Ford Escort (1993 - 2000) - 93 1.6 AARgh! Immobiliser acting up

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
View Threaded
Tue 6 May 2008 18:53
93 1.6 AARgh! Immobiliser acting up - Lud
Made me fail to collect grandchild and two friends from school and my poor wife had to do it by bus while I fiddled with the damn thing, locking and unlocking the doors from all angles, waiting for the timer to stop ticking and the red light to go out, pressing all the relays down on their pins, all to no avail. Until it decided to behave and started.

Must be the warm weather causing condensation perhaps? PITA anyway. It would be convenient to disconnect this tiresome device, but the flashing LED light, I like to think, deters malevolent passers-by from breaking the windows for fear that it will set up a racket (I don't think it would actually. It never has).

My wife didn't take much longer by bus than I do by car either. Am I a dinosaur?
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 6 May 2008 19:22
93 1.6 AARgh! Immobiliser acting up - Alby Back
Don't think it would be very difficult to disconnect the immobiliser. As for the LED it would probably be straightforward enough to rig up a fake one. I had this done to an old car once and while I can't remember how much it cost, it clearly wasn't enough to stick in my mind.

Just waiting now for the " that'll invalidate yer insurance y'know" ;-)
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 7 May 2008 00:07
93 1.6 AARgh! Immobiliser acting up - TurboD
a 93 vintage escort? who on earth would nick that?
my old escort (91) had a flashing effort on the dash and was attached to door locks.
It was easy to get it muddled up, just disconnected the battery for a while- that used to settle it.
Have you tried that?, otherwise it is probably a contact failure in door/boot/bonnect.
The electronics were ok, but I bet it would cost far more than the car is worth to fix.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 7 May 2008 17:59
93 1.6 AARgh! Immobiliser acting up - Lud
I don't really have to fix it so long as the door locks work. I just want the thing to carry on being its (fairly) reliable and solid self, and start when I want it to not half an hour later.

I'm not afraid of someone nicking it by the way, just getting curious about the rubble in the load area and breaking a window to see what's there. Mind you they would have to be fairly idiotic, but there are many such!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 7 May 2008 18:28
93 1.6 AARgh! Immobiliser acting up - Alby Back
Just get an "I love Dobermans" sticker or similar Lud and leave an imitation one in the boot in amongst the rubble. Should think Hamleys will have something suitable in the sale!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide