SWMBO has ordered a new key as we've lost one and just having one between the two of us heightens the chance I'll go off abroad with it in my pocket etc - so she phones the dealer.
Key is £20 To programme it to the immobilsier - apparently will leave us with little change out of £100. FSCK THAT - anyone know anywhere that can program the keys up? I've got the tag code from the original keys here so I have all the info - would have thought that to add a new key would take no more than a few minutes - NOT 80 notes worth!!
Our local locksmith has a fantastic range of tools and electronic gadgetry but can't do a key for our X-reg Mitsubishi Carisma 1.8GDI - his equipment just displayed "Main dealer only" (or something similar). Local Mitsu dealer charged £20 for the key and £32 for coding it to the car.
100 quid for a bit of electronics and plastic in a key and 5 mins hooked up to a dealer's computer? - doesn't that seem a tad steep to you?
It also may not be the OP's fault that he needs a new key - I need one for my Marea because the microswitch that disarms the alarm and unlocks the doors has fallen off the PCB in one of my keys.
Agreed, the price is scandalous, particularly in the case of a friend who recently lost her keys on a Toyota - dealer charged her something like £800 for new ecu and keys.
This is a designed-in rip-off, and no matter what any dealership says you won't persuade me otherwise.
It should be perfectly straightforward to re-flash an ECU to accept a new key, or from the VIN understand what the program code for the key is, however, that'd be too easy and there's not so much profit in it for them.
Perhaps the manufacturers should offer options on the model - "This one, someone with £2k of equipment could program their own key and knick it, provided they can get in and get the bonnet open without triggering an alarm - and spare keys will cost you £50; and this one, Fort bloody Knox, mister, no-one will ever get in. However, for a £8k car, they're not likely too, sir, rather they'd just run a key down the side of the car to bugger your day up. If they wanted to, sir, they'd just tow it and strip it down for parts. Spare key, sir?, that'd be £800 please".
I suppose the real irony about my friend's case is this:-
The security system *may* have stopped a car worth £1k - £1k5 being stolen from an unscrupulous individual. Mind you, it was insured, so with any luck she'd get a hire car until the insurance company decided to pay out and she could replace it.
The security system *DID* stop her getting anywhere fast, she was stranded 40 miles from home, on a Sunday, and trying to arrange for the car to be towed back home (ok, we gave her a lift back home - something to do with her living down the road from Ikea made that option more appealing). Then she had to pay £800 to an unscrupulous individual to return her car to her in a driveable state.
maybe 100 is a bit steep but we would't charge 100 maybe 60 for us up in the north but the kit does cost about 8k(its more than just a code reader)plus 4 days training down south to use the bloody thing , so all in all this seams the normal/fair price
If it's a late 1990s car, try Timpsons. They can cope with many of the simple static code immobilisers, and they just need an existing key to do it while you wait.
No - here I take exception (and you being a Ford chap can bask in your own glow)
When we had the Escort and we lost a key - the replacement was about 20 notes all in. And that included them syncing it with the car (as SWMBO was very tight on time at the time....)
Now the *key* is 20 notes and they want to charge 80 for programming it...
No - it's our fault - we had children - she (daughter, 3yrs old) lost the one key we had last week - and wife called dealer to order another one so we had a spare again.....just feeling a bit violated at the cost that's all....
Especially since I know the key costs less than a fiver in Holland - and the programming cost is about 10 euros....so all in about 15 notes (yes yes I know a bit more if you add in the ferry journey etc. etc.)
How on earth does it take 4 days training to teach you how to "put in key, type in code, press "flash""? It doesn't even cost 8k for the kit to program bloody FPGA's - let alone a piss poor transponder in a key....mind you - you are getting ripped off - suppose you are just passing the cost on...
quite simple fords are cheap to repair now you've got a mitsi - thats where the price differance is
incidenly if you lost your front door key how much would you expect to pay? £100 just for the guy to turn up £80 for new lock and key- i case the key is found by a potentail burgular £80 labour to fit plus the cost of the window maybe you broke cos your spare key is inside the house and the guy wont turn up till 3 days time
Timpsons can do our Astra and Polo but not the Fourtrak (all mid 90's). The jap 4x4s all seem to have more advanced immobilisers where the key code is programmed into the immobiliser and/or ecu, using a laptop attached to the car. £100 notes seems to be the going rate and you will have to go to a dealer. Similarly for more modern Fords and Rovers I think.
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