Mechanical key problem
Mechanical key problemWe just completed an update of Genesis back up entry processes, made necessary when the battery in the key fob dies, and we are discouraged to say that the parent company has repeated the mechanical key problem we feel now exists in the Hyundai line. When we get to Kia models later this week, we’ll likely find the same thing!
Genesis has added digital lock and unlock options which is evidently being used as an excuse to keep a mechanical key separate from the key fob. It is kept in its own little case (right).
As we noted in our Hyundai update, we really dislike this development. The mechanical keys can easily be lost or simply left behind, and digital options on the smart phone have proven to be less than 100% effective and requires the start battery to be charged. A mechanical key is always 100% effective!
There is also a cover hiding the key hole in the G90 that is revealed when the handle is pulled out. This is likely protection from the elements. Its a simple swing out piece that moves towards the rear of the car (right). The key hole is revealed and the key can be used to unlock the car.
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 back entry 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
General Motors key fob battery
Hyundai back up entry update
The redesigned Kona uses a two-piece handle that looks like those on the Santa Cruz, Sonata and Tucson. However, the piece that needs to be removed is done so from behind (right)! To get at the key hole, lift the door handle and hold it in the open position. Slip the mechanical key into the open slot in the cap from behind it and rotate the cap upwards. It will come free, exposing the key hole. We have yet to try this.
The new key fob that results in a separate mechanical key was actually introduced in 2022, with the introduction of the Ionic 6. This was also the first model to have a digital access option. To use the mechanical key (right), a protective cover must be removed and its handle rotated down as the illustration shows.
Open and Start GMC
These include are the Acadia, Canyon, Hummer, Sierra, Terrain, and Yukon.
Open and Start Audi A3 and Q3
Tonale back up start
Push button or keyless start cars and trucks need a location to touch or drop the key fob in the event the battery in the fob becomes depleted. This can happen as quickly as eight months, depending on use.
Since the introduction of the Giulia and Stelvio models, the only thing a driver of a keyless start Alfa Romeo had to do if their key fob died was to drop the fob in the bottom of the center console (right), a spot clearly marked by the outline of the fob itself. Time will tell if the new method in the Tonale will spread to additional models, old or new.
Why the alarm sounds when you unlock a keyless start car with its mechanical key!
For reasons we could not initially fathom, when we would unlock a keyless start car with its own mechanical key would set off the alarm. We have some 150 videos on our YouTube channel that attest to this. Ultimately we would warn that the alarm may go off, we’ve come to realize that we do this too late in the videos, leaving drivers “alarmed” themselves!
We wondered why for years and realized why some year later but did not share that information with you.
We’ll correct that here and begin a broader correction on YouTube. So here we go…
The reason the alarm sounds is that the physical key is and remains too easily copy. When they were first introduced, a clay mold would have been needed but, since the introduction of 3D printing, all that is needed is an electronic scan of a key and an unscrupulous person could get inside and steal anything valuable.
The alarm turns off when the fob is recognized while using the back up start method. The car then knows that the mechanical key is not a copy. Only the presence of the electronics in the fob guarantees that the use of the mechanical key is done so by the owner of the vehicle itself.
Setting off the alarm is disconcerting at best and suggests we should have been more judicious in our videos when passing along the possibility of the alarm sounding. Meaning we should warn our viewers of the possibility at the start of each video!
We are considered re-doing every video in our collection, but won’t. It would actually hurt the channel, as each video’s views would be lost. What we will do is offer a warning in each write-up and hopefully help avoid scaring the living daylights out of you…
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.
Our YouTube channel is here and our video 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