Why are car keys so fricken expensive now? Chrysler product.

Bobw · Jan 22, 2021

Just got myself a new little toy. It came with a regular key and a key fob with a key in it that can lock and unlock the doors and pop the hatch. I didn't even think about it when he said the remote had stopped working and probably needed a battery.

Well... The battery is fine and upon closer inspection, the key fob is brand spanking new. The key is right, opens things and if the real key is close enough, it will start the car.

I figure the seller didn't have a fob, bought a fob, had the key cut, and then realized that getting it programmed was an expensive pain in the ass.

I called a few local locksmiths (and remember I'm in New Mexico, most of them only have slim jims and a lock pick set from the 50's). Nobody would touch it.

Of course I watched some YouTube vids, it takes like 5 minutes to program the key and the car if you have the equipment. Called the dealer.. I can only get an appointment 2 weeks out, they "Claim" it will take 2 hours and $179.99. I'm calling BS on that. That's just a bit ridunculous, though I may not have a choice.

There has to be a cheaper way.. This is just stupid. It has to be just an RFID chip. This can't be that complicated, and by complicated, I mean stupidly expensive. I've paid less than 179.99 for an entire car before.

And just so y'all can laugh at me. I'll post some pics.

steve45 · Jan 22, 2021

They charge that much because they can!

This will probably get locked for being OT.

rbent · Jan 22, 2021

We've got a mobile locksmith here in town that does that while you wait, dealer takes a couple weeks to get them ordered in.

Bobw · Jan 22, 2021

ARGGHHH.. Forgot the OT: and I can't figure out how to edit the thread title.

moonlight machine · Jan 22, 2021

WTF did you buy that thing? You think a key is expensive? you and your mechanic will soon be on first name basis. FIAT= Fix It Again Tony............... or Found In A Toilet.

Bobw · Jan 22, 2021

moonlight machine said:
WTF did you buy that thing? You think a key is expensive? you and your mechanic will soon be on first name basis. FIAT= Fix It Again Tony...............

Because its an absolute blast to drive. Its a bit raw, you can actually feel the road, handles really well. It feels a lot faster than it is. Its comfortable. I'm 6 feet tall and I don't have the seat all the way back, and I have a good 3-4 inches from the top of my head to the roof. And it gets really good mileage.

moonlight machine · Jan 22, 2021

Bobw said:
Because its an absolute blast to drive. Its a bit raw, you can actually feel the road, handles really well. It feels a lot faster than it is. Its comfortable. I'm 6 feet tall and I don't have the seat all the way back, and I have a good 3-4 inches from the top of my head to the roof. And it gets really good mileage.

Good mileage, yes especially when it does not run!

Bobw · Jan 22, 2021

moonlight machine said:
Good mileage, yes especially when it does not run!

Its a pretty basic car. Not a lot of bells and whistles. A motor, a crash box and a computer. Therest is just nuts and bolts, and the prices are reasonable on that stuff. $6 for a set of brake pads. Not a ton of them on this side of the pond, but they sold a metric buttload of them in Europe.

Sure wish the keys were cheaper.

The motor is a "multi-air" or something. Uses your oil as hydraulic fluid to mess with the intake valves. Sounds complicated, but its really simple. Imagine a hydraulic lifter that has a lot of travel, and then put a bleed valve on it. When it needs the power, it rides on the cam, but at idle, or low demand situations, a solenoid can bleed the pressure from the lifter and give you a much shorter duration and lift on the intake valves. Apparently that is how it handles the EGR.. No valve, it just blips the intake valve and lets some exhaust back into the intake when its cold. I've also read that a lot of the time, the throttle plate is just wide open, and it regulates the revs by using the intake valves instead of the throttle plate. Its pretty cool, and pretty simple, except for the computer side of it, I'm sure the programming and research that went into that was pretty intense. Its basically a smaller Jeep motor.

moonlight machine · Jan 22, 2021

The dealer here sold a mess of them, not at all unusual to see them on the side of the road. Keep us updated on how yours does.

Street · Jan 22, 2021

Not a fan of Italian products in general, seems to be there is always a corner cut somewhere with the things they make.

I much prefer a honda and speaking with the local dealer the car wears out usually before the engine is what he said, no real issues with them. But make sure you service them by either yourself or other mech on time when needed.
I put my money where my mouth is and am on my second honda the last did a lot of kilometres when i sold it to a new person who kept on using it.
Mum has a honda car as well and after 15 years the ignition lock has a issue with key fitment so new steering lock, emobilizer new keys with remote are going in, This was not the first generation with remote unlocking it may be the second as its in the all in one key instead of a fob.
Anyhow keys are $240 each and then need cutting the profile and coding, but hey it lasted 15 years.

Something new like your car should never need keys...they shouldn't fail so soon.

That thing you have is a FIAT, there are a few around here and most have chosen the abarth model not the bog stock one....why they buy them is a interesting question, but there is a italian community here so that could be the reason.

Bill D · Jan 22, 2021

Problem is you need at least one working fob to program a new one.. My wifes ford something is wrong I can not get it to go into the mode to read a new fob.
Bil lD

3t3d · Jan 22, 2021

500 Abarth Commercial - YouTube

Bobw · Jan 22, 2021

Something new like your car should never need keys...they shouldn't fail so soon.

That thing you have is a FIAT, there are a few around here and most have chosen the abarth model not the bog stock one....why they buy them is a interesting question, but there is a italian community here so that could be the reason.

The keys didn't fail, I just didn't get them with the car.

The Abarth's are turbo's, 170 or 180hp in a 2300lb car. That's fun.. But I didn't want a turbo, I wanted
a simple little car that was fun, and those go for some larger dollars, and I got this thing for almost
nothing.

Why do they buy them. Go drive one. To me, all newer cars are just BORING. They aren't quirky, they
really don't give you the feel of the road, and the motor. This goofy little Fiat, it lets you feel
some of that stuff, its a bit old school, it feels old school, while your ass is getting warmed up with
the seat heater. Its not all the way old school, but its a lot closer than anything else I've driven lately.

And the car doesn't feel as little as it is, there is a ton of room in there, its really comfortable.
I could be 4 or 5 inches taller and I would still have plenty of room, I can't say that about most new
cars or even SUV's. Even with only 101hp (86-87 at my elevation) its zippy. Sucks off the line, but
once your moving it'll do what you need. My old lady's Jeep will do 0-60 in about 6 seconds, and its
boring as all hell, and it actually has less driver room in it. This thing feels a lot faster than it is.

If you like the fell of "Old School", go drive one, you'll understand. If you are a drag racing type of
person, you won't get it. If you are a sports car type of person, you will. By "sports car" I mean MG's,
RX7's, Datsun Z's, Miatas.. That kind of thing.

Bobw · Jan 22, 2021

Bill D said:
Problem is you need at least one working fob to program a new one.. My wifes ford something is wrong I can not get it to go into the mode to read a new fob.
Bil lD

I have one that has the chip in it. But its just the key, doesn't have the buttons on it. From what I can gather, if you can get the car to turn on, you can program the fobs, same thing as just the plain key, just has buttons.

Street · Jan 22, 2021

My little honda has 148 kw ( 198hp) is naturally aspirated non turbo and weight is 2910 pounds or 1320 kg.Type r civic.
for those figures i don't mind it. I was looking at the Integra but damm i cannot fit in the car its just too small in the head room.
The S2000 is a nice car as well but starting to get older now at the time and could be argued still the engine in it is very advanced in design even for now.
it is lighter than the civic and puts out 239hp 178 kw and weighs 1250 kg. but the civic is only a 2 litre the s2000 is a 2.2 litre so your getting a bit more capacity.
The new type r is fitted with the turbo now.

Tyrone Shoelaces · Jan 23, 2021

A pal of mine hired one of those when we were out in Spain a year or two ago. It held four adults comfortably driving up and down the Sierra's. There's more room in them than you'd expect.

My mechanic has a real downer on Italian cars and he wasn't best pleased when his wife bought one of those little FIAT's. Once he'd had a drive in it he was really impressed with it and now he wishes she'd bought the faster " Abarth " version. That's a real go cart apparently.

Regards Tyrone.

EPAIII · Jan 23, 2021

I do not know anything about Chrysler products, but I did learn about GM's key fobs. I needed new key fobs for my Sierra so I went to the dealer. Close to $100 and that was just the price for the fob, not programming it to work.

So I looked on-line and the prices there were around $15 or less. And at the local auto parts stores, they were around $25 so I bought on on-line. It came with instructions which did not seem to make sense at first. They said something about adding a fob or starting from scratch and you had to go through all of your fobs at the same time. What the heck?

I finally figured it out. The fob was not being programmed for the car. The CAR was learning what FOBs to work with. This means that it is probably possible to use one FOB for two or more GM cars. But you would have to be very careful how you did the programming. And if you pressed unlock with two cars in range, both would open up. Not a great idea, but entirely possible.

I would suggest you search the internet for Chrysler fobs.

plastikdreams · Jan 23, 2021

I have a 2019 blazer rs...it's not the fastest but it's pretty quick, it definitely punches above it's class in handling. I swear it handles as good or better than my 07 vette. I should get a g meter for sNg...highest I got out of the Vette was 1.1g. price is a bit high with a 52k sticker though.

Ps, the keys are well over 200 bucks lol

DDoug · Jan 23, 2021

Bobw said:
Because its an absolute blast to drive. Its a bit raw, you can actually feel the road, handles really well. It feels a lot faster than it is. Its comfortable. I'm 6 feet tall and I don't have the seat all the way back, and I have a good 3-4 inches from the top of my head to the roof. And it gets really good mileage.

I'm 6'3 and I can't drive my sister's.....and show her how to actually mind the damn clutch... :ack2:

With size 15 shoes, there are 3 pedals down there, and damned if I don't hit 2 at the same time, every time.

Fun ? Please.

gustafson · Jan 23, 2021

THe system varies car to car. My now older Nissan you actually program the car for the key, and you need a machine. Some older GMS you do a dance with the ignition. I bought keys on ebay and brought them to a local locksmith. While it was unusual then, it ought to be more common now. Call around to real locksmiths it is hard to believe that 15 years after chip keys became common, that no one does it.

Why are car keys so fricken expensive now? Chrysler product.

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