me and my mate had taken our "good ladies" to a nice hill top cafe yesterday for tea and scones however when we came out to get into our imprezas the remote fobs wouldnt work on either car i panicked thinking my alarm had packed up meaning my immobiliser would pack up and i wouldnt get the car started. anyway i opened it with the key and car started fine. ive only had this happen once before, on the same hilltop, and my mate has had this happen before in a carpark.......all we can narrow it down to is the big electric pylons that run overhead, think they must affect the signal!

anyone had this prob before???

 

same thing happened to me.
Outside a Laser (shoot em up centre).

Rolled the car away from the building and it started fine.

The owner of the centre sold his car because he thought the problem was with his car, lol

 

Its happened to me in a car park in town. Only happened once in the many times i have parked there. I think it was because i was at the extreme end of the car park.

 

there werent any mobile telephone masts near by were there????
Are your cars UK Imprezas??

 

It happened to me once in a small outdoor pay and display that I often use... Eventually, after much panic and button pressing from all angles and ranges, it opened and I was good to go... Weird...
PS, yes UK Impreza here...

 

happened once to us on the moors near fylingdales base... RAC say it is quite common

 

My old classic used to do this when i was near a mobile phone mast. Just had to push the car (somethimes 6 feet) and it worked

 

yep you all must be near/close to a mobile phone mast, they seem to interfer with the Sigma alarm/immobilser frequency if you are very close.

 

It's to do with the TACS Emergency system, They use a fequency that is very close to what the alarms use, Because it's a stronger signal it blocks out the alarm remote.

Happens mostly on 99 cars. There is a keypad in the glove box of uk cars to use if this ever happens (Providing you have the pin).

 

the RAC regularly tow cars and bikes into the hollow near Fylingdales to get them started againit often happens around military sites, I'm told

 

think thats what it may of been, both are uk cars!

 

mines a 98 uk car and it has a toad alarm and immobiliser fitted. dont think i have a keypad in the glove box though?

although mine wouldnt lock it so i take it it didnt activate the alrm and immobiliser anyway???

 

The remote for my UK00 classic never works in the paddock car park at Silverstone. I have to use the key, then disable the immobiliser in the glove box to get started.

Richard.

 

Next time, try holding the remote so it touches your head and then press the button, might work then. I tried this with my old citroen, it allows you to open the car from much much further distances (possibly twice as far), you look like a bit of a weirdo doing it though.

 

I get this all the time all over the place (must have a lot of mobile masts where I go) - Got to the point where I went to the dealer to get the pin for the glovebox pad
I've been told it can also happen if you're parked over a lot of cables/wires (but if its radio interference not sure thats right)

Try holding the remote at the bottom of the windscreen - sometimes works for me

Anyone know why it locks fine but then has the problem unlocking? Drives me nuts

 

This trick will not work in the situations described.

 

I've had this same problem with my 2000 Classic Uk car. As mentioner earlier it is due to the closeness of a mobile phone mast. To resolve the problem had new alarm ecu fitted at main dealer and all's been fine since.

 

Happened to me twice - at Gatwick and Heathrow airport. UK Turbo MY2000, at Heathrow I had to push it down the ramp in the short stay multistorey car park before it would disarm. Thought it was just a glitch with my car so quite pleased it happens to others!

 

This happened the other week on my car. parked across from a mast at g/fs place and the car wouldnt lock with the fob so i locked it with a key. went outside again a bit later and tried to open the car..no joy with the keyfob. the key again worked fine. new batterys i thought...

later that night tried again..no access with fob then to disarm the imobiliser with the new batterys fitted but the red key on the dash was flashing and the led for the sigma wasn't .after half an hour i gave up and decided to leave it till the morning.

was up AT 7 am so i went out to the car opened it with the key and got in. after 25 mins of pressing the keyfob inside the car..it worked and the whole thing locked and set the alarm. i thought **** IF I MOVE..OFF GOES THE ALARM AND I CANT TURN IT OFF. thus ensues 30 mins of sitting very still and pressing the fob and at last it worked. this could have been resolved had i known the pin for the keypad. there was a thread posted about how to change ur pin number if you don't know it...which is what i did that very day!!

 

happened to me in kettering last week, great big mast about 1/2 mile away, colleague had a hired fiesta 07 plate did exactly the same
i reckon its some kind of brain control experiment and the cranked up the power too much!!

 

A little tip - keep a pencil in your glovebox, one with an eraser on the end, helps tapping in the PIN on those little keypads if you have fingers like sausages.

 

cant find a keypad on my 98 model....does it have one?