rekameohs

I have a 2000 GS300 that I purchased used. The previous owner only had one factory made key, so I had a second key made. The original factory key now has lost “sync” with the immobilizer and will no longer start the car. All other functions still work with that key (open door, turn on accessories, etc) and the duplicate key will still start the car.

I have tried various versions of the “pedal dance” and can’t get the original factory key to link again. The dealer says I need a new key (~$175) as the chip in the original key as gone bad. I wanted to see if that sounds correct, since if the other functions still work, I would think the chip was still good. Thanks.

raytseng

Sounds correct to me.
No one is going to spend the time to troubleshoot a buggy key, especially since you said the 2nd key works fine, it seems pretty clear the old key is messed up. Remember that time is money.
You can find a new key for less, so $175 maybe on the high end. But overall the solution to get a new key seems to be a very practical relatively cost effective solution.