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The other time this happened, I was at a Flyers game and taken by surprise, and had issues getting in because of my busted fob. Since my key does not stay extended, that's a problem. I was thinking my wife could get caught off guard and be unable to open the car. I guess the car does not warn of low battery, or maybe I missed it?
I had to take a miniature screwdriver out and hold the key extended, so I could twist the lock, not a huge deal, but I happened to have my laptop with me. Otherwise, kinda out of luck, because the blade of the key is broken (you can't really keep it extended with a thumb)....I guess the hint was that I turned the ignition once, and when I tried to do it again, it was locked, until I put the fob in the dash. First world problems!
p.s. I thought I had gone beyond having a car where there are "special instructions" on how to operate (have to tell my wife about the key and if battery dies). This was the case with my Volvo, which I drove for 8 yrs. having to do this and that. I gave the car to my brother and within 2 mos. he was junking it (kinda irritated me, but to this day he would not be able to check tranny fluid or diff fluid levels these were both leaking on the vehice)...
I'll replace it when I get home....but I just need to advise my wife just in case it ever died on her, she has to have a paper clip or something to force the key blade out. The other idea is to buy a new fob and transfer the blade, and the insides to it. I believe the blade will unscrew...(don't really want to get a key cut and car programmed)...
The other time this happened, I was at a Flyers game and taken by surprise, and had issues getting in because of my busted fob. Since my key does not stay extended, that's a problem. I was thinking my wife could get caught off guard and be unable to open the car. I guess the car does not warn of low battery, or maybe I missed it?
I had to take a miniature screwdriver out and hold the key extended, so I could twist the lock, not a huge deal, but I happened to have my laptop with me. Otherwise, kinda out of luck, because the blade of the key is broken (you can't really keep it extended with a thumb)....I guess the hint was that I turned the ignition once, and when I tried to do it again, it was locked, until I put the fob in the dash. First world problems!
p.s. I thought I had gone beyond having a car where there are "special instructions" on how to operate (have to tell my wife about the key and if battery dies). This was the case with my Volvo, which I drove for 8 yrs. having to do this and that. I gave the car to my brother and within 2 mos. he was junking it (kinda irritated me, but to this day he would not be able to check tranny fluid or diff fluid levels these were both leaking on the vehice)...
That's crazy. I thought I read in the owner's manual the system will tell you when the key fob is low? I'll check when I head back out later on today.
Your keyfob endcap must be broken? The endcap of the keyfob is supposed to have a metal point on it. When you pull the endcap in the direction of the arrow -> it retracts the metal point so you can push the metal key out. Once fully extended, the metal point in the endcap should click into place and keep the key extended. When I was shopping for a replacement keyfob, I made sure the endcap was in place.
You might recall of my keyfob shell replacement DIY? You need to have a very small philips screwdriver, and remove the screw holding the metal key in the keyfob. The replacement is pretty easy, and like you said, you don't need to have another key cut, no reprogramming, etc. You just have to remove the key and electronics and place them in your new keyfob. I think I bought mine for $40. I'd do it again for that price, too. My buttons were totally disintegrated. I felt like such an a-hole whenever handing the fob to a valet guy, and telling him which button is lock, which is unlock.
How about your emergency wallet keys? Did you get the credit card keys? The skinny key locks and unlocks the doors. As designed, I always keep both keys (ignition & door lock) in my wallet. Unfortunately, they both broke off the plastic, so both keys are now loose in one of the (button-able) pockets of my wallet.
I don’t mean to hijack the thread. I have a semi-dead key the
at came with the car. It will start the motor but won’t open the doors or trunk. Dead buttons. Can I drop the inside electronics into a new case and get it to work or does the dealer have to reprogram it to the car? Is the insides just a battery holder?
Last edited by Davidsofia; 05-15-18 at 03:56 PM.
Reason: Spelling correction
Just go to a good dealer and ask them to help. When I asked for a new battery, they just replaced it at no cost for me.
Easy to suggest, but more difficult to execute for many of us! The closest dealer to me is 25mins away, and many of us work normal hours 8a-5p. The last thing they want to see is a customer with a 13 year old car, rushing in the door, bumrushing the parts desk before they close up shop at 4:58pm, etc. If this was 2004 or 2005 or 2006 when Lexus was LEXUS, and their customer service was outstanding, I'd say good suggestion. This is now 2018, and Lexus customer service isn't anything near what it used to be. We ALL know this.
In Davidsofia's case, it does sound like it could be a dead battery. There's a red LED on the front of the keyfob, and it should blink when you press any of the buttons. If the LED doesn't blink, then in fact, your battery might be dead. It's a simple 'coin' battery that you can pick-up at the drugstore...a lithium CR2032 found here... CR2032 battery link Just pay attention on which side is up and which side is down when you pull/slide the battery holder out.
I wouldn't swap anything until you know you have a fresh battery in there, and the polarity is correct.
PS...You're missing out on the beauty and convenience of the SmartKey Access!
I changed the battery and it stirred up some thoughts. OK, that's why the thing is broken, the springs flew out of the end cap when I first got the car and replaced the battery. imho bad design, never heard of a fob that is so delicate (the other two cars feel like the battery door is hefty). Funny how the + faces down, the diagram on the fob is confusing? lol Anyway, I got ripped off by amazon on 2032 batteries and only discovered after a couple of orders (price was cheap like $3.xx for 4 cells). Amazon, not 3rd party. You can tell the counterfeits (anything not for retail say at Walmart/Walgreens/Target) because they lack a sticker over the (-) side of the coin cell, and randomly would not be packaged for retail sale. I think there is some agreement by which amazon can take stock from a 3rd party and sell it, when it is profitable, and that's what they do. Send these back!! Jeff Bezos is more than happy to issue a refund, because for every one that comes back, 10 other counterfeits are accepted by the buyer.
Anyhow change the battery with a genuine, put it together, click the car and it responds. Go to unlock with the handle first thing in the AM, doesn't work.
Click with fob, works. Go under the dash and push the button, now everything works. I likely pressed the button when doing the tire pressure reset Monday evening. I don't remember trying the fob by clicking yesterday. However, I noticed that with a direct line of sight last week, when I was reasonably far away, the click action got no response from the vehicle, so I think it was weak? I'll never know, but I do think that's a dumb place for the tire reset and key button. I'm actually afraid of breaking the other fob, which is why I use the broken one. Enough of these shenanigans for another year!
I likely pressed the button when doing the tire pressure reset Monday evening. I don't remember trying the fob by clicking yesterday. However, I noticed that with a direct line of sight last week, when I was reasonably far away, the click action got no response from the vehicle, so I think it was weak? I'll never know, but I do think that's a dumb place for the tire reset and key button. I'm actually afraid of breaking the other fob, which is why I use the broken one. Enough of these shenanigans for another year!
The old battery was recycled, so we'll never know. I'm just not into the multimeter thing today, like I was as a kid....although I did some AC wiring at work last week, figuring it'd be faster than scheduling an electrician. When UPS/FedEX stops delivering to my office since we didn't use union labor, I'll likely be fired (it was a single device that needed hardwiring, not a big deal?)....
I changed the battery and it stirred up some thoughts. OK, that's why the thing is broken, the springs flew out of the end cap when I first got the car and replaced the battery. imho bad design, never heard of a fob that is so delicate (the other two cars feel like the battery door is hefty). Funny how the + faces down, the diagram on the fob is confusing? lol Anyway, I got ripped off by amazon on 2032 batteries and only discovered after a couple of orders (price was cheap like $3.xx for 4 cells). Amazon, not 3rd party. You can tell the counterfeits (anything not for retail say at Walmart/Walgreens/Target) because they lack a sticker over the (-) side of the coin cell, and randomly would not be packaged for retail sale. I think there is some agreement by which amazon can take stock from a 3rd party and sell it, when it is profitable, and that's what they do. Send these back!! Jeff Bezos is more than happy to issue a refund, because for every one that comes back, 10 other counterfeits are accepted by the buyer.
Anyhow change the battery with a genuine, put it together, click the car and it responds. Go to unlock with the handle first thing in the AM, doesn't work.
Click with fob, works. Go under the dash and push the button, now everything works. I likely pressed the button when doing the tire pressure reset Monday evening. I don't remember trying the fob by clicking yesterday. However, I noticed that with a direct line of sight last week, when I was reasonably far away, the click action got no response from the vehicle, so I think it was weak? I'll never know, but I do think that's a dumb place for the tire reset and key button. I'm actually afraid of breaking the other fob, which is why I use the broken one. Enough of these shenanigans for another year!
On my first battery change in the keyfob, I too, placed the battery in the wrong direction. What's worse is that I said to myself, "MAKE SURE TO NOTE THE ORIENTATION BEFORE DISASSEMBLY!" lol. A lot of good it did to talk to myself! lol
Anyway, getting no response after a click is no cause for concern, because the RANGE on our key fobs is TURRIBUL!!!! I mean just terribuly TURRIBUL!!! I guess Toy/Lex/Denso went with a super-cheap transmitter frequency when designing the key. Who knows. I do know my 2004 Chevy Astro work truck (that I drove in 2004) had 3x better range than our keyfobs, and sometimes it's easier to just let SmartAccess work instead of madly pressing the unlock button, while pointing the keyfob simultaneously while holding under my chin while walking 50' away, 40' away, 30' awy, 20' away, 10' away, BEEP BEEP!!!!!
I could have sworn that within the last 3 weeks, I have pressed the buttons on the handle/touched the handles to no response, then went to press the fob and it worked. But not 100% sure. I am sure in the back of my mind I was saying get ready to change the coin cell.
I'm gonna say dying battery, plus hit the button when resetting tire pressure, i.e. moving target....but last week I am 100% sure I looked at the car in a straight line, and no response from buttons. All I have to do is park in the same spot, and enter my bldg. at the same door, and see if it works with a new battery, why not? I can easily do that...and if it does work, voila, weak battery!
edit: just thought of this, I don't need a new key, all I need is the door part off of an old one....hmmmm (then my blade can stay in the locked outward position)
edit 2: I bought a fob on eBay for $18 shipped, used. All I need is the door, I can always save the electronics for if I ever want to program or have programmed an additional fob. The more I think of it, the more I think I broke the door improperly trying to open it, how else? On my working fob, I took it off with ease just to look at it. There really isn't any need for me to move the blade from one fob to the eBay one...
In the end, I got the donor fob for $18.xx shipped, and it appeared to be very lightly used, way better shape than mine. Can anyone see why?
But of course the door which I was after, fit perfectly. I cleaned off the residue from the duct tape and replaced the door, now my key will stay extended just fine.
Also, with a new battery, this AM I stood in the same spot where the key did not work last week, line of sight clear to the vehicle, and it responded. So the battery was weak. Resetting tire pressure was yet another gotcha in the moving target.
By the way, I must have broken the door, thank goodness I did not break both keys that came with my used car. The manual clearly states to use the screwdriver while, "sliding the lock switch." I likely simply pried it off. Sometimes, we gotta pay to play.
05-15-18, 05:02 AM
key fob died, thoughts
