The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph's College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Glow plug indicatorWhile updating our Kia dashboard symbols page, we came across something strange, or so it seemed initially. The EV 6 model uses a diesel engine glow plug indicator! Well this made absolutely no sense!
However, digging deeper it turns out that the light is actually used to indicate that the electric vehicle’s (EV’s) high voltage battery is being conditioned.
Diesel engines require heat in the cylinders to operate, which is supplied initially by glow plugs when the engine is cold, conditioning the cylinders. This indicator will be illuminated when the ignition is turned on until the plugs are heated sufficiently to start the engine. The engine simply won’t start until then.
Battery conditioning is essentially the same process, hence the recycled indicator. Conditioning warms a cold battery to allow it to accept a charge more quickly.
And kudos to Kia for finding an appropriate indicator for the process and not simply adding to the already bloated pile. The image looks like a coil or loops in a yellow/amber/orange color.
Cars are changing, and among those changes is the growing number of symbols and indicators that will invariably show up on your dashboard or instrument panel. Every year, new features are added to vehicles, each of which is accompanied by a new symbol or symbols and likely a new acronym.
At DashboardSymbols.com, our aim is to help you understand what is happening to your vehicle at the first sign of trouble – a new warning light illuminated on your instrument panel. Its all here on this website. Our first intention is to bring the latest technologies down to earth and understandable for everyday drivers.
You can see the now modified glow plug post here and the Kia page here.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2024/09/an-ev-using-a-glow-plug-indicator/
Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2024/09/ev-or-gas-a-little-something-to-help-you-decide/
About the plugA friend passed along a New York Times article titled Should I Get a Hybrid or Go Full Electric? The title is linked. After reading it, and combined with additional information that was already running around my head, I emailed him back remarking that its all about the plug!
The article explains the two types of hybrids: conventional and plug-in. Conventional hybrids have a battery that powers an electric motor to augment the gasoline engine. It also incorrectly seems to suggest that energy from braking alone charges the battery, when in fact the gasoline engine charges the battery continuously.
A plug-in hybrid has a larger battery that can powering car solely with electricity for short distances, on average 40 to 50 miles. And they can be charged using the same Level 1 or Level 2 chargers that EVs use. High power Level 3 charging is off the table, which the article misses.
But this is not intended as a critique of the article…
So, back to the point. The battery in a plug-in hybrid will be charged by the gasoline engine if its power is drained, operating exactly as a conventional hybrid.
Imagine you are the owner of a plug-in hybrid. Theoretically, if you drive less than the battery’s range, you can go indefinitely with using any gasoline. What’s needed now is a convenient place to plug in, and the willingness to, in effect, manage an EV!
Further, in the scenario described, a plug-in hybrid needs to be plugged in daily. A full EV only needs a charge maybe once or twice a week!
This is what was rummaging through my mind. The European auto market is down, way down, and only one segment one segment is up, albeit slightly. And its the conventional hybrid market.
Its all about the plug!
Plugging in is the change. As a people, we’ve grown accustomed to driving and stopping randomly for a fill-up. The plug is the change of religion. Everything else is essentially the same: a steering wheel, accelerator pedal, brake pedal, and on and on and on.
In the interim, the EV market continues to grow, and despite problems in Europe, faster than anyone imagined, exposing more and more drivers to the “new” religion.
The last hurdle will ultimately be more places to actually use the plug!
Heck, even EVs have warning lights. Lots of them. See our page here.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2024/09/its-got-to-be-the-plug-its-about-the-plug/
Replace the battery in a Kia key fobWe have added a video to our YouTube channel demonstrating how to replace the battery in a 2019 and later Kia key fob with a fresh one.
The mechanical key comes in handy to remove the back of the key fob, and we also 
use a very small screwdriver to help with removing the battery.
Like so many fobs, this one uses a CR 2032 battery (right).
You can see the new video on our YouTube channel here, or on our Kia page, which now has 18 videos, including those for Hyundai and Genesis, which are begging to be separated out, here.
Smart Keys or Intelligent Keys, or Access Keys – or whatever the manufacturer of your chooses to call them – that let you into your car and start it with just a touch use up their internal batteries at alarming rates, catching busy drivers unawares – even though the car had tried to warn you.
Our goal is to help you feel safe – and keep you moving or get you moving if at all possible – rather than leave you fretting whenever your key fob stops working. The instructions for getting into and starting most keyless start cars can be found on our pages – without roadside assistance.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2024/09/we-added-a-new-video-to-our-youtube-channel-replace-the-battery-in-a-2019-and-later-kia-key-fob/
Back up entry page overhaulWe just completed the first step of a Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis back up entry page overhaul. The intent is to separate the three manufacturers who now have way too many back up entry processes.
As that first step, we separated Genesis, admittedly the simplest of the three. Overall, the page used to have only a handful of entry processes, made necessary when the battery in the key fob dies. But Hyundai in particular seems to add a new one each year!
Next up is to separate the two remaining manufacturers, parent company Hyundai and the little brother, Kia.
Smart Keys or Intelligent Keys, or Access Keys – or whatever the manufacturer of your chooses to call them – that let you into your car and start it with just a touch use up their internal batteries at alarming rates, catching busy drivers unawares – even though the car had tried to warn you.
Our goal is to help you feel safe – and keep you moving or get you moving if at all possible – rather than leave you fretting whenever your key fob stops working. The instructions for getting into and starting most keyless start cars can be found on our pages – without roadside assistance.
The new Genesis page is here.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2024/09/hyundai-kia-genesis-back-up-entry-page-overhaul-first-step-is-done/
To use the most common Genesis key fob, press and hold the release button at the key ring end of the remote control or ‘clicker’ and pull the key ring to remove mechanical key. Use the key to unlock the driver’s door. They remain in limited use today (2025).
Newer version key fobs are available from the car maker. They look very similar and operate in the same way.
If a key hole is visible, use the key to unlock the driver’s door.
Genesis has added a new key fob, which has the mechanical key inside the fob. To remove the mechanical key first place a soft cloth over the groove on the side of the fob (narrow arrow). The cloth is for protection of the plastic. Then use a small screwdriver to pry open the cover. Do this carefully! The press the mechanical key (large blue arrow) on the bottom end and remove it from fob.
Genesis has also introduced new digital access options, which has resulted in a mechanical key being supplied separately from yet another new fob! It is removed by putting a little pressure on the long end and pushing it out.
In our opinion, this development is a prescription for disaster, as the mechanical keys can easily be lost or simply left behind, so by all means activate the additional unlock features described below!
The newly-independent Genesis line, who’s models debuted in 2017, adopted the hidden keyhole trick. Changes were made to the G80 and GV80 in 2021 and newly introduced models use other methods found below. These models all feature a two-piece door handle. As shown in the image to the left, press the mechanical key into the slot found under the cover at the back of the driver’s door handle (1) and pull forward and up (2). Note that the moment the once the key is in the slot, the cover is free to move with your hands! There is a black button in the slot that is being pushed up with the key in this move.
Genesis GV60 and G90 (beginning with the 2023 model year) vehicles feature a flush door handle. A push on the front of the handle will rotate the rear part outward. Then pull the handle out as far as it will go. In the GV60, the key hole is immediately visible (left). The mechanical key can be inserted and turned to unlock the vehicle.
The G90 adds a cover that is revealed when the handle is pulled out, likely protection from the elements. Swing it out towards the rear of the car (right). The key hole is revealed and the key can be used to unlock the car.
Beginning in 2021, in G80, GV70 and GV80 models, the key hole or lock cylinder is revealed immediately behind the driver’s door handle when it is pulled to the open position, as seen to the left. The mechanical or emergency key can then be simply inserted into the key hole and turned to unlock and open the vehicle.
Genesis vehicles that include a separate mechanical key include two digital options and a facial recognition option. Digital options include a pre-registered card key and a smart phone app on a registered smart phone. The card key and app can also start the car. However, facial recognition will only open the vehicle, so the key fob, card key or smart phone app will be needed to start the car.
Place the registered smart phone or card key against the pad for two seconds to unlock the driver’s door and for four seconds to unlock all the doors.
Facial recognition is accomplished using a camera mounted in the pillar behind the driver’s door. Again, this will only allow entry and other means will be needed to start the car, so this is of limited value.
However, given that the mechanical key is supplied separately and can be far too easily misplaced, we highly recommend following the instructions in the owner’s manual to activate both the smart phone and facial recognition features as back up entry options and to keep the card key with you at all times.
Also, check our videos for additional help.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2024/09/open-a-genesis-with-a-dead-key-fob/
Kia back up entry updateAs we got into a Kia back up entry update, we found that we had ignored several key fobs from both Kia and Hyundai going back 10 years! The result is three new key fobs on the page, and the knowledge that there are several more we will continue to ignore. We do this because the differences are too minor to acknowledge and 
because the page has swollen to be nearly out of control.
We added a flip key key fob (right) that we had left out for simply no reason we can recall. Both Hyundai and Kia use nearly identical models.
Kia only recently (2019)added a fob with all its buttons on one side, including the button that releases the mechanical key (left). Hyundai had added a fob that had the mechanical key release on the back (right). In hindsight, this happened at a time that access to their owner’s manuals was so bad, we had to search a Canadian sight to find any at all.
Probably a lousy excuse…
In the meantime, while some fobs remain in use, Kia, Hyundai and Genesis all are making radical changes in their key fobs, primarily the result of digital, or smart phone, access.
Smart Keys or Intelligent Keys, or Access Keys – or whatever the manufacturer of your chooses to call them – that let you into your car and start it with just a touch use up their internal batteries at alarming rates, catching busy drivers unawares – even though the car had tried to warn you.
Our goal is to help you feel safe – and keep you moving or get you moving if at all possible – rather than leave you fretting whenever your key fob stops working. The instructions for getting into and starting most keyless start cars can be found on our pages – without roadside assistance.
You can see the page here.
——————————————————————-
Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Permanent link to this article: https://dashboardsymbols.com/2024/09/kia-back-up-entry-update-adds-three-new-key-fobs/
EV or gas? A little something to help you decide
I had two conversations recently, back-to-back, that really came down EV or gas. Bear in mind, I drive an electric vehicle or EV.
The first was with a waitress I’ve known for some time but hadn’t seen in a while and her “car story” that I’d thus missed. It seems her 5-year old 3-Series BMW with 50,000 miles on it simply died one day. Mid-motion. The diagnosis was a blown transmission that would cost $15,000 to repair! She ditched the car.
Being a bit of a smart @$$ and feeling a little smug, which may come back to bite me, I asked, “do you know what an EV doesn’t have?” She actually didn’t know so I answered my question: “a transmission!” (So that you know, an EV’s electric motor is connected directly to the wheels.)
She then added that her husband’s Audi goes through a quart of oil every 1,000 miles and I noted that my last gas car was also an Audi with the same engine and it too used oil at the same rate. Then, the bartender chimed in that his 100,000 mile Volvo also uses a quart every thousand miles.
I then asked, “you know what else an EV doesn’t have?”
Had to be done…
And if you are curious about our opinion on a big issue holding back EV adoption, click here. And we have a primer on EV charging here.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY