Calling for Reinforcements - need HELP on my '97 Alarm

My 97 came with 2 blacks one red and one black and the red were in the foam wrapper with Ferrari stickers on it. Never used. The pin card is there and I have verified it works using the key sequence.

BUT , there are two older pin cards as well and being I have these new keys , this tells me this is a replacement set properly programmed into the ecu.

I think that people who can't get these new sets to work do not have the original pin for the ecu and thus the problems. It also seems that Ferraris record keeping on this is weak as well.

I have suggested to others looking at there cars that not only do they verify that they have keys and fobs but verify you have a pin AND that pin starts the car using the key strokes.

I think that just like the keys, the pin cards get lost and misplaced as well.

If you are to buy the set can you get a money back guarantee if you can't get it to work?

 

I'll try to describe why you have to sync with a cloned fob and not others but I'm not sure if I can make it clear. I think some are over thinking it. It really is not rocket surgery.

In a standard set up the cars immobilizer recognizes all three fobs individually and will take a signal from each of them at any time. So they are each always synced in their individual roiling code with the car.

In a cloned situation it is just that. The car thinks your 2 (or 3 or 50) fobs are the SAME fob. Hence the word CLONE.
So Lets say your car and fob A and B all start out on the same rolling code/ code 1. You take fob A and go start the car with it.
The car and Fob A now roll to code 2 together, you do it again when you drive home and the car and fob A roll to code 3 together and so forth.
All this time Fob B has been sitting in the drawer on code 1 and of course had no reason to roll to another.
Next day you decide to use Fob B to start the car. well it is on code 1 and the car is on code 3. You push the button and the car says "nope you don't have the right code I'm ignoring you." So you push it again and the fob puts out code 2, Nope no go. You push it again and bingo the fob shoots out code 3 and the car says "YES that is the right answer I'll listen to you."
Of course then fob B and the car roll to code 4 and leave fob A on code 3 so it will have to sync when ever used again.

I personally don't think the roll is linear as one start with one fob may take me 10 pushes or 3 pushes to sync the other fob back, but really I can push the button at least 60 times in a minute walking to the car.

The immobilizer can be a pain but think of the peace of mind it should bring you knowing that if you can barely figure out to get you own car started WITH the fob then a thief would have a hell of a time.

Normally using one fob the immobilizer/alarm is taken care with one push you were going to make to unlock the doors anyway so it's the same action we make on most cars everyday when we want to get in and drive away. Normally the immobilizer is no big deal or waist of precious time but when it goes wrong it can really go wrong.

I think your alarm problem is as started above in the panic mode and really has nothing to do with the fob cloning.

 

Robb...Have you tried the pin you have for this car using the key?

 

Actually, it is a Bosch wonder. 993 Porsches also have Motronic 5.2. Immobilizer is marketed as "Drive Block"

In fact, I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that Gobble can clone a Porsche fob to work on the F355

 

Now that you have that resolved, I have a barely related question.

I know the cars came new with 3 fobs, 1 red and 2 black. My question is how many ignition keys did the car come with (2 or 3?) and were any of them different from the others?

 

Sounds like a read the manual moment for sure brothas.. Kudos to gobble for offering a stellar service.

Money back guarantees aren't needed by experts. My 99 never had a fob issue and I used different ones occasionally, left one in the car never a problem simply bulletproof.

I agree 95 is where its at ....and it is faster than the 97...2.7 baby!!!

 

I'll sleep a little better now (really). I don't like unresolved problems. This episode should be helpful in the future. Thanks for your patience Robb.

 

I found 97spider's explanation particularly helpful. I have all 3 original fobs and I've been following advice previously posted about rotating in fobs to get them from getting too far out of sequence.

If I understand his explanation, this is not necessary if you have all original components. This also jives with my actual experience that when I go to rotate in a fob I don't have to cycle through multiple button presses to sync up.

 

This above is a great explanation of what is going on!

Actually this is incorrect- the manual wouldn't have described a cloned fob so clearly...only direct you to a dealer if you lose the fobs and pay lots of $$$

Uh, I may be new to 355 ownership, but from my days researching the 355 before I bought my 360, I distinctly recall learning that while '95s may have a little more HP, all yellow 355s have more HP than the rest- its a fact that Enzo wanted it that way... that's why the Ferrari logo has yellow background. As Dean Jones' character says in the original Herbie movie, some cars are simply built with an extra turn of speed....the yellow 355s are those cars

 

My car is fast..so it might have been yellow at one time. Lol

Manual shows alarm operation including panic function. Op clearly states he had a handful of fobs when trying to turn off said alarm. Lol

 

You are corret GTSNJ- I thought of the fact that you were referring to the panic mode after I sent my post...but to Robb's defense, if I heard that screaming alarm in a garage I'd be doing everything I could to get it to stop (like he did- kill the battery) before trying to find the blasted manual The sound is like fingernails on a chalkboard...ugh!

 

I agree it must have been annoying ! I am also in north nj. Will you attend any meets this spring ? Look forward to meeting more 355 owners.

 

GTSNJ- I go to as many "cars & croissants" events as possible (for people outside our region, it's the same as cars & coffee elsewhere in the country- started by a bakery thus the name). I have been going there since it first started, back in '09 I think it was...looking forward to meeting you in person! I'll bring my spare key with Gobble cloned clicker just for you- ha!

-Andrew

 

Rob just saw this i think you have it in pannic mode just hold down the button of the remote yOu ised. You probably held it too long. Didnt read everything before this but im quite sure this will work.