Is this a super expensive job to fix? Central locking on a 2008 Ford Ka is broken!! Any rough ideas how much it'll cost. (asking for a friend who is a new driver and nervous about garages)

Depends on what went bad inside. Motor, wires, key fob itself...

True. Sorry i didn't ask her specifics and should have

Go to a couple of garages and see what they say. Some will charge a bomb others are decent and will charge fairly!

try changing battery in remote fob first.

If motor it's not expensive and if you're not worried about possibility of it failing again you can take a chance at scrap yard. With little DIY skills you can replace it yourself. If there is no reaction at all I'd check fob battery first.
Does it work when she is turning the key in lock or it doesn't work at all?

she's not bought it yet. She loves it and from what i know it'll be an ideal first car. A local garage wants £450 ono for the car. Must admit I'm pretty useless at this type of thing myself and always buy nearly new cars in the hope they run fine. Ford's tend to be ok runners though so sounds ok. Thanks for your advice everyone

my drivers door wouldn't open with fob it was a pain in the bum leaning over from passengers side so went to local garage who I trust they charged £200 for new door motor and £70 labour

I doubt it'll be an expensive fix.

Could just be a blown fuse, A broken wire between the door.

Motor could be faulty or one of the door locks, Might only require a bit of lubrication etc..

If it needs a new motor it will be much cheaper to get one from a local scrapyard or ebay.

I would guess the repair would be an hours labour at most + price of parts

Quick look on Ebay and you can get a second hand door lock for less than £20

Would the local garage that's selling it not do the repair for free as part of the deal?

I suspect at £450 they probably can't be bothered as they'll not be making much profit but you never know.

Might be better to live without central locking if it'll lock manually?.

why not ask an auto electrician?

2008 car for £450? Looks too cheap to be true to be honest. Unless it have 500 000 miles already done.
Just my opinion.

It's a Ford Ka. General advice is to run a mile. These things rot like there is no tomorrow even 2008 ones. Check all around the fuel filler for signs of rust repair.

Does it lock and unlock without central locking? Unless you can DIY it I would leave it as is and not throw money at it. If she must have it leave it for 6 months so at least you know of no other major issues before spending out to get it fixed.

If she is buying from a garage get them to fix it first.

paul123edwards

It's a Ford Ka. General advice is to run a mile. These things rot like … It's a Ford Ka. General advice is to run a mile. These things rot like there is no tomorrow even 2008 ones. Check all around the fuel filler for signs of rust repair.Does it lock and unlock without central locking? Unless you can DIY it I would leave it as is and not throw money at it. If she must have it leave it for 6 months so at least you know of no other major issues before spending out to get it fixed.Read lessRead more

That's what I think too. Car is not that old to cost £450 only. There have to be something more than just central lock problem.

Worth £900 on what car, probably just trying to get rid of it. Is a little underpriced but quite a few at £500 on Auto trader around 2007/2008. K last of the older shape.
(edited)

mattinhull

my drivers door wouldn't open with fob it was a pain in the bum leaning … my drivers door wouldn't open with fob it was a pain in the bum leaning over from passengers side so went to local garage who I trust they charged £200 for new door motor and £70 labourRead lessRead more

What car was this for?