Butters00Vet

Since day one my range with the stock car alarm has been less then 10 feet.:bs It's been almost 2 years and it's still the same. :eek: This sucks. My cousins POS truck has a much farther range then mine and he's got one of those $99 do-it-yourself car alarm.:confused: What can I do? And it's not like it works all the time. Sometime I'll be on top of the car and the thing won't work and I would have to use the key.:( That's embarassing especially on a date when you want to open the door for the lady. :rolleyes: And, yes I've changed the battery. And yes it happens to both key fobs. Any advice here would be appreciated.

PS. And yes, the whole opening the door for the lady incident happened last night.:cry Very embarassing :bb :bb and frustrating. :mad


[Modified by Butters00Vet, 10:37 AM 2/2/2002]

jayleone

What year did they drop the passenger side key lock on the outside. That would really suck if you couldn't even use the key to unlock the passenger side first.

From my experience with aftermarket alarms, there is a small (12") antennae from the "brains" of the system that effect the range of the trasmitter. If it isn't sretched out all the way or is it was running parallel to a high voltage wire that was giving off EM interference the range would be poor. Repositioning the antennae woud fix the problem. I don't know where it is on the vette or if it even has an external antennae, but it is worth a shot.

Neither my 98 or 01 have had this problem, which makes me think that it is something that varies from vette to vette and could be something as simple as moving a wire.

However, I was running a small computer in my 98 to play MP3s, and whenever the system was on, the powers supply gave off enough EM interference to cause the same low range affect. But when it is off, it was fine.

Mell

Well..., I hesitated to post this because it sounds so stupid, but what the heck. :lol:

Years ago a friend told me that if you stick your tongue out and down as far as you can while you push your key fob, it will increase the range. I have tried this many times and it actually works.

Now if you are out on a date, this may prove to have a two fold advantage...

Mell

aces

You can just hold it against your chin :cheers: :yesnod: :flag

Mell

Yes! aces
is right, if you hold it under your chin while you do this it works even better.

Mell

likev

I have had the same problem with every GM vehicle I have owned. For years now, I have done the chin trick and it works every time. Even on my friends non-gm cars. Just hold it under your chin (with the top touching your chin) then press the button. The range is nearly 10x better. (At least for me since I'm 6' tall) ;)

Ronnysho

If you can hold it by your waist and press it with your tongue you will REALLY have an advantage, at least as far as the date is concerned. :lol: :lol: :lol:

ROD BROWN

I just read in a parts magazine,the remote key fobs for theCoupe and the convertibles look alike but have different part numbers.(ref. pge.325 Ecklers Wish Book).Maybe possible we are receiving the wrong key fobs with our cars or buying the wrong fobs from UNSUSPECTING sellers on the forum??I don't know how we could find out if this a fact,but maybe double check the numbers on the back of our fobs to see if they are the same and get the correct numbers from a tech at a dealer.Might prove interesting!! :chevy :chevy :flag :chevy :chevy (STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER)

Butters00Vet

I know about that trick. BUT that doesn't solve any real problems. So now my range is 13 1/2 feet instead of 7. Is there anyway to boost the signal or extend the range WITHOUT using the tongue theory?

luvinc5

Hmmm, if you're looking for some strategy other than sticking out your tongue, you may want to check with the dealer for a TSB on a short range key fob operation. But if all else fails, stick the tongue out as far as you can. :D


[Modified by luvinc5, 5:21 PM 2/2/2002]

rhoeven

Do you also have some trouble with the tire pressure sensors, specially the RF one?
The reason I'm asking is that the key fobs and the pressure sensors use same receiver which is located in the BCM.

If so, have the dealer replace the BCM.

Hope this helps

Roger

John Shiels

You should have made a move on her then :D

see5

Think there is any danger of tongue or brain cancer? :)

bparker

Yep, the chin trick works very well. Mine works only about ten feet away - but - if I put it against my chin, it will work about 20-30 yards away.. :D

turbolou

Maybe it's your girl friend. I used to have the same problem. So I dumped her
for a blonde with a flat head ,no teeth & big ears & Bingo problem solved. :jester

Wesson58

I bought a used 03 corvette from a Chevy dealer. Since day 1 the fob didn't work unless you were within 5 feet of the car even after changing the batteries in both fobs and reprogramming them. I found this old thread when I was searching common issues on google. So I feel others are going to see this still. I purchased invisible glass because I wanted something safe to clean my tinted windows. This product worked phenomenally. After doing so, my key fob now works from very far distances. My guess is some kind of invisible film must have been on the glass. I don't know if it's from age or people using windex. Or maybe there is something in invisible glass that helps almost like an antenna. I'm curious if anyone would know why and also to try it.

tabbruzz

yes..the old under the chin method..I've won many bets doing this one...I learned it from one of my professors...it uses you whole body as an antenna.