Yes, it bothers you more than it should. GM vehicles at least will let you turn off the confirming “beep” on locking. In addition, you can lock the car by having the fob nearby and pushing the button on the car door handle and not get any beep. The beep makes sense (for me) for an autonomous action (I walk away and the car automatically locks). If your vehicle doesn’t allow this to be turned off (I was reading yesterday this exact complaint about the Prius) then maybe you bought the wrong vehicle.
However, you are right about the many, many confirmation beeps for other items, especially when you can see the result or feel it through feedback.
@jcbeckman Yup, I turned it off in my 2008 Dodge truck. The horn was loud enough that it bothered me each time I did the lock with the remote, and even worse, when someone walks away from their car and their car does the honk right when I’m walking buy it, I’m thinking, man, what an asshole!
So both because I hated and and I didn’t want to be an asshole (or at least no more so than I already was,) I turned it off. Luckily on that model I could do it myself from a settings menu.
I don’t miss the honk confirmation at all. If you are close enough, you can usually the door lock sound. Honestly I mostly use the button in the door before I close it – I’m just old-fashioned that way.
IMO, Irk is (as usual) spot on. However, he failed to mention an even more annoying aspect of this superfluous new tech: it costs $300 for a replacement key-less fob that (for some unknown reason, but in my personal experience) takes ~2 hours to program at the dealership vs. $3 for a replacement old-school metal key made while you wait at the local hardware store.
@macromeh I didn’t know this until recently, but there’s more to it than that. Even if you disregard the buttons for lock/unlock (and the panic one you hit accidentally and wake up all the neighbors), the keys have a security device which is matched to your vehicle, to prevent “hot-wiring,” or at least make it a lot harder.
I asked a local hardware store if they could just make a mechanical key (without the buttons) and the guy who knew the stuff told me it would open the door, but the truck wouldn’t start. But he mentioned it could still be handy in case you lock your keys in the vehicle, you could at least open the door and get in. I said to go ahead and make me the $2 key, and sure enough, it does just what he said. It will open the door. It will go into the ignition lock and turn, but the truck won’t start since it is not the programmed electronic key, which is sensed at the steering column. (many years ago I remember some cars like Corvettes had a simpler system that used a resistor in the key body that would be sensed in the ignition switch, and it had to be a certain resistance value for the car to start.)
No doubt repo-men and car thieves have ways around all this stuff; they always do. Years ago I had a neighbor that was a repo-man (seriously!). Also an ex- (or maybe current) convict. He said they have trade shows and conventions where they learn about the latest car lock tech and can buy the various equipment to open cars, open garage doors, etc. None of the “new stuff” is ever really “safe” for very long.
@pmarin My car (a 2020 model) has no mechanical locks to accept a metal key, neither in the doors, trunk nor ignition. There are touch points on the doors and trunk that are active if the key fob is in range (say, in your pocket). There is a push button on the dash to start/stop the engine that likewise is only active if the fob is nearby.
I like to make a point of asking the service manager at the dealership how I get into my car to access and use jumper cables if the battery is dead.
Most vehicles have a key slot and a cut key, usually inside the fob. On some it is well hidden; for example on some GM models you have to actually pry off a piece of plastic trim on the drivers door handle to access it. However things do change, perhaps on a 2020 model it is no longer there. Your owners manual should say; or Google may have details. As a professional auto mechanic, you would be amazed how many times during an average work day we use Google.
My 2018 GMC pickup has a fob and a separate key. If I use the actual key to unlock the door it sets off the alarm until I put the key in the ignition. Dumbest thing!
Interesting topic. My 2019 Subaru has the “fob” built into the key. It makes the key bigger, but it works better for me than key + fob. I also have one key key (no electronics) that will open the driver’s door and start the ignition. It’s perfectly possible to do everything with the simple key, but the other doors and rear hatch would have to be opened from inside. While the electronic keys do give off a little chirp when I lock the vehicle, it is low decibel. You can hear it from the next parking spot over, but not from the next block. So far, I haven’t hit the alarm button by mistake.
When the salesperson asked me what I was looking for, my first instruction was to eliminate all vehicles with remote start, start buttons vs key, and moonroofs, then show me the ones that were left. I expect that it will be expensive to get a replacement electronic key if I ever need one, and I also suspect that the dealership charges about 10 times their cost for a new one - because they have a monopoly.
@rockblossom not sure about your car, but FWIW I just had a couple of keys cut (at the dealer) for a 2007 Ford Focus. The keys are chipped, so they had to be programmed at the dealer. Cost was about $50 a key plus $60 for the programming. Turns out you can do it yourself for the cost of a key (bought on-line for about $25) plus whatever your hardware store will charge to physically cut it. The only problem is you have to have BOTH the original keys to do it yourself. Since one is AWOL currently I was at the dealer’s mercy on the replacement.
You can also reprogram the (separate) key fob yourself, but you have to do ALL of them in the same session or they won’t all work. (Replacement key fob was $7.99 for a pair!) Needless to say, I will be programming all 3 fobs to match when the new ones get here.
@chienfou@katbyter It varies all over the map. My Chevy only needs one key to add another one to the car. Search for your make/model/year, and you’ll probably find a Youtube video on how to do it.
I can’t remember the Toyota procedure for the minivan, but it was also doable with just the keys and the car.
@blaineg@chienfou@katbyter I now have a 2010 toyota van. Pretty simple. Remote for the doors and a simple key (well I haven’t tried to make a duplicate yet so maybe more expensive than I think, but this van has few fancy options) for doors and ignition.
@blaineg@katbyter@Kidsandliz If your key has a plastic part on the head, odds are it has an RFID chip in it tied to the car. You can get a key cut that will have the capability of opening the doors, trunk etc, and will turn in the ignition, but the car won’t actually start with that key.
@chienfou Thanks for the info. Mine does indeed have a plastic part on the head. I’ll have to google what the situation is with my minivan. Thanks for the heads up.
@Kidsandliz I have heard that some people just attach one of the chipped keys inside the steering wheel shroud so it is close enough to have the system read the chip, then use a “plain” key to start the car. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
Amazon has some chinese made replacement fobs that are ridiculously cheap. I had a customer a few weeks ago that needed a replacement fob for his 10 year old GM SUV (I forget the exact model). The GM one was $150 retail (my wholesale cost was $120) and was discontinued/ unavailable. I bought a PAIR of replacement ones on Amazon for $15, had them in my hand the next day, and sold them to the customer for $30. I made my profit using the shop’s $4000 scan tool to program them for $50, which took 5 minutes. I could not give the guy a warranty because I did not buy them from a supplier that would back me up with a parts & labor warranty like GM if it failed, but he did not care because it was so cheap. Everyone was happy.
By the way, for many cars there is a manual method to put the vehicle into programming mode so you can add fobs; this is usually some combination of opening and closing doors/ activating the headlamp or ignition switches in a particular sequence, or some similar operation. If you buy the replacement from one of the online specialty suppliers that sells nothing but fobs and keys they usually include the instructions for your car in the package if such a procedure exists. Also, youtube often has videos showing this kind of procedure for many models.
For some reason, you never find this stuff in the genuine factory provided service information professionals use.; I suppose if they released it to us it would be one more disincentive for shops to pay for the outrageously expensive annual scan tool software licensing - a couple thousand dollars for each make of vehicle you work on every year just to keep the tools you paid several thousand dollars each for alive. Software, information access, and tool license subscriptions in the small family owned shop i work for easily run over $25k/ year. that is $500/ week just for information and software in one small shop. And people wonder why it costs so much to have their cars fixed…
@Steve7654 yeah, I remember when I programmed new fobs for the 2003 Pontiac Vibe I bought used (only came with one fob). They were ridiculously inexpensive and when I tell people they are often able to do that themselves I liken it to doing the hoky-poky:
1 Start with the key out of the ignition, and the driver’s door is open. All others are closed, and the driver’s door is unlocked.
2 Perform these steps within 5 seconds.
Insert the key into the ignition (Do NOT Turn). Pull key out.
Insert the key into the ignition (Do NOT Turn). Pull key out.
3 Perform these steps within 40 seconds.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Insert the key into the ignition (Do NOT Turn). Pull key out.
4 Perform these steps within 40 seconds.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Insert the key into ignition, and leave it in ignition.
Close the driver’s door.
Turn the ignition to ON (Do NOT Start) then back to OFF.
5 Remove the key from the ignition.
Within 3 seconds, the power door locks should lock then unlock automatically indicating successful entry into programming mode. Return to step 1 if the locks do not cycle at this point.
6 Perform these steps within 40 seconds.
a) Press the lock and unlock buttons on the remote simultaneously for 1.5 seconds.
b) Immediately after letting go of the lock and unlock buttons, press the lock button by itself and hold for 2 seconds. Within 3 seconds, the door locks should lock and then unlock once indicating successful programming. If the door locks cycle twice, repeat steps A and B in step 6 as the remote was not accepted.
Repeat steps A and B in step 6 for each new remote.
Open driver's door.
@RiotDemon@Steve7654
I’m just grateful you can do it yourself. Overall there were several features like that that totally endeared that car to me! Another good example is that it came pre-configured to just bolt on a trailer hitch, with the wiring harness already assembled and tucked into a compartment in the back. Oh, and the cruise control wiring was installed by default, all you had to do was add the OEM stalk and bolt it in after making an opening on the steering wheel shroud.
In 2018 I upgraded from a 1998 model to a 2018 model. While I was at the dealership, the salesman came back from the office with the key to operate the car that I had shown some interest in. He started it with the remote start feature…which at the time, I didn’t even know existed, and immediately didn’t think I needed or wanted. I ended up buying the car, and before I drove it off the lot the salesman helped me to program some of the newfangled stuff that was included…like getting my smartphone connected to the Bluetooth and wifi hotspot, along with a quick tutorial of what the magic touchscreen in the dashboard was capable of adding to my life. And oh yeah, the FIRST thing I had him do was to disable the loud, annoying noise the car made when it was locked or unlocked remotely. I HATE that and I hate people who think they have to make their car make unnecessary noises. Now, when I push the door open to get out of the car, my finger is about 1/2 inch from the button that locks the doors. It isn’t too much trouble to travel that 1/2 inch to lock the doors silently. And I’m happy to say that I DO like the remote start. Especially in the summer when I can fire up the car and the air conditioner so the interior is cool by the time I get into the car.
I had keyless entry on my 1990 minivan. It was called kid locks keys in car yet again when she borrows them from me to retrieve something. I pop the window behind the driver’s side (no door on that side) with anything that served as a lever on the window latch (kept a 6"screwdriver in my purse and another one in my backpack - you’d think I would have kept extra keys in there but nope didn’t as kid would have taken keys and then taken car without a license). Fish broom handle out of vehicle (tied to seat with slip knot), reach across and push the lock open on the sliding door. Bingo. Keyless entry. Took about 60 seconds. That was not reassuring for the security of the car and stuff in it with the doors locked on purpose (back of the van sort of looked like an extension of the garage I didn’t have, or as someone said on Car Talk, her trunk was an extension of her purse).
On the other hand when I went to get the ignition kill fixed when the car was about 19 or 20 - kid was learning to drive - the tech tried to laugh me out of the shop. He said, “Who would steal that wreck?”. My kid called it the ghetto van. Worked well with her learning to drive in as when she backed into a lamp pole backing up for the first time the extra dent was irrelevant. It already had peeling paint and a slash in the side panel where a student 4 or 5 years before then then had cut holes in the sides of every car in the faculty parking lot. I fixed that with clear tub caulking. No rust there when it died at 25 years and 3 mo.
Anyway back to the point. I said, “My kid”. He said, “Good reason.”, and $25 later and I was good to go. Left it armed at all times I was driving or parked at the house and unarmed when she was. She never realized what I did extra to start the car. So one Saturday morning, while she still had a learner’s permit, she says to me, “Mom the car is broken”. I said, “And how would you know that?”. Oops! She had told on herself. Her eyes widened and she slaped her hand over her open mouth. Busted. And worth every penny of that $25.
I will be programming all 3 fobs to match when the new ones get here.
So, the (2 for $7.99) fobs got here yesterday, and I programmed them today. WAY easier than the Vibe ‘chicken dance’ routine.
A) turn ignition key from off to on (but not to start) 8 times in 10 seconds. (leave it in “on” position the last time) locks cycle to let you know you are successfully in program mode
C) Push a button on the remote you wish to program.
D) locks cycle to confirm programming.
E) repeat steps C & D for each of the other fobs you are programming.
Wham! 30 seconds and you are done!
You must re-program ALL the fobs at the same time though or the old one won’t work any more.
@chienfou@RiotDemon Maybe the decimal point is too far to the left? LOL. Seriously though a reliable source of decent, in expensive fobs would be worth knowing - especially if they are returnable if they didn’t work after following your directions.
@chienfou damnit. The cheapest one I could find was $170 versus the dealership $300.
I found a different website that has one for $80, but then they have another one for $100, and $120… Seems sketch. Why have so many price points for supposedly the same functions.
@RiotDemon yeah, that’s weird. Mine is for a (turned out to be) 2009 Ford Focus. I figured $8 was a safe gamble… after all, I buy shit here all the time!
@chienfou That would be the right one for me. Thanks - even though I know you meant @RiotDemon
Looks like your seller on amazon big-autoparts only sells one key for my vehicle and it is cheap but only 3 stars. RIotDemon hope you find a cheap one that is good.
In my heart, Irk will always be the parent of small children.
Yes, it bothers you more than it should. GM vehicles at least will let you turn off the confirming “beep” on locking. In addition, you can lock the car by having the fob nearby and pushing the button on the car door handle and not get any beep. The beep makes sense (for me) for an autonomous action (I walk away and the car automatically locks). If your vehicle doesn’t allow this to be turned off (I was reading yesterday this exact complaint about the Prius) then maybe you bought the wrong vehicle.
However, you are right about the many, many confirmation beeps for other items, especially when you can see the result or feel it through feedback.
@jcbeckman Yup, I turned it off in my 2008 Dodge truck. The horn was loud enough that it bothered me each time I did the lock with the remote, and even worse, when someone walks away from their car and their car does the honk right when I’m walking buy it, I’m thinking, man, what an asshole!
So both because I hated and and I didn’t want to be an asshole (or at least no more so than I already was,) I turned it off. Luckily on that model I could do it myself from a settings menu.
I don’t miss the honk confirmation at all. If you are close enough, you can usually the door lock sound. Honestly I mostly use the button in the door before I close it – I’m just old-fashioned that way.
IMO, Irk is (as usual) spot on. However, he failed to mention an even more annoying aspect of this superfluous new tech: it costs $300 for a replacement key-less fob that (for some unknown reason, but in my personal experience) takes ~2 hours to program at the dealership vs. $3 for a replacement old-school metal key made while you wait at the local hardware store.
@macromeh I didn’t know this until recently, but there’s more to it than that. Even if you disregard the buttons for lock/unlock (and the panic one you hit accidentally and wake up all the neighbors), the keys have a security device which is matched to your vehicle, to prevent “hot-wiring,” or at least make it a lot harder.
I asked a local hardware store if they could just make a mechanical key (without the buttons) and the guy who knew the stuff told me it would open the door, but the truck wouldn’t start. But he mentioned it could still be handy in case you lock your keys in the vehicle, you could at least open the door and get in. I said to go ahead and make me the $2 key, and sure enough, it does just what he said. It will open the door. It will go into the ignition lock and turn, but the truck won’t start since it is not the programmed electronic key, which is sensed at the steering column. (many years ago I remember some cars like Corvettes had a simpler system that used a resistor in the key body that would be sensed in the ignition switch, and it had to be a certain resistance value for the car to start.)
No doubt repo-men and car thieves have ways around all this stuff; they always do. Years ago I had a neighbor that was a repo-man (seriously!). Also an ex- (or maybe current) convict. He said they have trade shows and conventions where they learn about the latest car lock tech and can buy the various equipment to open cars, open garage doors, etc. None of the “new stuff” is ever really “safe” for very long.
@pmarin My car (a 2020 model) has no mechanical locks to accept a metal key, neither in the doors, trunk nor ignition. There are touch points on the doors and trunk that are active if the key fob is in range (say, in your pocket). There is a push button on the dash to start/stop the engine that likewise is only active if the fob is nearby.
I like to make a point of asking the service manager at the dealership how I get into my car to access and use jumper cables if the battery is dead.
@macromeh @pmarin
Yes… that. Or how about when the fob battery is dead?
Most vehicles have a key slot and a cut key, usually inside the fob. On some it is well hidden; for example on some GM models you have to actually pry off a piece of plastic trim on the drivers door handle to access it. However things do change, perhaps on a 2020 model it is no longer there. Your owners manual should say; or Google may have details. As a professional auto mechanic, you would be amazed how many times during an average work day we use Google.
@Steve7654 Hmm, thanks for the tip - I’ll have a look at the (extensive, online, but poorly indexed) owner’s manual.
My 2018 GMC pickup has a fob and a separate key. If I use the actual key to unlock the door it sets off the alarm until I put the key in the ignition. Dumbest thing!
Does this include mediocrebot’s bleeping at us when we complain about captcha?
Greetings, new robot friend. In time you will come to accept your robotic ways.
I
@mediocrebot
Interesting topic. My 2019 Subaru has the “fob” built into the key. It makes the key bigger, but it works better for me than key + fob. I also have one key key (no electronics) that will open the driver’s door and start the ignition. It’s perfectly possible to do everything with the simple key, but the other doors and rear hatch would have to be opened from inside. While the electronic keys do give off a little chirp when I lock the vehicle, it is low decibel. You can hear it from the next parking spot over, but not from the next block. So far, I haven’t hit the alarm button by mistake.
When the salesperson asked me what I was looking for, my first instruction was to eliminate all vehicles with remote start, start buttons vs key, and moonroofs, then show me the ones that were left.
I expect that it will be expensive to get a replacement electronic key if I ever need one, and I also suspect that the dealership charges about 10 times their cost for a new one - because they have a monopoly.
@rockblossom not sure about your car, but FWIW I just had a couple of keys cut (at the dealer) for a 2007 Ford Focus. The keys are chipped, so they had to be programmed at the dealer. Cost was about $50 a key plus $60 for the programming. Turns out you can do it yourself for the cost of a key (bought on-line for about $25) plus whatever your hardware store will charge to physically cut it. The only problem is you have to have BOTH the original keys to do it yourself. Since one is AWOL currently I was at the dealer’s mercy on the replacement.
You can also reprogram the (separate) key fob yourself, but you have to do ALL of them in the same session or they won’t all work. (Replacement key fob was $7.99 for a pair!) Needless to say, I will be programming all 3 fobs to match when the new ones get here.
@chienfou so if you have both original keys how do you program a third to work with your vehicle?
@chienfou @katbyter It varies all over the map. My Chevy only needs one key to add another one to the car. Search for your make/model/year, and you’ll probably find a Youtube video on how to do it.
I can’t remember the Toyota procedure for the minivan, but it was also doable with just the keys and the car.
@blaineg @chienfou @katbyter I now have a 2010 toyota van. Pretty simple. Remote for the doors and a simple key (well I haven’t tried to make a duplicate yet so maybe more expensive than I think, but this van has few fancy options) for doors and ignition.
@blaineg @katbyter @Kidsandliz If your key has a plastic part on the head, odds are it has an RFID chip in it tied to the car. You can get a key cut that will have the capability of opening the doors, trunk etc, and will turn in the ignition, but the car won’t actually start with that key.
@chienfou Thanks for the info. Mine does indeed have a plastic part on the head. I’ll have to google what the situation is with my minivan. Thanks for the heads up.
@Kidsandliz I have heard that some people just attach one of the chipped keys inside the steering wheel shroud so it is close enough to have the system read the chip, then use a “plain” key to start the car. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
@chienfou Hopefully my solution will continue to be ‘never lose the two keys I do have’ now that I don’t have a kid driving my car.
Amazon has some chinese made replacement fobs that are ridiculously cheap. I had a customer a few weeks ago that needed a replacement fob for his 10 year old GM SUV (I forget the exact model). The GM one was $150 retail (my wholesale cost was $120) and was discontinued/ unavailable. I bought a PAIR of replacement ones on Amazon for $15, had them in my hand the next day, and sold them to the customer for $30. I made my profit using the shop’s $4000 scan tool to program them for $50, which took 5 minutes. I could not give the guy a warranty because I did not buy them from a supplier that would back me up with a parts & labor warranty like GM if it failed, but he did not care because it was so cheap. Everyone was happy.
By the way, for many cars there is a manual method to put the vehicle into programming mode so you can add fobs; this is usually some combination of opening and closing doors/ activating the headlamp or ignition switches in a particular sequence, or some similar operation. If you buy the replacement from one of the online specialty suppliers that sells nothing but fobs and keys they usually include the instructions for your car in the package if such a procedure exists. Also, youtube often has videos showing this kind of procedure for many models.
For some reason, you never find this stuff in the genuine factory provided service information professionals use.; I suppose if they released it to us it would be one more disincentive for shops to pay for the outrageously expensive annual scan tool software licensing - a couple thousand dollars for each make of vehicle you work on every year just to keep the tools you paid several thousand dollars each for alive. Software, information access, and tool license subscriptions in the small family owned shop i work for easily run over $25k/ year. that is $500/ week just for information and software in one small shop. And people wonder why it costs so much to have their cars fixed…
@Steve7654 yeah, I remember when I programmed new fobs for the 2003 Pontiac Vibe I bought used (only came with one fob). They were ridiculously inexpensive and when I tell people they are often able to do that themselves I liken it to doing the hoky-poky:
1 Start with the key out of the ignition, and the driver’s door is open. All others are closed, and the driver’s door is unlocked.
2 Perform these steps within 5 seconds.
Insert the key into the ignition (Do NOT Turn). Pull key out.
Insert the key into the ignition (Do NOT Turn). Pull key out.
3 Perform these steps within 40 seconds.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Insert the key into the ignition (Do NOT Turn). Pull key out.
4 Perform these steps within 40 seconds.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Close then open the driver’s door.
Insert the key into ignition, and leave it in ignition.
Close the driver’s door.
Turn the ignition to ON (Do NOT Start) then back to OFF.
5 Remove the key from the ignition.
Within 3 seconds, the power door locks should lock then unlock automatically indicating successful entry into programming mode. Return to step 1 if the locks do not cycle at this point.
6 Perform these steps within 40 seconds.
a) Press the lock and unlock buttons on the remote simultaneously for 1.5 seconds.
b) Immediately after letting go of the lock and unlock buttons, press the lock button by itself and hold for 2 seconds. Within 3 seconds, the door locks should lock and then unlock once indicating successful programming. If the door locks cycle twice, repeat steps A and B in step 6 as the remote was not accepted.
of course… YMMV
@chienfou @Steve7654 there’s a reason on the Toyota forums they call it the “chicken dance” for programming.
@RiotDemon @Steve7654
I’m just grateful you can do it yourself. Overall there were several features like that that totally endeared that car to me! Another good example is that it came pre-configured to just bolt on a trailer hitch, with the wiring harness already assembled and tucked into a compartment in the back. Oh, and the cruise control wiring was installed by default, all you had to do was add the OEM stalk and bolt it in after making an opening on the steering wheel shroud.
Being a luddite who does not even have a cell phone, I hate to admit it, but i do like my truck’s remote start button in the winter.
@Steve7654 I’m going out on a limb but I’m guessing you didn’t buy the wireless charging pads.
In 2018 I upgraded from a 1998 model to a 2018 model. While I was at the dealership, the salesman came back from the office with the key to operate the car that I had shown some interest in. He started it with the remote start feature…which at the time, I didn’t even know existed, and immediately didn’t think I needed or wanted. I ended up buying the car, and before I drove it off the lot the salesman helped me to program some of the newfangled stuff that was included…like getting my smartphone connected to the Bluetooth and wifi hotspot, along with a quick tutorial of what the magic touchscreen in the dashboard was capable of adding to my life. And oh yeah, the FIRST thing I had him do was to disable the loud, annoying noise the car made when it was locked or unlocked remotely. I HATE that and I hate people who think they have to make their car make unnecessary noises. Now, when I push the door open to get out of the car, my finger is about 1/2 inch from the button that locks the doors. It isn’t too much trouble to travel that 1/2 inch to lock the doors silently. And I’m happy to say that I DO like the remote start. Especially in the summer when I can fire up the car and the air conditioner so the interior is cool by the time I get into the car.
I had keyless entry on my 1990 minivan. It was called kid locks keys in car yet again when she borrows them from me to retrieve something. I pop the window behind the driver’s side (no door on that side) with anything that served as a lever on the window latch (kept a 6"screwdriver in my purse and another one in my backpack - you’d think I would have kept extra keys in there but nope didn’t as kid would have taken keys and then taken car without a license). Fish broom handle out of vehicle (tied to seat with slip knot), reach across and push the lock open on the sliding door. Bingo. Keyless entry. Took about 60 seconds. That was not reassuring for the security of the car and stuff in it with the doors locked on purpose (back of the van sort of looked like an extension of the garage I didn’t have, or as someone said on Car Talk, her trunk was an extension of her purse).
On the other hand when I went to get the ignition kill fixed when the car was about 19 or 20 - kid was learning to drive - the tech tried to laugh me out of the shop. He said, “Who would steal that wreck?”. My kid called it the ghetto van. Worked well with her learning to drive in as when she backed into a lamp pole backing up for the first time the extra dent was irrelevant. It already had peeling paint and a slash in the side panel where a student 4 or 5 years before then then had cut holes in the sides of every car in the faculty parking lot. I fixed that with clear tub caulking. No rust there when it died at 25 years and 3 mo.
Anyway back to the point. I said, “My kid”. He said, “Good reason.”, and $25 later and I was good to go. Left it armed at all times I was driving or parked at the house and unarmed when she was. She never realized what I did extra to start the car. So one Saturday morning, while she still had a learner’s permit, she says to me, “Mom the car is broken”. I said, “And how would you know that?”. Oops! She had told on herself. Her eyes widened and she slaped her hand over her open mouth. Busted. And worth every penny of that $25.
So, the (2 for $7.99) fobs got here yesterday, and I programmed them today. WAY easier than the Vibe ‘chicken dance’ routine.
locks cycle to let you know you are successfully in program mode
A) turn ignition key from off to on (but not to start) 8 times in 10 seconds. (leave it in “on” position the last time)
C) Push a button on the remote you wish to program.
D) locks cycle to confirm programming.
E) repeat steps C & D for each of the other fobs you are programming.
Wham! 30 seconds and you are done!
You must re-program ALL the fobs at the same time though or the old one won’t work any more.
@chienfou wait. Where did you find fobs for $7.99???
@chienfou @RiotDemon Maybe the decimal point is too far to the left? LOL. Seriously though a reliable source of decent, in expensive fobs would be worth knowing - especially if they are returnable if they didn’t work after following your directions.
@RiotDemon
The woot mothership… Amazon
@chienfou damnit. The cheapest one I could find was $170 versus the dealership $300.
I found a different website that has one for $80, but then they have another one for $100, and $120… Seems sketch. Why have so many price points for supposedly the same functions.
@RiotDemon yeah, that’s weird. Mine is for a (turned out to be) 2009 Ford Focus. I figured $8 was a safe gamble… after all, I buy shit here all the time!
@RiotDemon Is this the right one?
@chienfou unfortunately not. Prius with the smart key that never leaves the pocket. Looks like they are $120 now for a knockoff or $170 for an oem.
@RiotDemon Oops, my bad, I was looking at @kids’ vehicle info…
but yeah, $120 sux!
@chienfou That would be the right one for me. Thanks - even though I know you meant @RiotDemon
Looks like your seller on amazon big-autoparts only sells one key for my vehicle and it is cheap but only 3 stars. RIotDemon hope you find a cheap one that is good.
Local business sells remotes online They send out an unbelievable numbers of packages everyday.
@speediedelivery
At the prices the dealers have to charge (see notes above) I can understand why!