Discovery radio security code..

[Green300tdi]

Hi all, been lurking about on here for a while but am in need of a spot of help/advice,

I purchased my bargain ebay find, a N/96 300Tdi Disco at the start of the year, always fancied one but had to convince the Mrs they were not too big and she could drive one as it would be the replacment family run about, dispite her reservations about being to big and heavy and hard to drive etc..and guess what ? she loves it...could have had one years ago.

Anyway, dispite its minimal history and relatively cheap purchase price its been 100% reliable so far , even been on hols in it.

had the cambelt done a precaution and i changed the water pump/belt/tensioner for peace of mind, and its been good fun.

Reasonably easy to work on compared with the last moden euro box however. when i got it the battery was a bit sluggish, and the radio code was unknown, my local Land Rover dealers who were very helpful and looked up the radio/immob and alarm codes for me,

Last week and long over due the battery finally expired it seems to have sucked all the power out the radio too! after fitting a new battery like a **** i entered the wrong radio code...

i could have sworn it war right but was too lazy to go and look,

i removed the radio and left it out the car to discharge the internal memory but on replacment all i get is 'SECURITY' on the LCD display, when i press the BND button and enter the 'correct' code nothing happens, is there some combination to reset the unit so i can re-enter my code or is it done for now?

I tried the obvious like alarming the car etc incase the ecu 'talks to the radio? but to no avail,

I have a newer cd player i could fit in its place but i like the original one and the volume controls by the steering wheel they are handy,

anyone have previous experience of this, or do i have to go to the dealers and beg for help.

cheers in advance

Chris.

(radio is the factory original radio/cassette player for a 96/Nreg)

[cipx2]

If now it's in SECURITY mode then turn the ignition key on AUX and leave it like that for a couple of hours (check it time to time, it might switch sooner than 2 hours). It will switch to code entry mode.

If no luck, repeat disconnecting the radio from power overnight (or disconnect the battery), reconnect the power/battery and then switch ignition on AUX for another couple of hours.

[sotal]

It's possible that a previous owner replaced the unit with a matching one when theirs broke, so the code that LR gave you could be incorrect.

I didn't have my code when I got my disco, but I found a site on the web which let me post the serial number on the radio and they post back with security code. It was free but I had to wait a few days for the code to be posted back, worked perfectly.

Once I got it working, I only had it in a day or two before I took it out and put a decent one in, the volume buttons on the dash are next to useless as they are hidden behind the steering wheel, it's much easier to change the volume on the head unit itself!

[Green300tdi]

thanks for the quick replies, i will try the aux position suggestion prob at weekend when i can be around it to check etc,

The code L R dealers gave me does work ok, its the correct one, its just that i entered it incorrectly.

thanks again,

i'll let you know how it goes cheers.

Chris.

[sotal]

The code L R dealers gave me does work ok, its the correct one, its just that i entered it incorrectly.

How do you know?

[Green300tdi]

How do you know?

I know its the correct code as i used it straight away as soon as the dealers gave it to me back in Feb,and the radio has been working for 6 months until the battery went flat,

i entered 1211 and the real code was 2411 dunno why i had thsat number in my mind as the right one but i was wrong,

anyway, the good news is, i did the key to aux position thing and the security message changed to radio code in just over an hour, correct code all entered and i now hear music instead of wife's nagging!

Many thanks for the prompt replies and excellent advice,

cheers

Chris.

[rovernaut]

I know its the correct code as i used it straight away as soon as the dealers gave it to me back in Feb,and the radio has been working for 6 months until the battery went flat,

i entered 1211 and the real code was 2411 dunno why i had thsat number in my mind as the right one but i was wrong,

anyway, the good news is, i did the key to aux position thing and the security message changed to radio code in just over an hour, correct code all entered and i now hear music instead of wife's nagging!

Many thanks for the prompt replies and excellent advice,

cheers

Chris.

Just disconnect the battery again leave it overnight, it will reset itself so you can enter the code correctly this time.

[ClintClint]

Hi I also have a 1996 disco. The radio displays security. I have tried all of the above with no joy. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. 

[teabag]

On 2/7/2023 at 6:34 PM, ClintClint said:

Hi I also have a 1996 disco. The radio displays security. I have tried all of the above with no joy. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. 

Well there were two Phillips head units around that time, one with an LCD display which will display CODE  and one without LCD and will display CODE IN,  so none display SECURITY. So what head unit do u have.?

The attachment shows the procure for the LCD unit which also controls a 6 disc CD player and which my 97 disco had when left the factory, the  copy i’ve taken of whats stated in the owners handbook. I now have a Pioneer system fitted and is far superior to the Philips kit.

Forget the unplugged overnight of placing the unit in a fridge… it doesn’t work, the head unit needs power to unlock after the delay, also note the ldelay duration doubles each time a wrong code is entered so try and not make an error.

[ClintClint]

Thanks. Now got it working.