Guys, this topic seems to come up often as folks don't understand it - I hope this helps. 1995 MY has no alarm, no immobilizer, no FOB's, no PIN. 1996 Thru 1999 MY's have an alarm, immobilizer, 3 FOB's (2 black, 1 red), and a 4 digit PIN code. Often, the PIN code and 2 of 3 FOB's become lost as these cars change hands. If you don't have a working FOB or PIN code, you are dead in the water and will not be able to start the car. If you have the PIN (and it is the correct PIN, and it works), you can disarm the immobilizer with the key and a special procedure to enter the PIN with the key. If you do not have the PIN, you can order a PIN retrieval for around $350 (cost varies), but Ferrari will not guarantee it will work as the PIN may have been changed and not reported to Ferrari. You can also order a new set of 3 FOB's and folks really are confused by this so allow me to explain: First, a new set of 3 FOB's costs approx $750. The set comes with 3 FOB's and a NEW PIN number. Today, all FOB's are black with one labeled master (was Red prior). IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A WORKING PIN, THIS OPTION IS A DEAD END AND WASTE OF MONEY. You need the original (working) PIN to unlock the car's immobilizer (via key sequence) to reprogram the immobilizer to accept the new FOB's and new PIN. If you are successful at getting this done, the old PIN and old FOB's will no longer work. It's key to understand that you are teaching the new information from the new FOB's to the immobilizer and not the other way around. You have the option of getting a FOB cloned via third parties - but a clone is a copy, not a unique FOB and you will need to keep it constantly in sync by alternating FOB's as much as daily or you may need to press the button several or several hundred times depending on how far out of sync the rolling codes are. Lastly, people thing the RED FOB is the crown jewel. Once it is used (initially), to code the immobilizer, it is no longer any different that the 2 black ones. The only time it would ever be different is if you were going to use the FOB's and PIN to code another immobilizer. Hope this helps.
To add to Dave's excellent summary is that one of the Ferrari owners from Australia, Immofixer, worked out a while ago how to retrieve the pin code from the immobiliser ECU. And as you say once you have the pin code you can add a set of fobs to the system (the OEM way) and have the immobiliser and fobs working exactly as delivered and not have the issues with cloned fobs going out of synch. He's recently done it for a friends of mine and he couldn't be happier. These guys can recover PINs : Home
Dave and John these are excellent posts....Thanks for the info Will be very helpful now, and in the future...
...and only located on a thermo printed piece of paper inside a security envelope that came with the car on delivery. Some dealers may have recorded into their service logs. Most handed it to the new owner for safe keeping. <damn>
Yep. I suggest all folks that have a working PIN: A) Print a sticker of it and place it inside your owners manual B) Open the cover behind the drivers seat and put the PIN on the case of the immobilizer
No, but still useful, they are the keycode, a good locksmith can cut a key using those numbers ( instead of using a worn key as the master ).
I got one key and no pin with my car. I sweated blood when I sent my fob (only way to start the car) off to be cloned. I've had FedEx lose things before. Eventually my clone stopped working. Since I didn't want to risk my fob again, I contacted Specialized ECU Repair. With about two hours of DIY work, my key, or my $6 Alfa copy, starts my car every time with no buts, beeps, or clicks.
Dave, on this point I always recommend a clone as a good backup. When someone has only one fob and no pin number having a clone tucked safely in a drawer is cheap insurance to what would be a very expensive problem if that only fob is lost. If the car is used by a husband and wife, for example, and the two fobs are both in constant use you do end up with multiple presses to keep them both current, which isn't ideal. If you only have one fob that goes through the wash, it's nice to know you have a backup somewhere that will get your car going (even though it may take a few minutes of pressing the button to catch up to the rolling code). I've also been selling cheaper matched sets now and giving money back for trades of the old fobs to help with the problem of those becoming useless after the new ones are installed. It would be helpful to make of list of the dealers that charge $350 for pin retrieval vs. $500. I just had someone the went to The Collection for a pin and was told they were a bunch less than $500.
I guess I've been lucky because I didn't even know that I had a key fob PIN until I read this thread I looked at the documents that came with my Stradale, and I found a mysterious "sealed" document. Does anybody know if this document contains the key fob PIN? Image Unavailable, Please Login
Thank you for this BTW, you mention in your post "If you have the PIN (and it is the correct PIN, and it works), you can disarm the immobilizer with the key and a special procedure to enter the PIN with the key." This may already be posted someplace, but can you tell me what the "special procedure" entails? Or is it documented in the owner's manual?
Take a look here http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/348-355-sponsored-bradan/447037-helpful-information-those-search-355-a.html
Now that I am "up to speed" on this topic and prepared to deal with any problems, this guarantees that I will never need to know any of this. LOL. Thanks Dave
Thanks for the info Dave. I assume that you can't use the plug-in module from the ECU Dr. that bypasses the system unless you have the working fobs. Luckily I have two of the three, but don't have the PIN. Ferrari workshop Forum - Ferrari 355, 360,456, 550 Immobilizer bypass
I don't see the box on their website that people have talked about. From what I had heard though for what they charge you're not far away from getting a new immobilizer/fob set from Ferrari and doing it right. I'd be curious, if you bypass the immobilizer don't you still need the fobs to lock and unlock the doors (assuming you don't want to go old school and use the key)?
Great info. My car came with two sets of keys and all three fobs. They all work as they are supposed to. One was in in a little leather Ferrari case and had a metal tag with a K and four digits. I always assumed this was the PIN. If it isnt, what is it for? I may try the code start procedure just to check it.
The PIN comes on a Ferrari labeled paper similar to the one with this set that is listed on ebay by gobble. Metal tags are key codes. Gobble set me up with a new set over the winter. One of the new black ones failed to program. This left me hung in the programming cycle with the car waiting for the third fob. However, my one original black fob was able to be used as the third fob with the new red and new black one. My experience with my 99 leads me to believe that if you have a good red fob and its PIN and the PIN your car is currently programmed with, you can use the good red fob and PIN to add any two black fobs providing they are correct market radio frequency. Your mileage may vary. Image Unavailable, Please Login
