Dealer-purchased 147 came with just one key?

Hi guys

I recently purchased an 05-plate 147 from my local Alfa dealer and although the car is fantastic, it only came with one key fob. Being from a dealer I never even thought about it before, I just assumed it would come with 2. When I mentioned it to them they said if the car only had one key then that's how it was sold - surely I should have been told about this? I'm sorry to moan, but I've heard replacements are very expensive, and if I lose this one key, I'll be screwed! Anyone have any ideas as to where I stand with the dealer on this one? And if I can get a spare one ordered?

Thanks in advance. Great forum.

doubt you have a come-back - but agree its not good practice.

expect £200 ish for a proper new key (back to the robbing dealer if you want it)

You also need the key code which any dealer can source if you present the log book. Costs £15-£20'ish. The key then needs programming to your car. This can only be done by someone with the Alfa Examiner computer. You could try Peak Alfa and see if they can help - PeakAlfa.co.uk

If it was second hand its possible the previous owner may still have the spare key - give them a call and find out, may save a few hundred notes.

But presumably in the Alfa Approved small print theres something about customer satisfaction and provinding all the original equipment with the car.

Thanks a lot guys. Rick mentioned the key card - well I mentioned this as well, as i don't have it, and they said they weren't allowed to provide used cars with it - something to do with the insurance. Thus, this made me even more wary about only have the one key! They said they'd chase it up with the previous owner but never got back to me. I'm I glad I was prepared for this service! :-)

Originally Posted by Ellaura

Thanks a lot guys. Rick mentioned the key card - well I mentioned this as well, as i don't have it, and they said they weren't allowed to provide used cars with it - something to do with the insurance.

This is normal in the UK. New Alfas are not supplied with the key codes because we're not responsible enough to look after them!!

It's an easy job to get them though, and you get a print out with all codes relevant to your car on it. I had to do this on our 147 as although it came with two keys, only one worked....

Thanks for the info. So do you think I'm wasting my time trying to get the dealer to do this for me? - or better still, provide another key? I need to take the car back to get the rear washer working, so I can go armed with this knowledge now thanks.

Was the car part of the Alfa approved used car scheme? If so get back to the dealer and demand a replacement key!

What a load of b*****ks. You have rights under the consumer act.

I take it you bought the car with warranty etc and not sold as seen and that you bought it fairly recently. If so, say it is not acceptable to be given only one key.

I bought a car from a dealer that was twice as old as yours and as it was part of the alfa approved scheme it had to meet certain criteria. This included a full check on the car and ALL keys etc.

If you ask me, they are trying it on. Get back there and demand satisfaction.

If however it is not part of the approved scheme and you did buy it 'as seen' then you may struggle to get anything out of them.

I broke one of my keys in the door lock once and went to a specialist who got a replacement and had it programmed for the car. Cost about £50 I seem to recall.

Good luck.

Welcome


Moved to 147 Tech Lounge

Not sure where you stand legally, but having bought my 147 with only one key which subsequently failed, I insisted when I bought my other car that it had 2 keys or I wouldn't buy the car, but this was agreed before we shook on the deal. I don't think you'll get far in trying to claim from the garage unless you were told it had 2 keys

Originally Posted by MariusGTV

Was the car part of the Alfa approved used car scheme? If so get back to the dealer and demand a replacement key!

What a load of b*****ks. You have rights under the consumer act.

I take it you bought the car with warranty etc and not sold as seen and that you bought it fairly recently. If so, say it is not acceptable to be given only one key.

I bought a car from a dealer that was twice as old as yours and as it was part of the alfa approved scheme it had to meet certain criteria. This included a full check on the car and ALL keys etc.

If you ask me, they are trying it on. Get back there and demand satisfaction.

If however it is not part of the approved scheme and you did buy it 'as seen' then you may struggle to get anything out of them.

I broke one of my keys in the door lock once and went to a specialist who got a replacement and had it programmed for the car. Cost about £50 I seem to recall.

Good luck.

Yes the car is still under warranty until June, and I am within their 30-day 'no quibble' period, so I assume the car is part of the 'approved' scheme - especially being a proper Alfa dealer. If I don't have any luck with the dealer on the matter, do you know if I can take it to a higher level by contacting Alfa head office or something? Cheers.

If you offered a car to trade with one key I am damn sure they would knock you down in price because of it!

There is also an insurance implication with only having one key.

Ask them to delete all the previous keys from the system and then just add yours, that way if someone has the old key, it will no longer start the car.

I had a similar situation with the now defunct (for Alfa) Stratstone. Said they must have 'accidentally' thrown the spare key away! They did offer to pay for a replacement though - before eventually finding the key they had thrown away.

Suggest you get on to ARUK. They might chip in with the cost.

Guys just to update you all, after writing a loong letter to ARUK, there is finally some progress. The dealer is paying half and ARUK is paying the other half towards the cost of the missing key! The dealer was absolutely useless (Autoworld Chesterfield) but head office couldn't be more helpful. Just goes to show with a little effort you can kick some butt!