# How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime



## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

The certification standards applicable to new cars sold in the United States require that the car sound an aural warning if the driver door is open and the key has not been removed from the ignition switch. This requirement was introduced in the 1970s. The objective is to reduce auto theft resulting from the driver leaving the key in the ignition, either intentionally or accidentally. A vehicle will still pass all applicable motor vehicle safety standards requirements _after delivery to the first customer_ if this chime is disabled or otherwise inoperative - the legal requirement only states that the warning function is present on the car at the time it is manufactured or imported.
Because Volkswagen treats Canada and America as one single sales region, we in Canada 'benefit' from this warning chime as well. I have never liked these chimes, I think they are a nuisance. In the case of a Phaeton that is equipped with Keyless Entry (option code 4F6), the key in ignition chime is especially useless, because the car will not allow you to lock the exterior doors if there is an ignition key in the passenger cabin - it doesn't matter if it is in the ignition switch, in your jacket pocket on the back seat, or on the floor, if there is a key inside the cabin, you can't lock the doors of the car.
So - I decided it was time to get rid of this chime. Like almost everything else, this is accomplished by software coding, using either a VAG 5051 or 5052 programming tool (your dealer will have these), or using VAG-COM software running on a laptop computer (you can buy this yourself).
I provided a fairly detailed explanation of how programming is done in the post I made describing how to get rid of the seat belt warning message and chime (http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1649757), so I won't repeat all that here. Getting rid of the key in ignition chime is almost exactly the same process, word for word, except that instead of changing the second digit of the 5 digit grouping in Controller Adjustment group 17 - Instrument Cluster, you change the third digit of the 5 digit grouping. The third digit sets the country of operation code.
Volkswagen offers 7 possible choices for country (or region) of operation. The choices are listed below, prefixed with the appropriate digit. 
*1* - Europe
_Text and symbology on displays conforms to EU norms (see photo below), no door warning chime. Button to the right of the headlight switch controls the rear foglights._
*2* - USA
_Text and symbology on displays conforms to American norms, door warning chime is operative. All references to 'gallons' refer to an American gallon (3.78 liters). The button to the right of the headlight switch controls the 'valet lockout' function for the trunk._
*3* - Canada
_Same as USA, except that the default units of measure are metric._
*4* - Great Britain
_Same as Europe, except that default units of measure conform to what is used in the UK. References to 'gallons' refer to an Imperial gallon (4.54 liters). The button to the right of the headlight switch controls the rear foglights._
*5* - Japan
*6* - Saudi Arabia 
_Same as Europe, except that the speedometer chimes at or above 130 km/h._
*7* - Australia
When I picked up my car from my (Canadian) dealer, Group 17, Function 10 was set to *07321*. The 3 in the middle position indicates that Canada was set as the country of operation. I just changed the 3 to a 1, indicating Europe, and the key in ignition chime disappeared. For what it's worth, the whole process on the Phaeton is exactly the same as the same process on my Golf. Same actions, same number codes, same results.
As far as I can tell, changing the country of operation setting does not affect anything else on the car other than the text and symbology of the instrument cluster display, and the operation of the key in ignition chime. It does not, for example, get rid of the need to acknowledge and dismiss the myriad of legal warnings that appear on the infotainment system on Phaetons that are shipped to North America. It is possible that there is another coding function - likely in the navigation group, which is group 37 - that controls this. It is also possible (though I hope this is not so) that the navigation system is hard-coded such that when a North American CD is in use, legal warnings then appear.
The default unit of measures may switch to the European norms (kilometers, liters) when you change the country code. But, you have the ability to change back to American units of measure by making the appropriate selections from the "Settings" button on the infotainment system (Settings / Other Functions / Units of Measure). Whether you then get Imperial or American gallons in your MPG figures, I don't know.
Michael
*PS:* If you plan on asking your dealer to make this change for you, rather than doing it yourself, please be considerate about how and when you ask. If you make the request at the same time you drop the car off for regular, scheduled service, it only takes the technician about 30 seconds to make the change, because he or she will already have the 5051 or 5052 hooked up to check for fault codes.
If you take the car into the dealer for the sole purpose of having this change made, it will take the technician about half an hour (at least) to make the change - they have to do the following:
1) Put seat covers and floormat covers in the car.
2) Bring it inside to their workstation.
3) Get the programming tool, boot it up, hook it up.
4) Check for the presence of any fault codes - and rectify these - before making the programming change. This involves about a 10 minute polling process, plus taking the 5051 or 5052 back to where the printer is to print out the 6 or 7 page report.
5) Change the country code digit. (the 30 second part of the work)
6) Double-check that everything works OK.
7) Disconnect the programmer, roll it back to where it is stored.
8) Take your car outside.
9) Remove the seatcovers and floormats.
What I am trying to say here is that the technicians, who are usually paid on a flat rate basis (same as a consultant or contractor), will use up at least half an hour of their time to do a job that might only be listed in the flat rate book as paying for 1/10th of an hour of work. If the dealership does the work for you "free", you can bet that the technician did the work "free" also. No-one minds doing 30 seconds of work (step 5) free, but it is discourteous and inappropriate to ask a technician to do half an hour of work either for free, or for 6 minutes of pay as listed in the flat rate book.
*Instrument Cluster with Country Code set to 1 (Europe)*


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## spockcat (Jun 5, 2003)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (PanEuropean)*

Sounds just like the Touareg settings: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1204299


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (spockcat)*

Hi Sprockat:
Hey, great to see you in the Phaeton forum - your expertise is much appreciated!
The coding process for getting rid of the 'key in ignigion' chime is exactly the same as the process for getting rid of the chime in the Touareg - but one significant difference is that changing the coding in group 17 on the Phaeton has no effect on the navigation system acceptance screen, nor does it affect frequency spacing on the AM and FM radio. 
I'm still trying to figure out how to get rid of the nav acceptance screen. I think what I will do is have my Swiss dealer run a full set of self-diagnostic tests on a Swiss W12, then compare the coding differences with my Canadian W12. It will be a few weeks before I get back to CH, though.
PanEuropean


_Modified by PanEuropean at 7:02 PM 10-24-2004_


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## spockcat (Jun 5, 2003)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (PanEuropean)*


_Quote, originally posted by *PanEuropean* »_I think what I will do is have my Swiss dealer run a full set of self-diagnostic tests on a Swiss W12, then compare the coding differences with my Canadian W12. It will be a few weeks before I get back to CH, though.
PanEuropean


While you are there, can you ask him to run a scan on some Touaregs too, email me the codes and what options each vehicle has. We are actively looking for Euro Touareg codes to see what differences exist.


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (spockcat)*

OK, will inquire about that, but no promises. Shop labour is USD $100 an hour in Switzerland, and I am assuming I will be paying for half an hour of labour in order to get the W12 scanned.
Perhaps what I will do is ask the technician to save for me duplicate printouts of any full scans he does of Phaetons (and Touaregs).
Michael


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## spockcat (Jun 5, 2003)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (PanEuropean)*

Takes about 5 minutes with a VAGCOM. 
I should open a shop just to scan VWs.


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (spockcat)*

Sure, I could do the scan in 5 minutes too (on my own car) - but it is not considered 'PC' in Switzerland to go into someone's showroom and plug your laptop and hex cable into their new Phaeton - it kind of makes the sales staff anxious.








So, in order to keep my welcome up whenever I need this kind of information, I just offer to pay for it. Sometimes they charge me, sometimes they just tell me to come back a few days later, and the printout is ready, free of charge.
Michael


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

*Re: How to get rid of the*

*Some additional important information - please read before changing any coding...*
Please be aware that if you change the coding of a North American Phaeton from either Canada or USA to Europe, for the purpose of getting rid of the key in ignition chime, you will also disable the 'valet lock' function that is provided by the button on the right side of the headlight switch.
This consequence arises because only North American Phaetons have this valet lock feature. It's not really a feature - the truth is, that button is used to control the rear foglight on Phaetons sold in the rest of the world (ROW). North American Phaetons don't have a rear foglight, and VW didn't want to have a blank plate there, so, someone dreamed up the valet lock function to provide a use for that button.
There is more detail about this ROW spec light switch at this post: Front Fog Lights, European Light Switch, Coding of Phaeton Lighting, and more detail about enabling rear foglight operation (a very expensive modification) at this post: Enabling (or retrofitting) a rear foglight on a North American Phaeton.
Michael
*Phaeton Light Switch - Rest of World (outside Canada and USA)*


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (PanEuropean)*

One further note regarding changing the 'country code' of the Phaeton:
It is possible that if you change the country code from Canada or USA to Europe, the car will calculate fuel mileage using Imperial gallons as the unit of volumetric measure, rather than American gallons. An Imperial gallon is 1.2 times more volume than an American gallon. This would result in a fuel mileage calculation that suggests your fuel economy (MPG) is actually 1.2 times better than actual, if you assumed the calculation was being done based on the American gallon unit of measure.
We haven't determined "for sure" if this happens or not, however, after recoding two cars from USA to Europe at a recent GTG, both owners reported that mileage reported on the trip computer jumped by about 20% - in other words, the car was burning fewer 'gallons of fuel' than it was before.
So - head's up. If someone ever does do the homework and figure this one out, please post the results here - many thanks in advance.
Michael


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

*Re: How to get rid of the "Key in Ignition" warning chime (PanEuropean)*

*Archival Note:* Related post, with more information about the 'Imperial vs. American' gallon issue - looks like (4 years later) it can now be confirmed that switching the country of operation to Europe changes the definition of a gallon from a US gallon to an Imperial gallon.
I am getting 25.3 MPG in the Highway, WOW this car is efficient (Imperial or American gallon?)


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## ct boy (Jun 18, 2010)

Do I read this thread correctly in that there is no way to disable the "key in ignition" chime while still having both the fuel displayed in US gallons and distance measured in miles, not kilometers?


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## DynomiteTT (Jan 10, 2007)

I believe put it in uk, no chime. imperial gallons but still Mph. Car is in the shop right now or i would go check


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## Chris Milnes (Nov 4, 2008)

Bad news, we also have the seat belt warning chime in the UK. 

There is a way, as the first owner of my W12 had it disabled, and all functions remained in MPH. 

Unfortuantely car was returned to me from VW with the chime back on after the electronic systems in my car were reprogrammed over the interweb by chaps in Dresden, attempting to overcome what turned out to be a hardware issue with a replacement J523 unit (control unit / monitor in dash).

As far as I am aware, seat belt warning chime is EU wide. I asume you need to change the code to a country outside the EU which uses MPH units rather than KM? Anyone?

Chris


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## VWGlf00GL (Feb 14, 2005)

*Chimes..*

Hi Guys!

I had my chimes disabled:

Seat Belt
Key In Ignition

I even changed the CRUISE test a speedometer looking icon on the instrument cluster (as seen above)..

My car still reads MPH/MPG.. I am pretty sure you can change the miles calculation value directly from the Infotainment in the "Settings" screen (after you've setup all your chimes preferences from VAG-COM). 

Thanks,

Adrian


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## ct boy (Jun 18, 2010)

Adrian

Good to hear. Did you change your country code with vag-com to disable the key in ignition chime? If so, to what country/code? I assume you did that and then went back later to adjust everything to miles/ US gallons throught the infotainment system (non vag-com). Could you give me a little more detail on how you accomplished this?

Thanks


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## ct boy (Jun 18, 2010)

I noticed that member fly4food changed his address 17 coding to 0005021. The number fourth from the right was changed from 7 to 5 to disable the seat belt chime. Interestingly, he changed the country code (third number from right) to 0--possibly indicating no specific country. He claims this has disabled his "key in ignition chime" but with no ill effects. Is this the answer for all US Phaeton owners who want to preserve our non-metric (miles, US gallons) display? Could there be any unforseen consequences? Has this been covered in a past thread?


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## invisiblewave (Sep 22, 2008)

ct boy said:


> Adrian
> 
> Good to hear. Did you change your country code with vag-com to disable the key in ignition chime? If so, to what country/code? I assume you did that and then went back later to adjust everything to miles/ US gallons throught the infotainment system (non vag-com). Could you give me a little more detail on how you accomplished this?
> 
> Thanks


I'm not Adrian, but I don't suppose he'll mind! I changed controller 17 from 0007221 to 0005121. That removed the seatbelt and key warning chimes and didn't have any effect on the imperial/metric settings.


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## VWGlf00GL (Feb 14, 2005)

*Thanks guys..*

Thanks for providing the codes for me.. My car is in storage and I don't access her that much, only when I need to.. I don't mind at all. 

Have a great rest of the week.

- Adrian


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## 30mpg (Mar 30, 2008)

*loving life*

thanks guys...information here was very helpful. my Phaeton is now happily driving in Europe. Or so she thinks.


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## Rowayton (May 29, 2004)

ct boy said:


> Do I read this thread correctly in that there is no way to disable the "key in ignition" chime while still having both the fuel displayed in US gallons and distance measured in miles, not kilometers?


 Brings up a question or two. The first is really not related but does the European coding alter the cars speedometer and odometer as it does the metric to US mile scales for fuel economy and would a code change to '0' possibly change my European light switches added control functionality (my Phaeton is coded European). As a side ha ha, I love when someone punches up my average miles per gallon read out (metric) and is totally shocked to see how 'thrifty' my Phaeton is with a gallon of fuel. 
Ron


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

ct boy said:


> Do I read this thread correctly in that there is no way to disable the "key in ignition" chime while still having both the fuel displayed in US gallons and distance measured in miles, not kilometers?


 You have not quite read it correctly, you are missing a nuance.

When you change the country code away from USA to Europe, for the purpose of getting rid of the key in ignition chime, 'gallons' are now considered to be Imperial gallons (the kind of gallon used in parts of Europe, such as the UK), not American gallons (a unit of measure exclusive to the USA). This change is inevitable.

However - although the unit of distance measure may switch over to kilometers, from miles, you can easily select miles for use as your unit of display by just going to the preferences section of the big screen in between the two front seats and re-selecting miles. That change is not inevitable.

But - all display of MPG will be based on miles per Imperial gallon, not per American gallon.

Michael


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

Photos re-hosted.

Michael


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