Does the Solara have a chip in the keys?

[guest]

I checked my car manual and everything you said is correct. Our car is very similiar to a lexus and who would of thought it's a bitch to steal like a lexus.

The power is in the keys

[Gunman]

I noticed the lexus key is laser cut internally.

It's been that way since 1990 or when it was first introduced in 1989 as a 90 model.

well actually bmw was the ...........ahhh never mind, who cares right? i wanted sf to win anyway.

[papaae]

you folks were talking about different keys and such.. I work for Enterprise Rent A Car.. might have mentioned that at one point, but the wierdest key I have seen is in the new Jags...
They look like pocket knife size and when you hit the button on the key pad a round cyllindar pops out with groves around the inside edge and belive me its funky looking.
---Papaae

[krook]

i think Mercedes keys are by far the weirdest. one of my bosses has a mercedes and the key isn't even really a key at all. it's this weird looking contraption-thingy with a little IR port that you stick in the ignition. trust me, it's hard to explain. . .

[Gunman]

ha hey krook, ever notice on that car that the glove box doesnt have a key hole ? you wave the key by the release knob and it drops down! i got to say THAT is cool!!

[Missay]

The toyota keys are $20 if you goto a local hardware store, and Gunman is correct, its an immoblizer system that is almost 100% effective.

that's only is the hardware store can program the keys tho..you'd need the toyota dealer to do that. there is only one locksmith company that i know (keyhole roadside assistance in texas!! omg! i luv this place! they're the best!)..they can program the keys for chrysler..it's like 6k for the machine to program the key i guess..that price est. might be off..they told me about it a long time ago. that's why if you lose the keys to your car and have an immobliser you have to get it towed to the dealer

BMWs and 97+ infiniti Q45s we can't even send locksmiths out to. they have to be wheel lifted and dollied to the dealership b/c a locksmith can't get into them (or so they say..i've only know one case where a tow facility took it upon themselves to unlock the door after the cust locked the keys in the car when the t/f was giving them a jump. they called back to get paid for it and i was shocked they could actually get it opened...that's the only time i ever saw someone open it. if a cust locked their baby in their bmw the police can't get it opened so there's only one option...break the window...i still wanna know what happened to the cust who's son was locked in the trunk of his beamer at a football game..i don't wanna know!)

i luv the jag keys!! omg..it looks like a drill bit!! and they got that awesome black top w/ the amber gem-like jaguar on it...so nice!

[happy_aggies]

Hi Missay,

I just wondering if you have info for the "keyhole roadside assistance in texas". I need to get mine duplicated.

Yeah.... I dumped mine along w/ my trash in the dumpster w/ trash compacter. I jumped in to search but the trash compacter started to move!

I also need the remote re-programmed.
Dealer abt. to charge $40 for that too.

Thanks.

[krook]

ha hey krook, ever notice on that car that the glove box doesnt have a key hole ? you wave the key by the release knob and it drops down! i got to say THAT is cool!!

REALLY??? toyota should make our solara's like that!?

[Yanks0114]

a hardware store can program these, believe me. My dad owns a hardware store. It takes about 3 minutes and is about 5 steps. The steps were actually posted on this forum before. The dealer charges a premium on keys, as always. But the Toyota key should only cost $20-30. The new benz key is absolutely amazing. It just a little IR tip which is put into the ignition switch. It then transfers computer codes and everything, supposedly unstealable

[Missay]

Hi Missay,

I just wondering if you have info for the "keyhole roadside assistance in texas". I need to get mine duplicated.

Thanks.

omg!! keyhole is awesome..it's run by good ol' ralph and trudy. they are the best..they are really down to business..ralph can be a little stern, but his wife trudy is a sweetheart..what a talker!!

this place is good..they've been in business for a long time now..they're so good that sometime supervisors will tell us to call keyhole to see if ralph or trudy know the answer to our question about some sort of lockout situation. plus they give the best ETAs!! the longest eta i've ever taken from them is like 15mins...ralph gets his guys out to you in like 4mins or less 9 outta 10times..it's amazing..and they know more about the motorclub then some of the reps..it's great. they were our #1 vendor last year i think..and they'll probably be the #1 vendor again.

i actually think they're outta plano..i think. have you ever heard of them, happy_aggies? i can look up their # if you want. i'll be in work on saturday morning..i can get it then. if not they should be listed as keyhole roadside assistance. if you call you'll either get ralph, trudy, or their son richard.. "thank u for calling...keyhole roadside assistance...this is ralph..how may I Help YOU!"..hahah..he says this the same way everytime!

they should be able to help you no prob!! their aren't too many good companies like them..they really are unique..i can say this enough! trudy told me a story (her and her stories!!) about a girl who lost the key to her car and was far from home..the only spare was with her father in another state...i guess her father faxed a picture of the key that he xeroxed and ralph was able to cut a key from the fax...they really are that good!

[Flipside909]

a hardware store can program these, believe me. My dad owns a hardware store.

Oh yeah? LOL. You cannot fool anyone here...especially me. I have the programming code to do so and any local True Value or Ace Hardware wouldn't even know where to start.

[Missay]

your dad's store must be unique, b/c i don't know any locksmiths or t/fs that know how to program every key..most places don't even know what an immobliser is...even if they did, i probably wouldn't trust them to do and would still take it to the dealer. that's what we do for every vehicle at work...bmws, landrovers, acuras, nissans, hondas, rolls royce, aston martin, etc. etc. if we could bring em to the closest hardware store it would save the company a whole lot more money than towing it to the closest dealership where in some cases (like a rolls royce in the boonies) could be like 200-500miles away.

most places don't even know which vehicles have the system and which don't. there are some locksmiths that have a manual that tell them which vehicles do and don't have one (i call keyhole all the time..they have it) but the only problem w/ that is that some models have the system as an option..like the solara.

if you really wanna be sure if you have one or not you should call the dealership and speak to a service tech..a locksmith isn't always the most reliable person to give information like that.

(hey yank..i'm not saying you're wrong..i'm just saying that you're not giving all the correct info. to say that ANY hardware store can make the key is definitely not true! like i said..most places don't know what an immobliser key is and the ones who do say they can't do the job and that the veh needs to be towed. I deal w/ this all the time in work and talk to locksmiths all over the US everyday..so it's not just in my area..i'm speaking about the situation in general in all areas.)

[Gunman]

The one thing that intrest me is that when making a key, most of today's systems are very unforgiving. For the most part I've only seen where the computer will allow 3 attempts before going into lockout out mode. The new nissan's have no patience, at the fisrt attempt, the car goes into 1/2 hour lock out(weather or not you use the correct key afterwards) after than it better be the key or your paying for a tow to the dealer. Some we know how to bypass in the mode while others we have to be absoutly sure, before attempting any type of remtoe start. I myself would be weary of coping any type of immobilizer system. I always refer people to the dealership, should they make a mistake they can handle it right there. I remember getting a wrong coded key from the dealer once, and everytime it came from key makers, it never worked. If so your dad has a very solid of a market cornered and should advertise the fact that he can. Heck ill be willing to send you some customers, but if not and we got to tow em, wouldnt want to be on the end of that bill.

[Missay]

yea, gunmen..when i used to do roadside for the hondas/acuras we had key codes on file. in a lockout situtation if you could find a locksmith who could cut a key w/ the key code (instead of using a lockout kit which does present some chance of causing damage) we had to be sure to tell the cust to ONLY use the key in the door...NEVER the iginition b/c it possibly could cause the veh to go into shutdown mode, which requires a tow to the dealer. i don't know how true this actually was, but i think we just had to cover our a*s!!

i got nervous when i picked my car up from the dealer b/c i gave him my spare set of keys that i had the immobliser key and just a plain key blank cut key on it. i figured they'd be smart enough to realize that the bigger key was for the iginition, not the dinky, flimsy key blank one. when i got into the car they had the non-immobliser key in the ignition. i was nervous that they messed it up, but it seems ok. i should have the dealer take a look at it and make sure that there's no problem w/ the transponder, b/c that key shouldn't have worked.

[Missay]

hey, i found this site that offers and aftermarket immobiliser system...it doesn't work exactally like a factory one, but it gives you a good idea of the mechanicism of the system w/ the transponder.
http://www.bridgwater-electronics.co.uk/cgi-bin/products.pl?section=0&title='Preclusion'%20RFID%20Thatcham%20Immobiliser