Immobilizer Information
Updated Apr. 7, 2008
Important Note:
Unless
you ALREADY have the SKC information for your vehicle and
components then you will NOT be able to do any of the
Immobilizer functions.
Click
this link for more information.
1) What is Immobilizer and why is it important?
The Immobilizer prevents the car from running
unless an authorized key is present and has been properly
matched to various components in the vehicle. Several different
Immobilizer schemes have been used for different years and different
models of vehicles with different procedures that apply to them. The
components of the Immobilizer system that require special procedures for
replacement include the keys, Engine controller (ECU), and the Instrument
Cluster (or the separate Immobilizer modules in vehicles so equipped).
2)
Which cars have Immobilizer?
In the US/Canada, most VW/Audi models prior to model
year 2000 did not have Immobilizer. In the rest of the
world, Immobilizer usage was introduced earlier. In most vehicles the
Immobilizer control module is integrated into the Instrument Cluster.
The newest vehicles like the current Audi A5, A6, A8 and Q7
have the Immobilizer in address 05 - Acc/Start
Authorization. Many of the older non-US market vehicles as
well as the US-market 1E VW Cabrio and T4 Eurovan have the
Immobilizer in address 25 - Immobilizer.
3)
Which Immobilizer system does my car
have and which procedures are applicable?
-
None: Cars without
Immobilizer will not have a symbol in the instrument cluster
showing a key inside a car and will start and run as long as
you cut a new key that is able to turn the ignition. The key
may also have a W with a strikethrough to indicate that
Immobilizer isn't present. If in doubt, check the Factory
Repair Manual for your specific vehicle.
Swapping ECU's or keys in
vehicles without Immobilizer does not require any special procedures, they
should be plug and play (make sure the new ECU has the exact same part
number and Soft Coding of the old one). For swapping Instrument Clusters
in non-Immobilizer equipped vehicles, the procedure can be found here:
Non-Immo Instrument Cluster Swapping
-
Immo-1: Keys for vehicles
with Immobilizer 1 usually have a small "F" on
the key blade, which stands for "Festcode" (fixed code). Immo-1 vehicles
were sold in rest-of-world, not in the USA. If in doubt,
check the Factory Repair Manual for your specific vehicle.
These procedures are relevant to Immo-1 vehicles:
Immobilizer I procedures in the Ross-Tech wiki
Immobilizer 1 ECU Swapping
Key Matching with New 7-Digit SKC
Key Matching with Old 4-Digit SKC
-
Immo-2: Many 2000-2001
model year vehicles sold in the US/Canada have Immo-2 and
there are other Rest-of-World vehicles with Immo -2 as well..
To identify an Immo-2 vehicle, use VAG-COM to Select the Instrument Cluster (or address
25-Immobilizer in vehicles like the Cabrio and Eurovan) and
look in the Extra field. You should see a 14 digit
Immobilizer ID number such as "Immo-ID VWZ7Z0W0648696".
There should NOT be a 17 digit VIN number in the Extra
fields. If in doubt, check the Factory Repair Manual for
your specific vehicle. These procedures are relevant to
Immo-2 vehicles:
Immobilizer 2 procedures in the Ross-Tech wiki
Immobilizer 2 ECU Swapping
Immobilizer 2 Instrument Cluster Swapping
Key Matching with New 7-Digit SKC
Key Matching with Old 4-Digit SKC
-
Immo-3: Many 2002 and
newer model year vehicles sold in the US/Canada have Immo-3
and there are other Rest-of-World vehicles with Immo -3 as
well.
Use VAG-COM to Select the Instrument Cluster (or address
25-Immobilizer in vehicles like the Cabrio and Eurovan) and
look in the Extra field. You should see BOTH a 14 digit
Immobilizer ID number and ALSO a 17 digit VIN number in the
Extra fields like this: ""WVZKB58001H231169
VWZ7Z0W0648696"". The first 17-digit string is the VIN and the second 14-digit string
in the Immo-ID. Keys that have been previously matched to an Immo-3
cluster cannot be reused with a new one. In some cases, you'll need to
check in the Engine in Measuring Block group 081 to see the
Immo-ID. If in doubt, check the Factory Repair Manual for
your specific vehicle. These procedures are relevant to
Immo-3 vehicles:
Immobilizer 3 procedures in the Ross-Tech wiki
Immobilizer 3 Instrument Cluster Swapping
Immobilizer 3 Key Matching
Immobilizer 3 Measuring Blocks
Immobilizer 3 ECU Swapping
-
Immo-4: Real Immo-4
implementations don't show a 14-digit Immo-ID anywhere, but
rather an Immo-4 "challenge" in Advanced ID. This challenge
changes every time Terminal 15 is cycled. There are also
some partial implementations of Immo-4 where there is a
traditional Immo-ID in the ECU and a challenge in the
Cluster. Please
email Ross-Tech directly for assistance with Immobilizer
4 vehicles and procedures. These procedures are relevant to
Immo-4 vehicles:
Immobilizer 4 procedures in the Ross-Tech wiki
4) What information is
required for Immobilizer procedures?
VAG-COM can match keys to your car, but only if you
have the specific PIN code for your particular car.
Prior to 2002, some vehicles
were delivered with a
scratch-off panel
on a plastic tag that contained the 4 digit PIN code. Prior to April of
2005, it was possible for vehicle owners to go to their dealer with proof of
ownership and the VIN and Immo-ID (the latter can be read with
VAG-COM). The dealership would punch that information into an on-line system
that
would give them the PIN. At that point they were able to give it to you.
Unfortunately VW has eliminated that system and now the dealer never sees
the PIN. The GeKo system sends it directly to the dealers' scan-tool,
which sends it to the car and does the key-matching -- without ever
showing the PIN to anyone.
There are locksmith supply companies
that sell products that purport to be able to extract PIN codes, which
could then be used by VAG-COM. Just as they sell lockpicking tools to
legal users, those tools could also be used for criminal purposes and as a
result, we do not sell or recommend them.
This chart shows what
information is needed to perform each procedure. The requirements and
steps differ depending on whether the component you are installing is
brand new, or if it has been previously matched to a vehicle. Used keys
are ones that have previously been matched to a different vehicle.
| |
Immo 1 & 2 |
Immo 3 |
Immo 4 |
|
Key Matching (New) |
Car SKC Needed |
Car SKC Needed |
Car SKC Needed |
|
Key Matching (Used) |
Car SKC Needed |
Not Possible |
Not Possible |
|
ECU Swapping (New) |
No SKC needed |
Car SKC Needed |
Car SKC Needed |
|
ECU Swapping (Used) |
No SKC needed |
Car SKC Needed and Used ECU SKC Needed |
Car SKC Needed and Used ECU SKC Needed |
|
Cluster Swapping (New) |
Car SKC Needed |
Car SKC Needed |
Car SKC Needed |
|
Cluster Swapping (Used) |
Used Cluster SKC Needed |
Car SKC and Used Cluster
SKC Needed |
Car SKC and Used Cluster SKC Needed |
Car SKC = The secret key
code stored in the ECU/Cluster/Immo module originally in the car.
Used Cluster SKC = The secret key code of the Instrument Cluster
that you are installing.
Used ECU SKC = The secret key code of the ECU that you are installing.
5) How does the 7 digit PIN/SKC work?
Check this page
for the 7-digit PIN/SKC dialog in VAG-COM:
http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/tour/pin-skc.html
The 7-digit
PIN/SKC (Secret Key Code) dialog is used for Key Matching and
Immobilizer Adaptation.
You must
enter the following information:
-
7-digit SKC
that the dealer retrieved for your exact Immobilizer ID
Number.
-
Date on which
the 7-digit SKC was RETRIEVED BY THE DEALER.
-
Workshop Code
(WSC) for the dealer that retrieved the SKC.
-
Importer
Number for the dealer that
retrieved the SKC.
The 7-digit SKC is useless without the other
three items.
Unlike the factory diagnostic tools, with VAG-COM, the same PIN can be
used for a particular car at any time in the future, as long as you keep
track of the PIN, along with the Date on which the PIN was RETRIEVED BY
THE DEALER, the dealer's Workshop Code (WSC) and the Importer number.
6) What else needs to be
done after keys are matched?
Matching remote controls
is a separate subject unrelated to Immobilizer, instructions for doing
that can be found here:
Remote Control Matching
