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When a radio code is refused, the code itself is usually not the problem. The number it was made from is. Most often the car's VIN went in where the radio wanted its own serial, or one character was misread, an O for a zero or an S for a 5. Check the serial against the label, then send us a photo on chat and we will look into it at no extra charge. Of the 887 orders where we corrected the serial in the last six months, more than 8 in 10 ended with a working code.
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Before you try the code again
Stop for a minute before the next attempt. Every wrong entry counts, and after a few the radio locks you out for an hour or more. A second try with the same code gives the same answer, so the useful thing now is to find out why it was refused.
A radio code is worked out from one number: the radio's serial, or on some makes the car's VIN. If that number was read or typed even slightly wrong, the code that comes back belongs to a different radio. That is what happens in nearly every refused code we look at. Over the last six months we corrected the serial on 887 orders, and more than 8 in 10 of them ended with a working code.
These are the nine mistakes we fix most, starting with the most common.
| Mistake | What to check |
|---|---|
| 1. The VIN went in instead of the serial | Does your make use the radio serial? Most do. |
| 2. The radio is not the original | A VIN code only fits the radio the car was built with. |
| 3. A part or device number went in | The serial has its own line on the label or screen. |
| 4. One character misread | O and 0, I and 1, S and 5, B and 8. |
| 5. A character missed or doubled | Count the characters on the label and in your order. |
| 6. Extra text around the serial | Leave out prefixes and the numbers under the barcode. |
| 7. The wrong unit | Read the label of the unit asking for the code. |
| 8. The right code, entered the wrong way | Each make has its own button method and confirm step. |
| 9. Locked out, or the second code not tried | Wait out the lock, and read both codes in the email. |
1. The VIN went in where the radio wanted its serial
This is the one we correct most often. The VIN is the car's 17 character number from the windscreen or the logbook, and it feels like the obvious thing to give. For most makes it is the wrong number. The code belongs to the radio, so it comes from the radio's own serial.
Honda is where we correct it most. On most Honda radios you can read the serial without taking anything apart: hold buttons 1 and 6 with the radio on, and the screen shows a U number and an L number. When a Honda code from a VIN order is refused, that serial is what we decode it again from.
Renault, Dacia and the newer Suzuki SLN touchscreens are the exceptions, because their codes can come from the VIN, as long as the radio is the original one (more on that next). Our VIN or serial number guide lists which number each make needs.
2. The radio is not the one the car was built with
A code from the VIN is the code for the radio the car left the factory with. If that radio has been swapped, by a previous owner or a breaker's yard, the VIN code will be refused every time, however carefully you type it. Nothing is wrong with the code. It is simply for a radio that is no longer in the car.
It is worth asking yourself whether the radio could have been changed: a car bought used with a history you do not know, or a radio fitted after a fault or a break in.
The answer is the radio's own serial, from the label on its casing. On a Renault that is a four character code, one letter and then three digits, sometimes in a box marked Security or at the end of a longer barcode line. Send us that and we decode it from the radio itself. The original radio section of our VIN guide has more on this.
3. A part, device or model number went in as the serial
Radio labels carry several numbers, and the biggest one is rarely the serial. On the VW label at the top of this page, 5K0035156 across the top is the part number. It is the same on thousands of radios, so it cannot give a code. The serial is the line beneath it that starts VWZ. VW serials start VWZ, Audi AUZ, Skoda SKZ and SEAT SEZ.
Nissan Connect radios show three things together: the serial, a device number and a date. The device number starts 7612830 and is the longer of the two, which is why it gets typed in the serial box. Your order needs all three, each in its own place.
If the number you have looks like a part number, our guide to where to find the radio serial shows the difference make by make.
4. One character misread: O and 0, I and 1, S and 5
Labels are small, often worn, and printed in fonts where some letters and numbers look almost the same. One wrong character gives a different serial, and a different serial gives a code for somebody else's radio.
The pairs we correct most:
- O and 0. It is nearly always a zero. Fewer than 1 in 100 of the serials we decode has a letter O in it, and a VIN never does.
- I and 1. A VIN never uses the letter I either. On VW and Skoda labels the capital I and the number 1 look almost identical, so check those first.
- S and 5, B and 8, G and 6, Z and 2. Compare the doubtful character with others on the same label that you are sure of.
Some makes help you here. A Renault four character serial is one letter and then three digits, so the first character is a letter and the other three are numbers. If you still cannot tell, send us a clear photo of the label. Reading worn labels is a big part of what we do every day.
5. A character missed out or typed twice
Long serials made of letters and numbers are easy to slip on, especially when you are reading from a label at an angle behind the dashboard. We see a missed character almost as often as a misread one, and on VW serials it is the most common slip of all.
The check takes ten seconds. Count the characters on the label, then count the characters in the serial on your order confirmation. If they differ, that is your answer. Look out for repeated runs like 000 or 111, where it is easy to type one too many or one too few.
6. Text or barcode digits typed in with the serial
The serial is often printed as part of a longer line, and the rest of the line gets typed in with it.
- Ford Sony radios show a line starting SOCD when you hold 1 and 6. Only the V and the six digits after it are the serial.
- Honda Clarion labels often print a line that starts with CLA and a few letters. The serial is the 8 digits at the end of that line.
- VW, Audi, Skoda and SEAT labels print the serial next to a barcode, and the digits under the barcode are not part of it. Stop where the serial line ends.
Leave out stars, spaces and words like S/N or Serial too. If you are not sure where the serial starts and stops, a photo settles it.
7. The label or screen of the wrong unit
Some cars have more than one box behind the dashboard: the radio, a navigation unit, sometimes an amplifier or a CD changer. Each has its own label and its own serial. A code made from the navigation unit's serial will not unlock the radio, and the other way round.
Skoda shows the difference in the serial itself. Radio and navigation serials both start SKZ, but on a navigation unit the sixth character is a 7. Whatever the make, the number you need is on the unit whose screen is asking for the code. If you have taken a unit out and are not sure which it is, send us a photo of the front and the label.
8. The right code, entered the wrong way
Sometimes the serial is perfect and the code is right, and it still does not go in. VW, Honda and Fiat owners hit this most. Each make, and often each radio, has its own way of entering the digits and a confirm step at the end. Miss the confirm, or press a button one time too many on a digit, and the radio treats it as a wrong code.
When people send us a video of the code being entered, we often see the right digits go in and then no confirm press at the end. So before you try again:
9. Locked out, or the second code not tried
If the screen says SAFE, LOCKED, WAIT or ERR, the radio is not refusing your code. It is not taking any code at the moment, because of earlier wrong entries. Leave the ignition and the radio switched on until it clears, then enter the code once. Our lockout screens guide gives the wait for each make.
Lock words. None of them means the code is wrong.
Read the code email again too. Some orders come back with two codes. Where they are numbered, try code 1 first and use code 2 if the radio does not accept code 1. On a Honda the two are labelled radio code and navigation code. The radio code goes into the radio, and the navigation code is only for the navigation unit, if your car has one.
Still refused? Send us these
If you have been through the nine and the code still will not go in, contact us on chat or reply to your code email. We investigate every refused code at no extra charge, and all codes are guaranteed. To sort it in one go, send:
- A clear photo of the radio's label, or of the screen showing the serial.
- A photo or short video of the screen when the code goes in.
- Your order number, and whether the radio is the one the car was built with, if you know.
Once the right serial is on your order, we decode it again. Keep the working code with the car's documents. It belongs to the radio and never changes, so the next battery change takes a minute. No code yet? Use the button below to choose your make.
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Do I type a zero or the letter O?
Nearly always a zero. Fewer than 1 in 100 of the serials we decode contains a letter O, and a VIN never uses one. If the number you have does not start the way your make's page shows, it may be a part number rather than the serial, so send us a photo of the label and we will read it for you.
I have triple checked the serial on the back of the radio and the code is still refused.
Then check two things. First, that the number is the serial and not a part number printed on the same label. Second, if you ordered with the VIN, that the radio is the original one for the car. Then send us a photo of the label and a photo or video of the screen as the code goes in, and we will look into it at no extra charge.
My code is not working. Is it because I am in the US?
No. Where you are has no effect on the code. It is worked out from the radio's serial only, so the same radio has the same code in any country. A refused code almost always comes down to the serial or the way the code was entered.
This is not the original radio. Will the code still work?
Not if it came from the car's VIN. A VIN code fits the radio the car was built with. For a replacement radio we need the serial from its own label, and we decode it from that.
What if the code does not work? Do I get my money back?
Contact us and we will investigate at no extra charge. All codes are guaranteed. Most refused codes come down to one of the mistakes on this page, so a photo of the label and the screen is the quickest way to get the radio working.
