Frequently asked questions about FIAT Tipo 16V
Why does the central locking not work?
Trevor Byne
has problems with his Tipo's central locking.
Sometimes, but not all the time, his central locking will unlock but then
it becomes impossible to lock. The key will not turn to the lock
position in either door. The only solution seems to be to
force down an inside button.
I had a similar problem with the central locking. Turning the key in the
drivers door would not open the door and I had to use the passenger door.
On other occasions when I tried to open the door it would unlock and then
immediately lock again. It turned out to be a broken central locking
solenoid in the drivers door. I was suprised to find they were only
£42.88 for a new one. It took the garage less that half an hour to
fit since I had removed the inner trim off the door. It should still take
less than an hour if the garage have to remove and refit the trim.
Stefan Starkie says that
his car had a problem with central locking. Rather than the key not
turning in the lock, he would unlock the car, and after a second it would
all pop down and lock again. Or, conversely, I would try to lock it and it
would all unlock again. This ment that the car had to be left
unlocked for an afternoon outside a friend's house.
Eventually, he traced the problem to the passenger door lock not
activating remotely, and the system would sense that the door had not
locked so it would unlock thw whole car. So by putting the key in the
passenger lock and locking/unlocking the car manually, he could get the car
to lock. After taking it to my local mechanic (who used to work at a
Lancia dealership) he spent an hour and sussed that it just needed some
oil at a particular place in the mechanism. Problem solved and has not
recurred, for just twenty quid. Not good, though, having your car left
outside unlocked!
How do I keep the boot locked?
For security reasons it is possible to lock the boot of the car such that
if the driver or passenger door is opened using the central locking the
boot remains locked. This is useful if someone breaks into the car and
unlocks the drivers door. The boot will remain locked, thus hopefully any
valuables in the boot will be safe. To lock the boot in this manour,
insert the key
into the boot and turn it such that the keyhole is horizontal rather than
vertical. Test that the boot is indeed locked by pressing the button. To
unlock the boot insert the key and turn it such that the keyhole
is vertical.
I hear you say, ah but what about the rear seat, can't they just fold them
down and gain access that way. Yes normally they would but if you look behind
the seat from inside the boot you will see two catches below the plungers
used to release the seat. These can be turned such that the plungers
have no effect. As an extra precaution the plungers can also be removed.
How do I remove the central locking mechanism?
Alexis Grant says
Once you've removed the inner door trim disconnect the 2 rods that lead
to the motor. One is for the door handle, and the other is to move the
button up and down. Disconnect the wiring from the motor.
Open the door and undo the 3 bolts (10mm he thinks), these are the only
bolts that hold the motor. Slid motor out through the largest gap in
the subframe, and it will fit through, just takes a while to get
the angle right.
My bonnet is stuck shut, how can I open it?
Nareman Virk says that
sometimes all that happens is that the cable un-clips from the bonnet release handle.
Is is fairly easy to re-attach if you get down on your knees and use a torch to
see what's going on.
Can I get another alarm key fob "cut"?
Jara Shaw said his car had the original
Fiat alarm fitted however he only had the one key fob and wanted another one.
He says the code for my alarm is on a sticker on the tailgate.
The code is needed to program the key. The alarm system's have a primary key
and secondary key. Either key can be used with the car however only the primary
key can be used for making duplicates. A new key fob costs £40 and programming
the fob costs a further £45.
What precautions should I take when replacing the battery?
Be careful when reconnecting the main battery. When the central locking receives
a voltage it locks the doors. Therefore make sure the keys are not in the car
when you connect the battery otherwise you will be locked out of the car. Simply
disconnecting the battery will NOT release the doors and you will have to
break into your car to recover the keys.