How to Program a VW keyfob

In this video I show how to program a replacement keyfob on a 2002 Jetta. I got a new keyfob from the dealer to replace the original damaged one. This programming requires 2 keys because you need one in the ignition and one in the door at the same time.
Procedure is this.
1. With new keyfob installed onto the old switch-blade/transponder portion of the key insert the key into the ignition with the buttons facing down.
2. Turn the key to the on position but don't start the car. Just until the lights light up on the dash.
3. Get out of the vehicle and shut door. Then insert the second key into the door and turn to lock and then turn to unlock.
4. get back into vehicle and press the unlock button on the keyfob for 1 second, then let up for 1 second, press for 1 second. You should hear the horn honk. If the horn didn't honk then let off and press again. Did the horn honk? if not let off and press again. Did the horn honk? If not then then see below. If the horn did honk move to next step.
5. Shut door and test out the keyfob. if the horn honked then the buttons should work.
If the horn doesn't honk then something is wrong.
1.Does the horn and the alarm work? maybe you just didn't hear it
2.The max number of programmed keyfobs is 4. Even if they are lost the computer still hold the programming. It may need to go to the dealer to wipe the programming and start out new.
3. The door lock switch didn't read that the key was moved to lock and unlock
4. The new keyfob isn't the right one for the vehicle
Also I'm sure someone will comment at some point that you can just stick your arm out the window and turn the key but there is a reason I don't recommend this. On a VW the windows can be rolled up and down with the key in the door and I don't want people to roll up their arm or head in the window. Just get out of the vehicle or have a friend stand next to the car and operate the key.

[@kinglouis7134]

Your KZbin instructional video was very helpful. I successfully programmed my new 2000 VW Beetle key using my Valet Key! To those trying it for the first time, the unprogrammed key goes into the ignition and the valet key or whatever you’re using as a original goes into the outside door lock. I figured out I had to pull the new key out of the steering column and then push the unlock button slowly. Then the new fob worked flawlessly. Thanks again for helping us out and showing us the way.

[@jonnymin.speranza6854]

I ve new beetle too. Works with new empty key?

[@heikogehrig]

This worked perfectly on my older model Tiguan. Thank you!! Later, when my other key fob stopped working (while at the mall, so no second key fob), I did the exact same procedure, except I opened the driver's side door, locked the central lock (on the door), unlocked, closed the door, then pressed the unlock button on the key fob twice (no horn, but after removing key, the key fob works). So for my Tiguan, the procedure works, except you don't need the second key, unstead, use the central lock on the door.

[@bassmunk]

Nice! Just tried it with aftermarket fobs I got off eBay and it worked perfectly! Thank u! I recommend though pressing all 3 buttons during the 15sec programmable time frame so that they all work. My 1st try only the one button I pressed worked.

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Thanks for the tip. I wonder if this is common with the aftermarket Fobs.

[@anthonygarcia7753]

Crazy I’ve had my Passat for over a year and I never cared to search for a video how to program the key cause I always thought I would have to go to the dealer. One year later and outta curiosity I did and this worked !

[@SteveH1985]

Top video took me literally 1 minute to reprogram my fob using this video. Thanks 😉

[@miker7777]

holy shit lifechanging. I thought i would forever have to manually unlock the doors for the rest of my passat's life. each few seconds of time saved are due to you.

[@kristinae.7084]

Thank you so much!! I had to repeat the steps 4 times, and my horn never honked, but now my key fob works! You made my day :)

[@jamil420]

Did u buy a blank chip from somewhere or reprogrammed your old key?

[@katolau]

Hey aloha, really appreciate you posting this 3 years ago, fixed the problem, mahalo!

[@gabriellance9248]

I tried adding a remote on my 2004 Passat with my VAG-COM tool and it wouldn't let me add the second (key) remote. Then tried your method and it worked on the first try. Thanks a lot!

[@l.m.kogler728]

I just did this with the spare key fob from my 2003 Jetta -- car was totaled in 2004, and yeah, I've held on to a practically new VW key fob I've never used for all these years. Used to replace the key fob for my 2005 Jetta. (That key fob stopped working; not a battery issue.) The procedure as shown here worked the very first time! Thanks!

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Thanks for letting us know. Free fob is awesome!!!

[@arturodavis5135]

i dont mean to be offtopic but does anyone know of a trick to get back into an instagram account..? I was stupid lost the account password. I appreciate any assistance you can give me!

[@urielmilo3681]

@Arturo Davis Instablaster ;)

[@arturodavis5135]

@Uriel Milo Thanks so much for your reply. I got to the site on google and Im in the hacking process now. Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will reply here later with my results.

[@arturodavis5135]

@Uriel Milo It worked and I actually got access to my account again. Im so happy! Thank you so much you saved my ass !

[@andyskyrme2714]

Fabulous! Thank you so much. It saved me loads of money trying to get my 2007 VW Polo key reprogrammed. Awesome. 😎👍

[@alyssatrujillo1355]

Locksmith tried telling me the key fob I purchased from somewhere else didn’t work and I had to purchase from him…turns out Jetta’s need another key in the car door. Saved myself $300 and did it myself. Thank you!

[@Docdug]

Thank you for posting this! It saved me $62 the VW dealer would have charged!!!

[@armandvigors2025]

Thank you so much for this tip. I got quoted £150 for new key from locksmith. Bought a 2nd hand fob off ebay for £12 , swapped my key on to it, tried out this method and it worked first time. Genius.

[@Ndlakude]

Thank you so much. I didn't sleep well yesterday thinking about my dead car keys. U saved my last cent with your video. You are the man

[@PsyMan2022]

Thanks, new T5s spare key now functional again. Nice and clear (it was my alarm beep not the horn in the UK though)

[@houmvong]

Thank you sir. I got my Beetle reprograms very easy.

[@RussellJLed]

Worked! I’ll add to this by saying I took the key lock out and used a screwdriver instead of a key in the lock/unlock step as I haven’t yet had my new key cut. But the new fob from eBay is now programmed! Saved myself mucho dinero! Thank you sir!!!

[@aliviisas]

After three times this worked perfectly for my VW Bora '00. 👌 Saved 50 €, thank you!

[@ImTheBeast93]

Thanks worked on my mk4 golf first try best video for this

[@bryandulude7215]

12 seconds and it’s like new I love it still works

[@jorgebustos8339]

Great video man. Thank you!

[@brandoncarson7456]

you sir are a very helpful man may you have a long and beautiful life ❤️ thank you for helping me

[@considerlily]

Thank you so much!! Worked like a charm.

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Your welcome.

[@ladonnabrookshire6284]

KZbin for the win always coming through in a clutch.

[@chronocross7174]

Thank you! This worked after watching alot of videos this one was straight forward!

[@MrJwolf989]

Worked perfectly for 1999 Passat (B5). If driver latch actuator does not recognize key, you can program off of the passenger door as well. Thank you!!

[@theyrealltaken3]

Worked perfectly! Thank you very much! Liked and subbed

[@sergioforjaes5730]

I try with my vw passat (12/2000) and it worked like a charm at 4th attemp... Thx a lot!!! Great video!!!!

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Nice work!

[@BobSmith-mc7uq]

Tried many different way. Yours worked first time. Subbed.

[@WestcoastEmamali]

Still works great! I bought a new fob from Amazon and programmed it in 5 sec. with this method.

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Great to hear!

[@humbertohernandez11]

Fast and easy thank you sir!

[@nlibby5549]

This worked on a non push start Passat. Thanks, man.

[@rolandmazuch4493]

This method worked for me i tried a lot but just this one was with function. Thanks a lot

[@kingbolen_official]

Nice video,one minute program a VW keyfob

[@turtlesonfame9524]

This tutorial worked perfectly for 2002 passage, thanks

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Glad it helped

[@tajiroller]

Best way to program a new key fob without 2nd key is to pull apart the fobs and pop out the circuit boards and put the old circuit board in the place of the new. Worked for me.

[@johnbrennan7175]

Its staggering how many people are driving around without a spare key. Madness

[@tommytee1751]

Sweet!! This worked on my VW golf mk4.. Nice one man..

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Good to hear!

[@N0TDITTO]

You just saved me the $75 the dealer wanted to charge!

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Sweet. Holidays are coming and every dollar counts.

[@rodmccrimmon2601]

This worked perfectly - first time - awesome!

[@Weirdbloke1]

This worked on a Skoda Roomster. Thank you.

[@vlamizo0072]

Saved me alot of money. Thanks for the informing 👍

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Glad to help

[@ayarnold9523]

Many thanks worked on my 2006 VW T5 with the remote that had stopped working after a battery change.

[@t.a.4702]

worked like a charm

[@rudebeserker309]

So what if you don’t hv a second key and just have one key fob but u ordered a key fob replacement case from Amazon would this still work

[@medsoudani8247]

Hello, Thank you for the video. Could you tell me how to program a new remote control for a VW Passat B8 (2018), without key, knowing that the car is keyless Go (not keyless entry). Thanks

[@blacks4malimindset730]

Thanks for the video,does it work on a polo vivo 2015 if not what should I use cause I got Ancel fx4000 diagnostic scanner

[@ProPhoto-rc7yn]

Great work!!!

[@Mybrotherskeeper]

On some vehicles you need to leave the key in the ignition for several seconds until you hear the horn blow.

[@SiM0NEN]

Works on vw t4 transporter. Did not hear horn but still works at very first try.

[@abylambert9731]

this works perfectly! thanks man

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

You're welcome!

[@JayMadTv]

Thank you for this

[@user-rx4dc5ok9b]

Works nicely for the door unlock. But how do we program the immobilizer chip??

[@lauris4887]

Is there a way to reprogram my second key to be recognised by immobilizer? Key was working fine but i tried to take radio out by bit of force and the key stopped working. I have other key that only locks car manualy. And the button on starting key doesnt work.

[@diesel7806]

Worked on my first try, thank you!

[@ayoubdry5428]

081GSDHM

[@leifbolton643]

since the max number of programmed keys is 4, and it may take 4 times to re program a key. I suggest that the amount of times it takes is related to the number of times it has already been done.

[@Wyndstrom]

This was very helpful! Thank you for this vid! Honestly, I"m no fan of these keyfobs and prefer a standard (read: old school) key.

[@juanvillaherrera5363]

Thank! It worked

[@bigbossmanbearcat2023]

Good video

[@henryjp3741]

worked for my 2006 Golf TDI, but the Trunk latch release will not work...any ideas why?

[@simoncaswell2961]

Thanks a lot worked first time

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Simon Caswell great news. Sometime they can be tricky and take multiple times to get it.

[@paulduffy4025]

Will thos method work on a 2015 vw crafter van. Regards pal

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

I’m not sure if this will work or not on the Crafter. We don’t get that model in the states. The some of those vans were based on the sprinter van from Mercedes so the procedure might be different.

[@jimbrannlund4677]

Thanks for this!

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

My pleasure!

[@ianlivermore2981]

Thank you ever so much worked great 👍

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

You're welcome!

[@tacoman864]

THANK YOU

[@user-zv7jq7hq1p]

thx for this vid -- worked perfectly!

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

You're welcome!

[@MarisRozenbergs]

it worked, has to use screw driver as a key to unlock, lock doors, took total 2hours +/- but did it

[@m3rk926]

Thank you so much man!!!

[@jasonsmybro]

if you dont have a second key, remove the driver's door lock cylinder and use a screwdriver to lock/unlock the door. it is very simple to remove the lock cylinder. you just have to remove the small cap in the door by the lock cylinder and use a t15 torx bit to unscrew the bolt holding the lock cylinder in (dont remove the screw completely. only loosen it enough to remove the lock cylinder or youll be fishing the screw out of the inner door). follow the same procedure in the video but use the screwdriver as the second key.

[@blueboy7777777777777]

Thanks for the video! Worked the first time on the new remote but can't get the factory one to work.

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

blueboy7777777777777 did the factory remote work before and does the little red light on the remote block when a button is pressed? you may have to try programming both at the same time. After you press the button on one remote and get the confirmation try pressing the buttons on the second remote before cycling the key off.

[@blueboy7777777777777]

@@ThePracticalMechanic Factory one did work until the battery died in it and the car battery died. And yes the red LED light flashes with a new battery in both. Tried to do both at the same time but no good. The new one doesn't make the horn beep but it still works. I have a VCDS I'll just do it that way. Thanks!

[@Gonzo021778]

What about the trunk release? I programmed the doors but the trunk release won't work?

[@shifatsalam3153]

Sir I have only two remote control key. One does work and the other doesn't ( if i click the button the car doesn't response anymore). So have I input the working key in the door and input the not working key in the car? It's a Volkswagen polo of 2003. Please help me

[@terrykuzevski2026]

Hi, I have a 2016 vw amarok. Will this video work to program my new fob key to my car?

[@wayneODC]

Hello, I have a 2007 Golf, and having problems with this working. Should I try anything else?

[@mtn_sivliu]

On my polo 1.9 2001 it was a veri small click inside the dashboard that told me it was reprogrammed. I got it in the 3-rd try. Thanks :)

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

🍻

[@ikki831]

I heard the horn on first try with key fob I got on amazon. The key fob locks and unlocks doors and car starts and drives fine with the newly programed key fob but trunk wont unlock with it. I can live with that. thanks for the info.

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

No problem. That’s weird that the trunk doesn’t operate. At least the door locks work. Thanks for watching.

[@razmin3]

I have the same problem with the key fobs I purchased from Amazon. The lock and unlock work, but they won't pop the trunk. I have no idea why because the original fob will open the trunk.

[@European_carclub]

@@razmin3 same with my key from eBay. Any reason why?

[@smalldoseofmeful]

What if you are trying to program an entire new key. Got the new one cut but the immobilizer pill isnt set to the car

[@LookUpTheKalergiPlanWhitePeeps]

B5.5 Passat, have you ever noticed it's not the horn honking? It's something near the C pillar in my car when I use the remote to lock it or if the alarm goes off.

[@tomgreen749]

i lost my key on a ride at the fair , i have the spare key but it wont start my car it turns the imobilizer on will this work to code the spare key and to turn the imobilizer off ?

[@dashtyATG]

Hy thanks for your time. How about a used remot please can it be reprogrammed?

[@nddavi58]

thanks man!!!

[@jamescc2010]

Will this work if we are adding a second spare key for 2009 Rabbit? So one original working key, and adding a new key.

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

This will only program a remote. Inserting an Unprogrammed Key Blade into the ignition may immobilize the vehicle. Keyblade programming may require a locksmith or the dealer.

[@ahanetne1312]

Thank you!

[@ianmoore525]

So I can have 2 different key fobs old and new both programmed to open doors and start?

[@retrolabvw]

Dumb question but will this affect remote starting? I had the fob programmed for remote starting by pressing the lock button 3 times

[@nedzadkaradag763]

What hapens with new sword when i turn back that old key sword into his old part of the key? Is that imobilizer in that sword part of the key and will the imobillizer work on th new one because it was not in the ignition when programming? TNX

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

Nedžad Klaja this programming will only work for the lower keyfob portion. The immobilizer is built into the upper portion of the key with the switchblade. This programming will not learn that portion of the immobilizer system and as far as I know you need to factory scan tool to program the switchblade portion of the key. Some locksmiths have the ability to program the switchblade part of the key. The immobilizer chip isn’t in the blade itself but it’s in the upper plastic portion.

[@rajafaisaltariq]

thanks 😊 👍🏻

[@ryanjones1677]

Does this work on a 09 Jetta as well?

[@RalphMartinez-mz7ev]

2004 VW Passat GLX Sedan V6 these steps worked for me to add a second key, but how can I program out other lost key fobs or how can I add my 3rd? thank you in advance

[@gunsnsails]

Does the new key fob have to come from the dealership?

[@RnWSolutions]

Is there a way if you only have 1 key?

[@anasmanalath]

Will this work on 2010 model polo?

[@vw1610]

You rock!!!

[@greatcesarsghost]

Does that work the same for a 2008 vw Jetta ??

[@jimmykame]

Hi I have an 2006 mark5 Jetta, I have one key and fob with no spare key and I just bought a new fob and want to program it. I did the trick where I removed the door lock and used a screw driver instead of a second key. I’ve noticed it works on the mark 4’s but I haven’t seen any mark 5 videos that use that method. Do you know if it absolutely necessary to have 2 cut keys? or should one cut key with the immobilized in the ignition and the screw driver as the second key work as well? Thanks

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

It is possible that that will work on the mk5 as well. I’ve don’t it on the mk4s and Audi’s but never tried on mk5

[@jimmykame]

ThePracticalMechanic you don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t work? There was nothing added to the locking mechanism in the mark 5? It is possible my car has too many keys synced. I don’t know for sure. Thanks for the reply

[@1975Kombi1]

How about doing a used key fob from a scrapyard? Yes the immo chip has been switch over along with the key blade. Can the used scrapyard key fob be reprogrammed? Seems the original circuit board might have been compromised. It just continually blinks non stop.

[@ThePracticalMechanic]

The used remote if functional should work. I have programmed several used remotes in the past.

[@1975Kombi1]

Bob's your uncle!

[@safaka8859]

Can i programming a original golf 7 key for golf 4

[@ILoveJessieKol]

Will this work for MK6/2014 Jetta?

[@jesuspallares4616]

Does this work for mk6

[@seeker1432]

Thank you sr.

[@jaycechan8122]

Thanks so much it work to my Audi A4. key , saving my 93 pound to Audi shop recording

[@williebeukes4482]

i tried this with my Jetta 5 but it's not working. Is there another way of doing this on n Jetta 5?