Monday, April 11, 2011

Key costs

I tend to ,lose my keys so my BIL the Locksmith makes a copy and keeps them on hand in case i do an oh shit. I took my latest car key to him thinking metal key, plastic fob, cheap copy. oh my word! Plastic don't mean plastic anymore for a key end/handle/grab part. it's electronic. Riiiight. "It's plastic.' I told him. "Nope," says he, "It's all electronic."

The last time I saw an "electronic key" there were small old contacts and the electronics were obvious. He showed me a clear plastic end demo key and there is some electronics in it. A small radio frequency thingie. You can't take one of these keys in and expect your local hardware store to grind the profile and expect it to work. It's a involved process that includes a rip out to the car and programming the new key to the car.

The key blank is $16 his cost, the grinding and programming get tacked on. Mind blowing. It's damned good thing I make some Pinto Bean soup he LOVES. heh, it's even better I took a few bowls of it out to him with the key! LOL A real eye opener on the way the world is changing and we never realize. The last key he cut the blank was less than a buck.

4 comments:

Toad said...

I couldn't find the spare key to my Expedition. I was going to have one made until they told me, It would be $154.00 I looked on E-Bay and you can buy the key for next to nothing, but It still has to be programmed. You can save some, but It's still A LOT of money. Oh, and BTW. You can't defeat the system.

OrbsCorbs said...

I've heard of this. I have a 1996 so my key is still just metal.

lizardmom said...

I haven't lost any yet, knock on wood, but mine goes a little bonkers at times, it thinks I'm trying to steal my own car and the theft thing that we didn't even know we had, kicks in and it's a no-go for 10 minutes... pain in the patootie!

drewzepmeister said...

They're called transponder keys.

I've got one for my new car. When I bought my car, the dealership only gave me ONE key. I made a decision to get another key just for "just in case". Sounds simple enough...WRONG! Imagine my surprise to find it's no ordinary key. These keys come with a computer chip to prevent car theft. I managed to track down a locksmith on Lathrop to get another one made for $35. Dealerships would charge $125.