21 replies to this topic

[TangoAlpha]

After not using my VX for a couple of weeks, the battery was flat so I recharged it. After charging, the car would not start. It would turn over quite happily but not catch. I called the RAC and the mechanic found the error code P1610, something about the immobiliser. As we were going on holiday, we were time-limited and had to send the RAC away before they found an answer. Does anyone know how to fix a P1610 error, other than "Take it to your local Vauxhall garage"? The only answer I have found is that the immobiliser is possibly stopping the fuel flow to the engine so that would explain the car turning over but not starting. This may be because the immobiliser got confused during the discharge/recharge cycle. The RAC have an open issue regarding my car and will arrange a tow to a nearby garage if needed but I'd rather see if there is a DIY solution first.

[christhegasman]

There are a few threads on here with similar 1 have you tried another key 2 disconnect the battery leave it an hour then reconnect and try again 3 have they cleared the code 4 are you sure it's not coil or fuel ( can you hear the pump prime when you switch on)

Edited by christhegasman, 23 October 2012 - 02:05 PM.

[smiley]

Have you tried both keys?

[CocoPops]

Yes, I believe Tim has tried both keys (I suggested that when he called me on Friday with this issue).

[techieboy]

Break out OP-COM, sounds like either the immobiliser has forgotten the keys it's paired with or the ECU has forgotten the immobiliser it is paired to.

[TangoAlpha]

1 have you tried another key

Yes.

2 disconnect the battery leave it an hour then reconnect and try again

Yes, although I will disconnect it again tonight, leave it overnight and try again in the morning just ot be sure.

3 have they cleared the code

No, the RAC laptop would not clear the code. No message or error, just wouldn't clear the code.

4 are you sure it's not coil or fuel ( can you hear the pump prime when you switch on)

Fuel pump whines. The car would briefly catch with some easy start.

[TangoAlpha]

Break out OP-COM, sounds like either the immobiliser has forgotten the keys it's paired with or the ECU has forgotten the immobiliser it is paired to.

Does anyone near Newbury have OP-COM?

[TangoAlpha]

Have you tried both keys?

Yes, CocoPops suggested that

Didn't work (the spare key, not CocoPops).

[G-Bob]

There's different areas in the op-com menu for getting rid of immobiliser codes. You need to clear both otherwise it doesn't make a difference. I hope for your sake that it isn't the same reason for the code as I had. My ecu was fried!

[CocoPops]

Funnily enough I have an OpCom lead...... somewhere!

[TangoAlpha]

Funnily enough I have an OpCom lead...... somewhere!

Any chance you might find it?

If it needs a Windows laptop to plug into, one of them would be useful too

[leevx2.2]

My transponder decided to not work again after a flat battery try op com to see if it is all reading things as it should ecu chip in key and transponder good luck ;-)

[TangoAlpha]

Bought an OP-COM and found the appropriate software to download. Immobiliser status is "Wrong TP-Key" with both of my keys. Erased the transponder keys, no problems. Attempted to reprogram the transponder with the first key and it reported that it was unable to learn the key. Same thing happened using the second key. Anyone got any suggestions or is my immobiliser fried?

[Robski]

Before you start spending big bucks on auto electricians try buying a new key from ebay. They're only about £8 and try pairing that with the ecu. If that fails then it's time to call the experts in...

[Robski]

As you still have the keys you may be able to buy a new transponder from this chap:
http://www.ebay.co.u...=p2047675.l2562
I think it's the id40 transponder but it would be worth checking with an expert.

[TangoAlpha]

Last week, on Monday, after having the RAC out when my car initially failed to start, they came out to "complete" the call-out by transporting my car to Eden Vauxhall in Newbury. I followed along to explain the problem to the service manager. I explained in detail about battery going flat and the recharge, about the steps I'd taken and that the problem was an immobiliser issue, that the car was working fine before the problem, that the keys were able to be reprogrammed but the immobiliser was unable to relearn the new keys. I told him that I'd bought new immobiliser chips for both my keys and that those chips seemed to work fine, which pointed to the immobiliser being at fault rather than the keys. I told him that the car cranked ok and that it wouldn't start because fuel was not entering the cylinders. I told him that I specifically needed the immobiliser fixed and to call me if it turned out that I needed a new immobiliser so I could make a decision on whether to proceed. I told him about the "Wrong TP Key" error, how to view the error and that it was the error I wanted fixed. I left my work number with them. The manager said they may not be able to look at my car until Tuesday, more likely Wednesday. No phone call on Tuesday and, due to unforseen circumstances, I was not in the office on Wednesday. On Thursday I phoned Eden Vauxhall and reached the service manager. He mentioned that they had tried to phone me the previous day. He was going to pass me over to the mechanic to explain what they'd found. The mechanic started by saying that he'd tested the compression on the engine and found all cylinders were reading considerably under the expected values. "Hang on", I said, "I'm the guy who owns the VX220 with the immobiliser issue, are you sure you've got the right car?". He replied that he was certain he had the right car and that the compression test was the first step he had to take. I told him that I didn't want or need a compression test and that I had specifically asked that I wanted the immobiliser fixed, nothing else. He was adamant that the first step in fixing the car was a compression test and that was what he had spent an hour doing yesterday. I told him that I was not paying for him to do a compression test that was not needed and that he should look into fixing the immobiliser. He eventually agreed that I would not have to pay for the hour's work that he had done but that he could do nothing further with the car as he had to fix the compression before the car would start. I told him that it was irrelevent about the compression as the car would not start because the immobiliser was not allowing fuel into the engine. He was so certain that he had to fix the compression that he told me that I might as well collect my car and he could not do anything further. I reiterated that the problem was with the immobiliser and again, he said I should collect my car as the next step was to fix the low compression. I then explained to him in small, logical steps that he needed to fix the immobiliser. I told him the steps I had taken and the error (Wrong TP Key) I had encountered. I told him that he needed to fix the immobiliser first and then we could discuss any compression issue. He then questioned how I found out about the errors so I explained that I had used OPCOM (Vauxhall's diagnostic system). This seemed to mark a turning point in our discussion. I told him that he needed to examine the immobiliser using OPCOM and see if he could find a fix, and that was what I was willing to pay for him to do and nothing else. He seemed fairly certain that it wouldn't help but he would do that for me, almost as if he was looking forward to coming back with "I told you so". I get a phone call about an hour later..."I found the error and was able to fix it by reprogramming the immobiliser. The keys seem to work fine although we haven't managed to get the car started quite yet. We're confident that we'll have it started within the next half an hour." I thanked him and asked him to let me know when it was actually started. Maybe we could discuss any compression issues at that point Fifteen minutes later my phone rings and it's Eden Vauxhall. They've got my car started and there's no sign of any compression issue, now that the car has started. It would seem that the compression issue was probably because the hydraulic valves/lifters had issues fully closing, because the oil pooled in the bottom of the engine due to the extended period that the car had been unused. When the mechanic did the compression test, I can only assume that he was following a computer script, the computer said "do this" and he didn't question things. Maybe he was trying to fix a "Car won't start" problem rather than an "Immobiliser error" problem. Why the mechanic had failed to understand about the compression test "failing" on what is a fairly common Vauxhall engine is a mystery although I can only hope that he's learnt something. It makes me wonder how many people end up paying for pointless diagnostic and repair work, just because they have no mechanical idea and that garages blindly follow scripts to fix cars. If I hadn't been so forceful in refusing to pay for the compression test and arguing the point about what the garage needed to fix, who knows what the bill would have been. How much would it cost to fix a compression problem that wasn't a problem??? Vauxhall have got quite a problem if the only thing I can say after collecting my car is that at least they didn't seem to damage my car.

[siztenboots]

computer says no

[Pidgeon]

Precisely why my car will never go near a main dealer. They are incapable of doing anything other than follow their own routines. There never was a compression issue, it may have been outside their proscribed limits, but any competent garage would have seen past this.

[Whiteboy]

That dealership is still as shite as ever I see. New owners have not sorted the dead wood out.

[techieboy]

Well done for persisting. Pretty sure the next step after they'd fitted a replacement engine to solve the compression "issue", would have been a brand new ECU to solve the immobiliser problem. You've got to wonder about how many people are driving around with new throttle bodies and new ECU's as a result of a simple dodgy connection in the loom of doom after the TECH2 diagnosis procedure instantly offers the most expensive solution to every problem by default.