Got my key wet and cannot access the car

[Kratos47]

Hey folks,

So I went awat the weekend for a spot of kitesurfing and was out in the water for about 30mins when i realized I still had my car key in the pocket on my boardshorts. I immedialtley opened the key up and removed the battrey in the hope it would dry out and work.

Got back to my car and it would not open at all. The car was parked on the beach and the tide was coming in so as you could imagine I was getting a tad nervous.

Called my dealer who said basically I was screwed and there was no was I could get into my car as it's electronic entry only. Or is it?
I then called VW breakdown centre and much to my delight there was a very simple solution.

I'm sure this has already been mentioned else where but quick search of the topics did not show it so I thought I would just post and let you know.

So heres what I was told...... Basically go to the drivers door and have a close look at the underside of the handle. There you will see a little slot on the non moving part of the door handle. Pop your key into that hole and pull the door handle as if you were opening the door. This non moving part of plastic will pop off revealing a keyhole and hey presto you in.

Sorry if this is common knowledge but wanted to share just incase.

[stuaz]

Some people know it, but not many people do. So not that bad to post it!

Glad you got in before the tide came in!!

[ZephyR]

Taking the battery out may have made things worse. Usually with remotes they have a memory of about a minute or so which allows you to change the battery without losing its settings / sync with the car. Taking the battery out for longer would probably render it useless until reprogrammed by a dealer.
Yep the hidden key hole is very useful no know about for emergencies - but is not widely known about.

[RW1]

Manual Unlocking and locking of doors is covered in detail in Handbook 3.2 Tips and Maintenance. Look up Manual Locking - Doors in the index.

Synchronising the key fobs to the Scirocco is covered in Handbook 3.1 Controls and Equipment. Look up Remote Control Key - Synchronising in the index. May be worth trying the sequence written.

I think the key fob will synchronise as it is "known" to the car's security system. Only if the fob is new to the car does it need to be synchronised by the dealer into the car's immobiliser memory.

Haven't listed page numbers as there are different pagination of manuals for different build periods.

C.

[Kratos47]

Once I got into the car and replaced the battery the remote locking didn't work straight away. As soon as I placed the key into the ignition and started it up and then tried to lock the car after it seemed to work. Has been fine since too.

[ayc1985]

MY Key suddenly didnt open the door on saturday gone, but the light was still beeping red. I had to open it manually and eventually the key works. Its weird but least its solved.

[Gilez]

You might find you get problems in the future with corrosion from the sea water. For starters, I would definitely get a new battery for it, incase it starts to corrode.