Firstly, lets dispell a common myth here, and I say this on behalf of every Garage, Motor Trader, Car Audio Shop and back street Mechanic. If the battery has to be disconnected from a car to work on it, and the stereo asks for the security code to be entered when it is reconnected, it is the sole responsibility of the owner of the vehicle to provide the code - and shouting at the guy repairing your car is a really dumb thing to do, as he may not then help you to recover or enter it, should it appear.
Also, bear in mind that whoever is working on your car is being paid by the hour by yourself, and like many others, we too certainly impose an extra hourly charge for rummaging through a mountain of paperwork and service history in the glovebox if we are simply told that the number is probably in there somewhere, and often whilst searching for the correct code passport, we will be presented with numerous scraps of paper, out of date receipts and many other items with numbers randomly scribbled on them.
But think about it, the code number as suplied by the Manufacturers and Dealers was never going to be a scribble on a fag packet, and random numbers on the back of a receipt could be absolutely anything. But also be aware that trial and error can cost you dearly in most cases, as you only have a limited number of code entry attempts.
So what exactly are you looking for? What does a radio code look like?
Although not an exhaustive list, shown below are some of the Code Cards that are supplied by the manufacturer, and this is what you are looking for. If you don`t have something that looks like this, don`t start guessing and entering any numbers you find - as too many wrong attempts can permanently kill some stereos!
But if all else fails, and you really do not have or know your code number, it is not the end of the world, after all, that is what we are here for !!
Have a look at the DECODE section of our website and the instructions will be there for the recovery of your Code Number.
Blaupunkt - Audio System Passport
Full marks go to Blaupunkt for this Radio Passport that accompanied most of their Italian OEM stereo`s. The information was printed on it from the factory and shows where the numbers can be found on the side of the stereo to ensure that it is the correct passport for the stereo concerned.
Blaupunkt - Active Keycard
This Keycard is very similar to a credit card and has a small microchip on it that stores your code
number and your favourite radio stations. Duplicate cards can be obtained via our online shop.
Blaupunkt - Active Keycard
This Keycard is very similar to a credit card and has a small microchip on it that stores your code
number and your favourite radio stations. Duplicate cards can be obtained via our online shop.
Blaupunkt - MMC Keycard
Smaller Keycard as used by some of the later Multimedia Head Units.
(Although they may look like standard Memory cards, they aren`t !!)
Bosch
Audio / Navigation System Passport
Top marks go to Bosch for this Radio Passport that accompanied most of their Italian OEM stereo`s. The information was printed on it from the factory and also shows how to differentiate between the numbers on the label.
Chrysler - Audio System Passport
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This Chrysler Audio System passport was of little use. If you look in the middle, it has a space for a sticker containing the radio information.
It was a shame that nobody ever placed the sticker there with the code number though, and most of these are indeed blank. |
Ford - Keycode Card
The Ford Solution was to give a small booklet with printed radio details. This worked well, although many people did not fill out the detachable card with any duplicate details. So there are lots of blank cards floating around with the printed one always being lost first!
Grundig - Challenge Series
This Grundig Radio card for the Challenge series is made from thin blue plastic and will have a sticker on it with the radio details. Check that the model number and serial number shown on the sticker are the same as your radio before you attempt to enter any codes.
Honda - Anti Theft Radio ID Card
This Honda Radio Identification card contained the Code number and the serial number, but does not differentiate between the two. To avoid any further confusion, the Radio Code is the 5 digit number.
Honda - Anti Theft Radio ID Card
This Honda Radio Identification card also contained the Code number and the serial number, but it was easier to differentiate between the two as the longer serial number was a little more obvious.
Interconti - Radio Passport
This Radio passport did not have any Radio details printed on it, yet was intended to give the Police an accurate description of your stereo equipment, and even had a space on the back for your name and address. Problem was, they were generally blank as nobody could be bothered to fill them in !
Jaguar - Security Radio Code
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The Jaguar Code Card showed a serial number instead of a model number, but was virtually impossible to confirm without stripping the dashboard down to look at the label on the radio. A model number would have at least been quicker to verify.
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Opel - Radio Pass
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This Opel Radio passport is made from thin yellow card and will have a sticker on it with the radio details. Check that the model number and serial number shown on the sticker are the same as your radio before you attempt to enter any codes.
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Peugeot - Radio Passport
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This Peugeot Radio passport causes a fair bit of confusion, as it contains no useful information, and more importantly, No Code number!
It is purely a record of model
number and serial number. The idea was that you could pass this card to the Police so that they would have a description of your stereo if it got stolen, but my guess is that if you have one of these basic fit stereo`s, you would struggle to give it away, let alone get it nicked!
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Peugeot - Radio Code Card
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Far more usefull was this Peugeot one.
This Peugeot Radio Code passport is made from white card and will have a sticker on it with the radio details. Check that the model number and serial number shown on the sticker are the same as your radio before you attempt to enter any codes.
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Philips Car Systems - Security Card
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The Philips Security Card only showed a serial number instead of a model number, but was virtually impossible to confirm what stereo it belonged to without stripping the dashboard down to look at the label on the radio. But strangely, it did not contain any Code information !!
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Rover - Security Code
Clever idea by Rover was to include code entry details on the back of the card.
Shame nobody ever filled out the front of the card with the code number though !
Skoda Auto - Radio Karte
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This Skoda Radio card for the Skoda Melody radio is made from thin white card and will have a sticker on it with the radio details. Check that the model number and serial number shown on the sticker are the same as your radio before you attempt to enter any codes.
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Vauxhall - Radio Passport
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This Vauxhall Radio passport is made from thin red plastic and will have a sticker on it with the radio details. As Vauxhall radio`s seem to be swapped over all the time on the garage forecourts, its worth checking to see how many of these are in the glovebox and also to check that the model number and serial number shown on the sticker are the same as your radio before you attempt to enter any codes.
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Volkswagen - Radio Card
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This Volkswagen Radio card for the VW GAMMA radio is made from thin white card and will have a sticker on it with the radio details. Check that the model number and serial number shown on the sticker are the same as your radio before you attempt to enter any codes.
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