So something weird has happened. I have a 2008 ISF with ~75k miles. I’ve had it since new. Yesterday I make a quick run to get groceries and when I went to lock the car I learned my key was no longer sending a signal. I figured it was just a dead battery. I changed the battery and still no go. I tested the battery (new) and it is fine. I traded it with another key and it worked fine. The non-working key has never been dropped hard, gotten wet, run over, gone through the wash, eaten by the dog or anything. It just stopped working. The red indicator LED no longer lights when any of the buttons are pushed.

Has anyone experienced this before? Do keys just fail? It not like the car even gets driven that much. I’m hoping I’m not on the hook for a new one of these ridiculously expensive keys.

 

Check the inside of the key and see if there is any corrosion. I don't know where you live, but maybe moisture got in there and overtime, corroded stuff. Just a hunch.

 

just pocket lint, I’m afraid.

 

The Lexus FOB is sensitive to external signals like alarms, anti theft or burglary sytems. Did the key start working again at your house?

I have experienced this myself when our street was repaved. The machinery had anti-theft stuff and emitting a signal that was interrupting the Lexus FOB. When i moved the FOB to the upper B-pillar on the driver side the FOB responded.

Perhaps the non-functioning FOB only needs to be reprogrammed in your case.

 

It's peculiar when certain electronics & PCBs fail particularly when they aren't subjected to hot & cold cycles. Without the necessary equipment it's often impossible to determine why. My guess is even if it works after a re-program it'll end up in the trash in a week. For giggles try heating up the PCB with a heat gun & seeing if you get any last life out of it.

For the last six days I've been redoing all electrical in my 78 Firebird. I have been determined to not spend a single dime & instead use a stubborn diligence plus materials on hand to fix every problem. When I got to the neutral safety switch, which had failed a month ago, I was determined to repair it even though it's the simplest of parts & only costs $13. I spent an hour on it. It passed all of my continuity tests but would still not allow the car to start in park. I begrudgingly picked up a new one and it fired immediately.