Replacing a lost fob (electronic car key)

Most cars manufactured in the last few years don't have the type metal key we grew up with -- the kind you could get replaced for about a buck.

These days a car has a battery powered fob which allows the car to be started with the press of a button as long as the fob is on or about the driver's person. So, have you ever tried to replace one of those doodads?

I lost one last year and sought to replace it. A local locksmith said he had never done one, so I went back to the car dealer where I bought the car. And here's what it cost:

Transmitter: $208.68
valet key: $75.90
freight: $14.00
tax: $23.48
reprogramming fee: $110.00
Grand total: $432.06

I was worried that someone might find the one I lost and eventually locate my car in a parking lot by sounding the horn with the panic button. Not to worry.  I was told by a service rep at the dealership that they wouldn't simply reprogram the new fob, they would reprogram the new fob, my spare fob and the car so that the old fob would be useless.

Sounded great, and I forked over the money to have it done.

Lo and behold, some months later I found the lost fob in a seldom used shoe on the closet floor. Must have fallen out of my hand the day I lost it. And sure enough, the electronic component didn't work. No car start, no horn honk, no door unlock, etc.

So I made an appointment with the dealer to have the old one reprogrammed to match the other two. The night before my appointment I realized that I should probably replace the battery in the old fob as it would probably be cheaper to buy one at the store than at the car dealer. Once the battery was replaced I tried it again. And presto, it worked perfectly!

The doors unlocked, the horn honked, the car started, and it did all the things the new one did. If I had lost it in the city and a potential car thief found it, my car would have been like a full wallet in a Walmart parking lot. Imagine trying to explain that to the insurance company.

So what did we learn from this? First, keep a better grip on the key. Second, a healthy dose of skepticism is never a bad thing when dealing with car dealerships and others (cough -- politicians -- cough).

Comments

[elena]

Questo e' il blog giusto per tutti coloro che vogliono capire qualcosa su questo argomento. Trovo quasi difficile discutere con te (cosa che però in realta' vorrei... haha). Avete sicuramente dato nuova vita a un tema di cui si e' parlato per anni. Grandi cose, semplicemente fantastico!