A customer of mine has a bad key, the casing on it is broken and she needs/wants to get it fixed. I see all kinds of keys on eBay. Most have the case/remote with a key shaft attached, some even claim they can send you a pre-cut key if you send a good picture of it.

I have all kinds of questions about the keys but here are my main questions...
1. Do these keys have chips?
2. Can I purchase a key and case and pull her's apart and put it in the new key shell?
3. Can someone really cut a key from the picture and it work?
4. Can I pull the remote guts out and put it in a new key I purchase from on-line somewhere?

Thanks.

1. Yes, the keys have chips.
2. You can purchase a key shell from ebay, and insert your remote portion into it.
3. Yes, but it really depends on the person doing the cutting.
4. Yes, refer to #2.

One more question on option #2 above...

Can I purchase one of those shells off eBay and put her key and remote into the new shell? Or will I have to get the key cut?

dealer here uses vin to cut blank key, and the shell includes the blank key. only the remote moves over, and you have to get it cut. $35 fee.

^ what he said, you have to have the new key cut. You can not transfer the old key, only the remote.

Some dealers may charge a different fee, for instance my dealer charged me $20 to cut a key, another dealer charged me $30.

Thanks a lot. That's cool. The Volvo stealer here charges $65 for a key, pre-cut. A dealer in Charlotte shipped me one pre-cut for $32.

I seen keys as cheap as $5 on eBay, cut for $40. Not a bad deal. I'll check with the local Lexus place to see what they charge to cut keys.

Thanks again.