Infiniti back up start page
Infiniti back up start pageA 2025 review of our Infiniti back up start page sees no changes whatsoever. In fact, what we learned is that the company has abandoned all back up start options that are not “push the button with the back of the key fob.”
All keyless or push button start vehicles offer a back up start option in the event that 
the battery in the key fob dies. Which they do all tooo quickly and at what is likely the worst possible time.
For years, Infiniti offered two options: push the start/stop button with the back of the fob; or slip the fob into a slot on the left side of the dash (right). This last option has been abandoned.
Then in 2018, the QX30 was introduced using a pull-out button akin to a version developed by the old Chrysler Corporation. The button can be removed and the key fob inserted into the space and used as a key.
The car was introduced in 2017 and both the method and the model were abandoned in 2019.
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 Infiniti back-up start 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Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow.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
Getting to the key hole is a process also similar to other models with flush door handles. Press the front of the door handle inward. This rotates the rear of the handle outward (right). The handle can then be pulled open.
Retrieving the mechanical key
To use the most common Kia key fobs, 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 too remain in limited use today (2025).
Kia added a new fob in 2022 that features all the the buttons on the side (right). The button at the very top — that is, the one closest to the key ring end — is the one to push in order to release the mechanical key.
Starting with the 2014 Cadenza and K900, the manufacturer adopted the hidden keyhole trick. The Optima and Sportage were added in 2016. These models all feature a two-piece door handle. As shown in the image to the right, 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 by hand (2).
A “hybrid” of this was introduced in 2024 in the Sorento and Telluride. The mechanical key is again slipped into a slot beneath the back of the door handle and pushed upwards. Now however, a small cover, seen in blue to the right, is slid to the side and out of the way. This should be done when the mechanical key is still inserted and pushed upward. The keyhole is then revealed.
Kia EV6 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. The key hole is immediately visible (right). The mechanical key can be inserted and turned to unlock the vehicle.
Replace the battery in a Kia key fob
use a very small screwdriver to help with removing the battery.
If a key hole is visible, use the key to unlock the driver’s door.
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.
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.
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.
Hyundai, Kia, Genesis back up entry page overhaul first step is done
We 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.
——————————————————————-
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