| Interesting info on reviving dead ignition key on 1999 G500
Interesting development this weekend. I got in the truck and noticed the instrument display did not light up as usual with the odometer, temp and clock. I turned the key and the warning bell would not go off even with the seatbelts buckled in. Then I noticed all the instruments were dead and the radio would not come on. Everything else was fine. I was towing a trailer so I unplugged the wiring harness there with no impact. I drove home with no problems using the cruise control.
Before this, I had one key which would open the doors but not turn on the ignition. The other key, would start the truck but not open the doors. Now the interesting thing I noticed was that with the instrument panel dead, both keys worked as they should. A small silver lining in the electrical nightmare!
I examined all the fuses but to no avail - they looked fine. I just spoke to Gene at Europa and he recommened to recheck fuse 13 - I did and it was a dead 10 amp fuse. I replaced it and the panel lit up and the radio was asking for its code.
Being the brave person I am, I tried the remotes and..... THEY BOTH WORK PERFECTLY. It seems that something was reset in this process. A much less expensive fix than another $200 key. It makes me feel better that they are not that fragile.
Lesson learned - if a key does not work and you try the reset proceedure in the drivers manual, try pulling fuse 13, start the truck,
turn it off and replace the fuse. Mine fuse was dead for at least 18 hours so maybe there is a time component here too?
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