I recently added factory remote start to my truck, installed the antenna, bought and programmed a new 4 button key and had the dealer activate the feature. That part was smooth. I have since bought another 4 button key and cannot get the head part to program. I am following the same steps as before, doors closed, cycle the door locks and leave unlocked with the button on the door. cycle the ignition 8 times, leaving in ON position (with original factory key). the door locks cycle on their own. When I push a button on ANY fob, the horn honks and nothing else happens. Please read the last sentence again. ANY fob, the new unprogrammed FOB, the existing programmed FOBs, the horn honks. this tells me the new FOB is being read, but not retained. Any ideas ?

 

Hi jeffdoerr,

If you're still running into difficulty getting this fob issue solved, you can always enlist the help of your local Ford Dealership. How many miles are on your truck currently?

Crystal

 

thanks for the reply, but 2 things.
#1 - I am looking for a self-help, not a schedule and wait half a day and pay $$$$
#2 - the local Ford dealer is not my first choice, the parts manager does not belong in his position and tried to send me on a wild goose chase. Apparently he won, because I will never step foot in that place again.

 

I understand, jeffdoerr. If your needs change in the future, feel free to reach out.

Crystal

 

ok, I have it figured out.

The OEM 80bit keys are programmed with the 2 key method and this also programs the 3 (or 4) button remote attached to the key. AFTERMARKET 80bit keys have to be programmed in 2 steps, FIRST the key must be programmed to the truck (actually its the opposite, but lets not dwell on semantics), SECOND, the 3 (or 4) button integrated remote must be programmed via the keyfob (8 cycle) method. If you try to program an OEM key using the keyfob method, the device is rejected (horn honks) until you program the key first.

Originally I am just cheap, so when I stopped at the parts yard for something else, I found a 4 button key in a wrecked F150. I was originally planning on just using the head and programming to my truck so I could use the remote start from my house (I live in an an area that we dont have to lock our doors and leave the keys in our vehicles) This way I would have a remote head that would stay in the house and my keys would stay in my truck. After its all said and done, I ended up with is 1 OEM 3 button key, 1 AFTERMARKET 4 button key and 1 MODIFIED OEM 3 button key converted to a 4 button with a keyhead recovered from a junked truck. Obviously the key would not work in my truck, so with some work, I was able to swap the circuit board and rubber button cover into my OEM key.

 

I was running into this same exact scenario and found your post. I didn't want to cut the key if I couldn't program the remote but your post encouraged me to do it and it worked perfectly.

Thank you