Having a nightmare with lost keys Toyota Corolla 1.8 vvt-i hybrid icon tech 5dr cvt

[harleyg98]

I'm helping out a friend (Philip), who isn't too comfortable with computers.

His brother died last year, leaving him his Toyota Corolla 1.8 vvt-i hybrid icon tech 5dr cvt.

Unfortunately Philip has been unable to locate the keys for the car.

He's been authorised by the solicitors to remove the car but obviously can't without the keys.

He's been to the local Macclesfield Toyota dealership  – but they've quoted him £4,500 (you read that right) saying they had to replace the whole computer system and God knows what else.

I've been using computers for 40 years now and can't believe that Toyota haven't got the tech to 'interrogate' the car's system and produce a new set of keys.

I found a local automotive technician – working out of Manchester Airport - who came highly recommended

He quoted £450 for two keys which Phil was happy to accept.

Unfortunately, the sparks has been round to have a go at the car - twice - spending around 4 hours in total - but can't sort it.

He tells Phil that he's struggling to get hold of a 'part'

He thought he'd located one - had another go but was still unable to fix the problem.

Phil's been very patient - waiting over two weeks – but the 'techy' has stopped answering his phone - so we're guessing he's given up on sorting it.

The car is in Bollington, near Macclesfield.

Can anyone recommend a technician who may be able to sort the problem?

Thanks in hope.

[FROSTYBALLS]

34 minutes ago, harleyg98 said:

I've been using computers for 40 years now and can't believe that Toyota haven't got the tech to 'interrogate' the car's system and produce a new set of keys.

Think part of the issue is that if Toyota dealers could interrogate the ECU to produce information by which to clone replacement keys, within a short period of time so could the criminal elements out there, etc, etc ....

Bad enough that for some cars virtual keys can be mirrored via the OBD, cars stolen via CANBUS attacks, etc.

Presumably the dealer quote includes replacing the ECU, locks, etc and recovery from where the car currently is, to the dealer.

Is the car insured, and does the policy cover lost keys?

[flash22]

You don't need an auto electrician - you need to find a locksmith, programming a fob shouldn't be too difficult, has a key been cut to access the car ? Do you have the new fobs ?

Dealers are useless, they can do an "all keys lost" with techstream as they have authorization to do so without the need to change parts

the other way is to pull the immobilizer and read the data of the chip you can then program this info to the chip in the fob - this makes a simulated key you can then use techstream to add a key then remove the old ones

[Cyker]

This has been a regular problem on here where people lose all the keys, and I've yet to read of anyone finding a simple solution.

Officially, the only way to fix it is to replace the whole ECU and lock barrels with new/salvaged ones, with the appropriate set of keys.

Some more skilled auto-locksmiths are able to hack the ECU and either put it into a Factory Default mode, where it will accept the first key transponder presented to it, or either inject a new transponder code in or read off the existing ones from the flash chip and copy them into an RFID chip.

We had a few advertising such services on here years ago, but I think they've all gone as haven't seen such offers for a while. They also required you to send them the ECU and it was a few weeks turnaround so not exactly convenient or fast.

The best solution would be to have a damned hard search for the keys.

Failing that, the path of least resistance is probably getting a salvaged ECU, locks and keys, and getting a decent mechanic to fit them.

The Toyota route is the easiest and 'quickest' way out, but also the most expensive by far.

The hardest option is trying to find an auto-locksmith who knows Toyota systems well enough to be able to crack them. They seem to be like needles in haystacks!

 

[Bper]

This is a awful lot of money for lost keys. Would this service help .

https://www.catautokeys.co.uk/cat-autokeys-services-car-keys-truck-keys-bike-keys/car-key-programming/

[Cyker]

Yeah... I mean I'm all for tight security but Toyota need a better option for situations like this. Lost key insurance wouldn't even cover half of the cost of what they want to charge for the 'official' way of fixing!

That link looks promising - They specifically say they can get the code from the ECU on the Toyota page without needing a master key, which is what is needed!

[FROSTYBALLS]

21 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Lost key insurance wouldn't even cover half of the cost of what they want to charge for the 'official' way of fixing!

With my car insurance (LV), lost or stolen keys are covered, as are replacement of locks, ignition devices (keys, fobs, and so on), etc, with no financial limit.

[Cyker]

That's unusual, and good to know! Most of them limit it to £1000-1500 unless I've been reading the fineprint wrong this whole time!  

But some insurers do have better cover in some areas than others, e.g. eSure allowing unlimited claims NCB protection, whereas the majority only allow 2 claims but the 3rd claim looses the NCB.

[FROSTYBALLS]

15 minutes ago, Cyker said:

eSure allowing unlimited claims NCB protection

Same with LV - if you opt for protected no claims, the discount isn't reduced if you have several claims.

As with any protected NCD, all that gets protected is the discount you receive - so if your protected NCD is 4 years, the discount remains at that level. However, having a protected NCD doesn't prevent your premium being increased due to the number of claims you've had. 

[harleyg98]

On 12/9/2022 at 6:00 PM, FROSTYBALLS said:

Think part of the issue is that if Toyota dealers could interrogate the ECU to produce information by which to clone replacement keys, within a short period of time so could the criminal elements out there, etc, etc ....

Bad enough that for some cars virtual keys can be mirrored via the OBD, cars stolen via CANBUS attacks, etc.

Presumably the dealer quote includes replacing the ECU, locks, etc and recovery from where the car currently is, to the dealer.

Is the car insured, and does the policy cover lost keys?

Unfortunately, the insurance was allowed to lapse on the death of the then owner.

[harleyg98]

On 12/9/2022 at 6:14 PM, flash22 said:

You don't need an auto electrician - you need to find a locksmith, programming a fob shouldn't be too difficult, has a key been cut to access the car ? Do you have the new fobs ?

Dealers are useless, they can do an "all keys lost" with techstream as they have authorization to do so without the need to change parts

the other way is to pull the immobilizer and read the data of the chip you can then program this info to the chip in the fob - this makes a simulated key you can then use techstream to add a key then remove the old ones

We've had an auto/electrician/locksmith out - he's made two attempts but says he can't acquire a necessary 'part'. I'm guessing this may be the key fobs. We're told he's done several Toyotas without issue - so wondering if the model is unusual?

Thinking he'll have no alternative but to have the car 'lifted' off the driveway.

[Cyker]

It may just be because it's a newer model and they don't have the gear to make the key yet; It usually takes a while for third-parties to figure it out.

The blank will almost certainly have to be sourced from Toyota as I don't think anyone makes third-party smart keys (Assuming it is a smart key)

If it needs to be moved sooner rather than later I think getting it lifted is the only option. Otherwise he'll just have to keep searching for a more capable autolocksmith.

Have you tried the one Bper linked to? They sound like they might be worth a punt...

 

[flash22]

What "part" is it, buy a used fob that can be programmed to the car no issue

no issue programming the fob, I can do the fob's no issue, so a locksmith can do it