Alarm battery upgrade on 360 - killing the red dash LED :-)

thanks for your answers.

I am going to review all the process again.

1.- I will put batteries equal that the original ones
2.- I will put the code of the radio before connecting the alarm.
3.- wait 15 seconds to pass the key from the II to the III?

this it is the correct process?

Somebody knows where is lodged the inclination sensor?


Alfredo.

 

Mario,

Were you able to buy the unit from a local Ferrari dealer or did you source it elsewhere? I get the 4-beep behavior from my year 2000 360 as well and while I completely respect the work Ray did... I don't think I'll have the patience and will end up creating a mess. So unit-level replacement is best for me

Thanks,
Frank

 

Replaced the full unit today, alarm and battery are all one small unit. Bought mine from Ricambi and should be good to go for some years, I hope! You also have to have the car hooked up to the computer so it can read the new alarm codes. Competizione did my work, they also changed the brake fluid after my las track event and added the new brake pads.


Robert

 

Just cut mine open, I didn't like what I found. Old style batteries and a totaled PC board.
Daniel, I'll be calling in the morning!
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Great post! thanks !!

 

Looking like I am facing this problem of dead alarm battery on my CS!!

 

Some things are not very clear:

1. The original batteries are not rechargeable, so the alarm unit does not include a charging circuit. Replacing them with a rechargeable NiCD or NiMH may mean that the battery will die much sooner than a non rechargeable battery, right? By the way, there are 9V lithium non rechargeable batteries that last for many years, but they are truly 9V, not 7.2V.

2. Replacing the entire alarm unit requires reading the new alarm code? How can the alarm remote control be reprogrammed with the new code? If a computer is needed to read the code, then most people can't do it themselves, right?

Clarification from those who replaced the entire unit will be much appreciated.

 

Jack,

The original batteries are rechargeable batteries - 3.6V each, I think. These batteries are always charged by the main 12V battery and will sound alarm even the main 12V is removed.
This unit is a alarm siren unit and does not require new alarm code. The alarm ECU located behind the driver seat will require a new code, however.

Cheers,

 

Thanks Chris!

 

I'm trying this and wanted to add my experiences, pictures, and comments.

First off, Ray.... excellent write up! You nailed everything on the head in you details. My car was exactly as you described.

My comments are as follows:
- Taking the trunk panels off is pretty easy; do like Ray mentions and keep track of the long bolts vs. short bolts (they are used in various places throughout the trunk)
- I found my alarm unit also pointed horizontally. Even though Ferrari says it's best to have them pointed downward, this was clearly not how they manufactured the vehicles at this time. I will see about pointing mine downward when I reassemble.
- My curcuit board is also cooked due to leaking batteries. I will play with mine to see if there is any way to clean the board (highly unlikely); looks like I'm in the market for a new unit. I still plan on performing the external battery mod to the new unit though as it's much easier to deal with IMO.
- My battery of choice is a NiMH 9v styly Energizer battery. 7.2v at 175 mAh. I don't feel the need to upgrade it to a Nicad; the NiMH will be good enough for me. Was a paltry $9 at my local Frys Electronics store.
- I have also gone with a 9v mount box for my connection. Will take pictures when I complete the project.

Pictures:
First shot is of the trunk area we are talking about.... just a reference for those who haven't done this yet. Take the left/fender panel off first, then the rear of the trunk. White "membrane" is partially cut away by slicing through the holding glue. Ingnore that yellow square thing hanging by the membrane... that's just my shop light.
Second picture is my unfortunate alarm siren. I bet with the 360s getting older and older more of these batteries will start to leak and will result in this. Ray, you lucked out with having a clean board in your siren!


For those who are debating on doing this, if you somewhat "hands-on" then give it a try. You won't be sorry since you will save yourself the expense of buying a new sealed unit every every several years. Even if my batter should croak after a year or two (going the NiMH route) I still can swap it out very easily.
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Ray,
As always, you do a great job writing up these fixes and mods!!!!!
I will be looking to do this very soon, hopefully before my pc board is toast.

This is a great Forum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Took mine apart last night and the board was toast. Where is the best and least expensive place to purchase one?

 

Ricambi

http://www.ricambiamerica.com/product_info.php?products_id=207296

 

FYI, looks like their price is $302.

 

I noticed that when I posted it. I don't remember mine being that high.
EDIT: Just looked up my invoice $266.00 last year. I guess Enzo is loosing at the track!

 

HAHA!

But Ricambi isn't Ferrari... right?
Hmmmm....... must be the high cost of fuel that has jacked the price of Ferrari plastic.

This still isn't all that much I suppose. I really just would prefer to buy a used board and call it good as there is no reason for me to toss the working siren. Besides, if I buy a new one I'm just going to slice into it and do the upgrade (external battery) anyway... I would feel sort of funny about cutting into a perfectly good unit.

 

The new siren has an up-dated battery that shouldn't leak. You could get a used unit from someone like Specialized Italian Recycling and do the battery mod.

P.S. if you haven't bought the battery yet PM me your address and I'll send you the one I bought before I cut mine open to see it was beyond repair.

 

check yer PMs

 

Just did this last night and it looks pretty much like Ray's. Here are a couple of tips --

1) You only need to loosen the nuts, not remove them, to get the siren out.

2) I mounted sideways but pointed the access hole down, just in case any moisture gets inside

3) Make your pigtail 16" or a little longer. If it is shorter you will have a difficult time making everything fit nicely.

4) When you get it open there are 4 small wires sticking up from the circuit board. They are part of the connector so be careful not to bend them. If you bend them you will have a difficult time getting it all back together again.

5) Thought of this after I closed my alarm unit but I would suggest removing the metal battery contact from the case opposite the circuit board. Once you do this mod you won't need it and it is just a point that could short.

6) The + terminal on the circuit board is opposite the - sign on the case top. Remember that they are in series and think it through, you won't have any problem.


I only had a little corrosion on the battery terminals, circuit board was perfect. I cleaned it up with a little emery cloth and steel wool. Then used flux and tinned the connectors before soldering it all together.

I mounted the battery a little differently. I liked the idea of Velcro but then decided I would have to hunt down new velcro every time I change the battery. SO, I attached a cable mounting base to the metal bracket just behind the brake reservoir. Then I used a tie wrap to secure the battery to the base. It worked great, I took a picture so I will post it tonight.

 

Hi,

New to the forum have read it for a while but not posted!

I think I've had the same siren/battery problem for a while certainly got the same symptoms anyway, went to it yesterday and the alarm was dead - no blinking led and no response to any of the remotes. Checked the 5 amp fuse (behind the seat) and it had blown tried another and that blew straight away! Note the fuse blew with the main battery switch turned off.

Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

Could it be that the batteries have leaked and caused a short?

At current i can't turn the immobiliser off and start the car i realise there is an overide by entering the alarm pin code however Maranellos havn't supplied this and apparently it takes a couple of weeks for the factory to supply it!

Car is a 2001 360F1 with standard alarm.

Any help appreciated.

 

Try disconnecting the siren and changing the fuse again if the fuse holds the siren may be the reason.

 

Well I finally got tired of fooling with those round batteries and I today did what Ray did.

The one change I made was not to break off two of the three upright spring leads from the alarm circuit board.

I cleaned these spring leads very well with an extremely fine cloth sand paper, cleaned them, put a bit of liquid flux on them, and then soldered the new leads across and to the three pins on the + and the - sides.

I felt that going across the three would more securely hold the new input leads in place.

I bought the 9v NiCad rechargeable battery from Radio Shack #23-448 for around $10.00, a package of R.S. 9V battery snap connectors #270-325 (there were 5 in the pack. If anyone wants one I'll mail it.), and two (2) 12" long two-wire trailer hitch connectors at an auto parts store. Soldered accordinlgy and covered with shrink wrap.

I placed the battery up top onto a metal brace that supports the A/C recharge ports, connected it, attached the harness lead to the alarm body, turned on battery switch, and heard the chirp.

Knowing it worked I then secured the alarm in place, put in the radio code, and it's great.

I believe that should be the end of it!