be a fine trick to show him. If you care, you might check to ensure he has a spare set to unlock, but if you don't care, (and if he's a bit of a d#*k, then I wouldn't care too much) then watch him struggle to open his car!

Big lols! Ain't paybacks a real *****. Seriously, I'd do it just to learn your "friend" a lesson - maybe he won't be so smart and think again before messing with you.

Hail the forums

Cheers!

[nassi]

Well, well, well, you are an evil bunch of gentlemen.
I do like a sense of humour, even more so when it backfires.

[IboughtanAU]

You guys seem to have a sense of humor. Thats usually a sign of a good forum to be a part of

I've done some more studying, and (forgive me if people know this already) the EF/EL era Smartlock remote system operates on a 303.4 Mhz frequency.

The Smartshield system remotes also operate on a 303.4 Mhz frequency....

This is probably why its possible to actually pair a Smartlock remote to a Smartshield car, as has been possible in my AU1.5. Ford was probably aware of this, as I've talked to some other owners of 1.5 cars, including an LTD owner, who bought their cars new from the dealers and they are Smartshield cars and were sold with Smartlock remotes. That supports the idea.

The Ebay 'universal' remotes, as my dodgy acquaintance uses, run on a loosely advertised 304 Mhz and they work on BA, AU2, AU3, etc. 304 Mhz is close enough (may even be) 303.8 Mhz so they may work across a range of Smartlock and Smartshield cars.

I am going to test this next week as I have bought an Ebay factory AU2 Smartshield remote that is advertised to work with AU2, AU3 and BA and I am going to try and pair it to my AU1.5 Smartshield car and I think it will work, based on the fact the frequencies will match.

A lot of the remotes on Ebay are advertised as 315 Mhz (American vehicle frequency) and 415 or 433 Mhz (European frequency as my ex BMW M5 remote was) and they are probably too far off to work with our Aussie Falcons I reckon.

The Smartshield key with the transponder is interesting because it uses the induced voltage principle to excite the responder in the key and the BCM challenges the key for the correct code. The AU looks like it will crank and fire the first time around, even if the code is wrong, but due to the latency in the system, it will kill the injection system 1.5 seconds later as the wrong code is read by the BCM.

Thats what I got from reading the tech documents and mucking around a bit more with the car. Its interesting because in the mid 1990's, BMW and Mercedes pioneered the use of the transponder key and BCM system, and they used a transponder 415 or 433 Mhz key and the remote fob was built into the key head, not a separate remote. This was the most stringent European anti-theft standard of the day, and it was the insurance companies in Europe that mandated it on all new European cars, to reduce theft rates. It was Europe's best-practice, unbeatable security for about 10 years from 1996.

Ford adopted it mid 1999, with Smartshield and the transponder key. It doesn't match the sophistication of the Euro cars of the era, but it was a bloody good move. Much better than the previous Smartlock, which I've also researched and looks to be defeated pretty easily even if you don't have the car's original key on hand.

Best layer of defense for Smartshield Falcons is to ensure that only your remote is paired to your Falcon. And never leave your keys unattended where someone can grab them. Most of the new cars these days still use a form of transponder key. Maccas-carpark level amateur thieves are defeating the transponder key system by locating the keys left unattended on a table or in your house, and just unlocking the car and taking it.
More advanced thieves have other ways that don't need the transponder key, but those sorts of thieves are probably rarer or they're too advanced to be out there stealing AU's.

What I still don't know is why Ford uses the Tibbe key type- what exactly the advantage is over a normal key, and how/why they will lock different cars and yet not unlock them. I need to learn a bit more about that side of it.

Where's the best place to do an introductory thread on my AU? I have some pictures

[Uncle_Ken]

Lol
uk

[supershifty]

There's a "Show us your AU" thread in the Show n Shine section.

http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthread.php?t=73

Post away!

[IboughtanAU]

Here you go, I made a thread!

Get a cup of coffee and have a read. Picture heavy

http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthr...05#post5064105

[fleckofly]

This thread gave me a good chuckle An update to the story would be good.

For example did reprogramming your remote stop his remote working on your car?

If so how did he react knowing you foiled his prank?

Did you do the $5 bet trick and lock his keys in his car?

Anyway good to see you got the better of him and didn't take his word for truth. Great to see how an engineers mind works, they see a problem, ignore the "truth" available to them, then go out and find a solution.

[IboughtanAU]

Yeah I'll put an ending to this, just for closures sake

So I plugged in the demister button, successfully re paired my own remote and wiped all others out of the BCM.

Next time he attempted to play the lock/unlock game, nothing happened- IE his remote does nothing to my car anymore!

"What did you do to that Falcon? Why aren't it workin no more?!"

In anger, he began really pressing hard on his remote buttons and he broke his unlock button- so now he can't unlock his BA with his own remote any longer

He is no longer speaking to me, as of today. In fact he seems not to be on my Facebook anymore!

[JC]

Originally Posted by IboughtanAU

Yeah I'll put an ending to this, just for closures sake

So I plugged in the demister button, successfully re paired my own remote and wiped all others out of the BCM.

Next time he attempted to play the lock/unlock game, nothing happened- IE his remote does nothing to my car anymore!

"What did you do to that Falcon? Why aren't it workin no more?!"

In anger, he began really pressing hard on his remote buttons and he broke his unlock button- so now he can't unlock his BA with his own remote any longer

He is no longer speaking to me, as of today. In fact he seems not to be on my Facebook anymore!

That result is even better than the $5 bet! He did it to himself. Good one!

[GasoLane]

I just love a story with a happy ending

[fleckofly]

That's great... really funny stuff serves himself right.