Hey guys, i drive a 2009 zetec s 1.6 fiesta, today i changed my steering wheel to the newer leather wrapped one, i disconnected the battery and waited an hour before the swap

After i had changed everything over i reconnected the battery and went to start the car to find it wont crank/turn over, ive checked all relevant fuses and relays both inside and outside.

After consulting a friend he said it might be the immobiliser thats been triggered since the red light in the middle of the dash is flashing, ive tried to look on google to find a way to reset it but nothing has worked, any help is appreciated.

 

4 hours ago, bazzatrazza said:

since the red light in the middle of the dash is flashing,

Google PATS flash codes. The LED flashes out a 2 digit code, which gives some info on why the immobiliser is on. It is unusual, but not entirely impossible, for a Ford to forget its keycodes during a battery disconnect.

I never disconnect my battery, except to change it, and then I connect a charger to keep the system alive. I just don't trust these cars to cope with a battery disconnect without forgetting something useful.

I know from looking at circuit diagrams, and common sense, that the whole airbag system is fully powered down while the ignition is off, and that it only needs a few seconds to discharge this mystic stored charge. Airbags need a substantial current pulse (over 1A) to set them off, though a very high voltage electrostatic discharge could just possibly do it also. So it is far more important to earth yourself to the car and the casing of the bag before touching wiring or connectors than to disconnect the battery.

When I removed my steering wheel, I just removed the horn fuse, as that is the only power into the wheel on my car, and also would otherwise go off loudly while removing the airbag unit!

6 hours ago, Tdci-Peter said:

Google PATS flash codes. The LED flashes out a 2 digit code, which gives some info on why the immobiliser is on. It is unusual, but not entirely impossible, for a Ford to forget its keycodes during a battery disconnect.

I never disconnect my battery, except to change it, and then I connect a charger to keep the system alive. I just don't trust these cars to cope with a battery disconnect without forgetting something useful.

I know from looking at circuit diagrams, and common sense, that the whole airbag system is fully powered down while the ignition is off, and that it only needs a few seconds to discharge this mystic stored charge. Airbags need a substantial current pulse (over 1A) to set them off, though a very high voltage electrostatic discharge could just possibly do it also. So it is far more important to earth yourself to the car and the casing of the bag before touching wiring or connectors than to disconnect the battery.

When I removed my steering wheel, I just removed the horn fuse, as that is the only power into the wheel on my car, and also would otherwise go off loudly while removing the airbag unit!

After looking on google my PATS code is 1 3 which means the key is not recognised, damaged or faulty. Which is odd since the key still locks and unlocks my car, would of thought it wouldnt if they key was not recognised. In this case is my only option getting a new key programmed by ford?

2 hours ago, bazzatrazza said:

my PATS code is 1 3 which means the key is not recognised, damaged or faulty. Which is odd since the key still locks and unlocks my car, would of thought it wouldnt if they key was not recognised. In this case is my only option getting a new key programmed by ford?

The PATS (immobiliser) part of the key is a tiny capsule hidden inside the fob. So nothing to do with the blade that unlocks the door, and also nothing to do with the remote control buttons & battery. The P in PATS means passive, which in turn means the capsule is energised by a coil around the ignition key barrel, and so needs no battery.

Usually a ford comes with 2 keys, only one having the remote control buttons, but both will have a PATS capsule, so both can start the car. So if you have the spare, try it. This will verify for sure whether the problem is in the key.

If the key is the problem, you have at least 3 options:

1) Get a clone made of your working spare key (if you have one). This clone could have the remote control buttons, only the PATS capsule needs to be cloned.. Various locksmiths and sellers on Ebay etc will provide this service, a lot cheaper than Ford. There is a small disadvantage to a cloned key, if you ever needed to erase all keys & re-programme PATS from zero (unlikely!), you need 2 different keys, and a clone will not be a different key. But that is, in most cases, not important.

2) Use Forscan to add a Key. I suspect it can do this for a 2009 Fiesta, it can for similar age Focus, but not, I believe, for a Mk3 or later Focus. If your existing key still has a working PATS capsule, it can re-use that. If the capsule is lost or broken, you may be able to replace it, or buy a new key with an un-programmed PATS capsule. This route is a bit technical!

3) Go to a Ford stealer to pay up around £200.

7 minutes ago, Tdci-Peter said:

The PATS (immobiliser) part of the key is a tiny capsule hidden inside the fob. So nothing to do with the blade that unlocks the door, and also nothing to do with the remote control buttons & battery. The P in PATS means passive, which in turn means the capsule is energised by a coil around the ignition key barrel, and so needs no battery.

Usually a ford comes with 2 keys, only one having the remote control buttons, but both will have a PATS capsule, so both can start the car. So if you have the spare, try it. This will verify for sure whether the problem is in the key.

If the key is the problem, you have at least 3 options:

1) Get a clone made of your working spare key (if you have one). This clone could have the remote control buttons, only the PATS capsule needs to be cloned.. Various locksmiths and sellers on Ebay etc will provide this service, a lot cheaper than Ford. There is a small disadvantage to a cloned key, if you ever needed to erase all keys & re-programme PATS from zero (unlikely!), you need 2 different keys, and a clone will not be a different key. But that is, in most cases, not important.

2) Use Forscan to add a Key. I suspect it can do this for a 2009 Fiesta, it can for similar age Focus, but not, I believe, for a Mk3 or later Focus. If your existing key still has a working PATS capsule, it can re-use that. If the capsule is lost or broken, you may be able to replace it, or buy a new key with an un-programmed PATS capsule. This route is a bit technical!

3) Go to a Ford stealer to pay up around £200.

Unfortunately i dont have a spare key, only the one with the remote controls, so i cant test the key that way.

2 minutes ago, bazzatrazza said:

Unfortunately i dont have a spare key,

It is all too common for that spare key to go missing at some point in a car's history. For an alert buyer, it should be a potential deal breaker if the 2nd key is missing, there are both security and cost problems.

I think your options are limited to going to a Ford francise dealer, or getting Forscan. Forscan costs £20 to £30 for the ELM327 adapter, free software download for Windows, or about £5 for an App. It will help to confirm where the problem is, and may be able to re-programme your existing key.

https://forscan.org/download.html

Worryingly, Forscan is partly Russian, but is a multinational project. It seems to have escaped Russian censorship or trade/information blockades as yet!

This is an odd one. The 1:3 code is not what I expected, why the key should have suddenly developed a fault (or lost its capsule somehow) I don't know. I expected it to be a transceiver fault (in the car), or a software problem of losing codes, but these should have different flash codes. That is why I would use Forscan to double check the flash code. I never really 100% trust any of the software in these cars, or indeed, to be honest, any software anywhere or ever!

Just make sure you haven't forgotten to reconnect anything when putting back together, especially in the steering lock area

+1 for checking that area!

Thinking about it a bit more, the PATS transceiver is there, around the ignition barrel. Although there is supposed to be a different flash code for transceiver disconnected, I would not trust it. If the car could not correctly check for the transceiver, it would interpret the lack of data from it as no PATS capsule in the key, which is code 1:3.

 

24 minutes ago, Tdci-Peter said:

+1 for checking that area!

Thinking about it a bit more, the PATS transceiver is there, around the ignition barrel. Although there is supposed to be a different flash code for transceiver disconnected, I would not trust it. If the car could not correctly check for the transceiver, it would interpret the lack of data from it as no PATS capsule in the key, which is code 1:3.

 

Okay thats interesting, any idea what i need to look for?

32 minutes ago, bazzatrazza said:

Okay thats interesting, any idea what i need to look for?

😄 Well, without sounding like a bell-end, anything not connected. If memory serves they're green plugs or very small black

And, obviously check you haven't damaged any wires too

3 hours ago, bazzatrazza said:

any idea what i need to look for?

Like this:

@DaveT70 @Tdci-Peter Just to update you guys, my car is working fine now. The cause of this issue was a lack of knowledge on my behalf.

The cause was the fact that i had changed the top platic shell of my key, the bit which houses the spining blade and it now also seems the PATS chip, i was under the impression that the PATS chip was apart of the remote control motherboard which i had not tampered with.

After replacing the old plastic shell all is working fine.

Thank you for advice and this experience has made me learn alot for such a silly issue.