Smart key doesn't work, only works if I insert in slot

Try disconnecting the battery for a few minutes to see if that resets something.

 

Ok, I found out what happened. I took out the center consoul to wash off all the spilled soda from the previous owner. Now that the consoul is back in, the key fob works inside the car. It turns out, that little white box with an electrical connector behind the rear cup holder, is a sensor utilized to read the key fob in your pocket. Because the center consoul was out, the sensor wasn’t there to sense the key fob. So if anybody’s key fob isn’t recognized inside the car, I would check that part and it’s connection. Thank you Jerrymildred and Skibob. Merry Christmas

 

i was just about to ask if you disconnected that.

aloha!

 

So it actually started when you removed the center console?

 

Evidently, it was after the removal of the center consoul that the problem started. Lesson learned. Thanks

 

False information=''It started after I accidentally forgot to turn off the car and walked away from it.''

The truth comes out later= ''It actually started when you removed the center console''

 

I've got two keys. One works in every way. The other only works when inserted into the slot, not in my pocket. Doesn't work the door locks.
I have checked and replaced the key battery. The little square red light flashes if a button is pressed.
I'm baffled.

 

Maybe one of them's a replacement fob, only partially compatible? Have you had the car since new, know the complete history?

 

Thanks for the reply.

My MIL has had the car since new. At one point we had three keys. The other fully working key was lost, which made getting the third key working a much higher priority.

Unfortunately, her memory is such that she can't remember how she came to have three keys. The key looks identical to the working one in every way. I'll pop the battery covers off again and see if any hidden markings that do or don't match up.

 

if the outside looks the same, it should be correct, but you'll probably have to have it reprogrammed.

 

There are three functions to a fob- the mechanical key (for the driver's door lock), the SKS remote access (& lock/unlock buttons), and the RFID chip (for the immobilizer system via the dash slot). Does the key in that fob work in the door lock?

It's possible that somehow the SKS was never programmed correctly - but the RFID was. Or maybe the SKS for that fob CAN'T be programmed (easily) because it's a used fob and needs special procedure to work on another car.

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