Keyless ignitions

[Stephen Tashiro]

If a car has a keyless ignition, must you be sitting in the drivers seat to start the car?

I hope never to own a car with a keyless ignition, but some rental cars have keyless ignitions so I may have to deal with that feature. If I am inside my house with my non-keyless electronic keys in my cluttered pocket, sometimes the keys lock or unlock the car while it is sitting outside in the driveway due to things in my pocket touching the keys. Could the device for a keyless ignition start the car by a similar accident?

[Mac McQuinn]

Are you referring to remote start? I have a new Subaru and have keyless start although no remote start. I have to step on brake while touching start button so yes, I have to be in car to start and need proximity fob on me.
Mac

[Jim Becker]

Unless you have remote start, the keyless ignition system requires that the fob be within a certain close distance for it to work. And remote start generally requires multiple presses of the correct button within a defined short time period.

I personally wouldn't go back to a vehicle without keyless ignition!

[John K Jordan]

...And remote start generally requires multiple presses of the correct button within a defined short time period.

On my Cherokee the remote start works from a distance, of course, but once I get in the car with the electronic fob I have to press the start button manually before proceeding even though the engine is running.

We accidentally found out my wife's Murano can be started and driven with the key in the very back of the car, as far as possible from the driver's seat. I wondered if this was because of a separate sensor at the rear of the vehicle to allow unlocking/locking and operating the hatch from outside.

JKJ

[Greg R Bradley]

Keyless ignition has advantages and disadvantages. I might have preferred a key with my latest truck but it came with other electronics that I really wanted like integration with my iPhone for handsfree texting, etc. It totally pisses me off that I can't start it by reaching in the car and starting it while I proceed to load and unload it for the day's use. You have to be sitting it the driver's seat and hit the brake while you push "start" while having the key in your pocket. OR you can press two keys to start it remote, which then requires a sequence once you are sitting in the drivers seat.
They have clearly designed certain "safeties" into the system as it wont unlock the door unless I'm standing directly in front of a front door when I reach for the handle. Since I normally unload and then load stuff in the back door this really irritates me.
I love how I can start it from inside the house and get the A/C going to cool it down while I'm unloading and loading but then WHY do I have to go through a procedure to be able to drive off on a car that is already running ??????
The lawyers must have gotten involved in this.......

[George Bokros]

Its to make the car harder to steal

[Frederick Skelly]

The lawyers must have gotten involved in this.......

Hi Glenn,
Sure they did. Liability is a huge concern when nearly anyone can drive a car.

But Glenn, sometimes the state of California's standards (or the US govt's) for this or that drive how items are designed. There could be some of that here too. Please dont get me wrong here - not trying to be judgemental, political or saying it's good vs bad. Only that sometimes well-intended "do gooders" cause this too.

Fred

[Matt Meiser]

Mine knows if the keys are inside or out. To lock the keys in the car requires pessimism g a combination of buttons on the keypad. And leaving them in for long periods is not good as the car doesn't fall as far to sleep when the key is present.

Ive seen all manner of issues with mechanical ignition too, from jammed mechanisms to broken keys to failed switch contacts. You could just as easily get stranded at a rest area with a mechanical switch.

[Jim Becker]

If I'm awake, my keys are attached to a belt loop and I'm not worried about losing them and driving off without them. But yes, for some folks that might be an issue.

[Jim Becker]

On my Cherokee the remote start works from a distance, of course, but once I get in the car with the electronic fob I have to press the start button manually before proceeding even though the engine is running.

Yes, this is a normal security feature that insures someone can't break into a vehicle that was remote started and just drive off. The engine may be running, but the car isn't "on" and ready to drive until the "start" button is depressed with the key in proximity. I like how Jeep's version works. I'm not so happy with how the Subaru remote start version kills the engine when you open the door so you have to restart it fully.

[roger wiegand]

My car won't start unless the clutch is depressed. Hard to do without being in the car. Plus there is no "start" button on the key fob, you'd have to be far enough in the car to press the button on the dash, on the far side of the steering wheel. You'd have to be a contortionist to try to start it without sitting down in the driver's seat.

[Lee Schierer]

One disadvantage of the key less ignition system is if you are traveling with another person that also has a key for that car and you decide to leave the key in a jacket or purse in the trunk, the system won't let you lock the car. I know this is true for all cars, but it is true with our Honda Accord.

[Matt Meiser]

Like I said, mine won't let you accidentally lock the car. But you can force it by pressing a key combination on the keypad. I suspect it will let you use a fob too, since it would obviously know there's a fob outside the car. I'll have to try when my wife gets home.

[Eric Keller]

all of the keyless ignitions now in use are vulnerable to hijacking. Oh, well, I really like it. I have dropped my wife off at work, realized I needed something at home, and driven the toyota home without a key. It complains though. I have heard that some cars will stop working if they are too far away from the key. That doesn't seem like a good idea.

I have a huge keychain for work. I don't want to carry it around just to have my car key. I have fewer problems with car keys than I used to have.

[Lee DeRaud]

One disadvantage of the key less ignition system is if you are traveling with another person that also has a key for that car and you decide to leave the key in a jacket or purse in the trunk, the system won't let you lock the car. I know this is true for all cars, but it is true with our Honda Accord.

Not a problem: https://www.amazon.com/Silent-Pocket.../dp/B01MTNKVO4
(That's the first one I found just now, but as I recall the one I use was only $7-$8.)

I like how, with a bit of fiddling, the Honda setup lets you give the fob to a valet without giving them access to the trunk or glove box...I just wish the console also had a lock.