DIY: Making cheap spare keys

[78F350]

This first post is a little background. The second post is the DIY.

I have two Boxsters and a VW Passat that I purchased used with just one key each. In life, I have left a trail of keys ...in the forest, at the bottom of the lake, and in the sand at the beach. One key is not good.

986s have an immobilizer that consists of:
Transponder – Shaped like a large grain of rice and mounted inside the key fob.
Transponder Coil – Looks like a rubber disk around the ignition switch.
Central Locking Unit – (CLU) a black box under the driver's seat.
DME – (ECU) The engine computer in the rear trunk.

Simple explanation is:
When you start the car, the CLU queries for the transponder. It sends a signal out through the coil which is picked up and re-transmitted by the transponder. The coil returns that signal to the CLU. The CLU sends a signal to the DME where it it verified and allows the car to be started.

Normally the transponder is in the key. I simply took the transponder out of the key and relocated it to a place where it will still function. The range where it can be placed is very small.
Once the transponder is placed in the car rather than the key, you simply have to make a copy of your key blade to have a spare key.


Disclaimers:
I really don't know any of this stuff. For research, I glanced at a few web pages and watched a YouTube video.
If you follow this procedure you will ruin your car. You are likely to either break or lose your transponder, then have to pay a dealer $2,675 to get your car running again.
If you successfully complete this DIY, you are defeating an anti-theft feature of your car. It will be stolen, then abandoned when the thief realizes how much it costs to maintain.
This is probably not legal in California. Neither are most of my guns.
Once your car has been started I think that it will keep running even if the transponder falls down rolls under your floormat. I still would not completely rule out that loss of the transponder signal will cause your car to stall at a railroad crossing and be unable to restart. Have a contingency plan.

Note to my insurance company: This is all theoretical. After taking the pictures, I restored my car to original unmodified condition.:dance:

[78F350]

Pelican Parts has a good article about replacing the ignition switch. Some of the pictures and description are useful here.




Buy a blank HAA style key. They are common for Porsche, VW, Audi, and others. I got five Audi keys with a flip-fob for under $30.
Find a locksmith that cuts them and make a duplicate of your key. I have heard them called “Laser cut keys”, “side-milled keys”, and “Sidewinder keys”. The locksmith that I went to was very uncomfortable doing it and wanted to be sure that I understood that they would not start my cars.

Open your key and remove the transponder. I imagine that it is fragile because it looks like glass. You will most likely break it, or drop it and lose it. Mine didn't break, but I dropped it somewhere between my kitchen table and the area behind my garage where I keep my parts car. It was only due to the grace of God that I ever found it.


After finding the transponder, I decided to make it padded and harder to lose.

I inserted it in a hollow piece of nylon cord, then sealed it with heat-shrink. You may simply chose to glue it in place. ...risky.


Pull the rubber cover that surrounds the ignition switch.


Zip-tie & glue the transponder in position on that cover where it is on top of the ignition to the right of the connection for the coil. (North American, left hand drive car)
Tip: I had the position verified before applying any glue or adhesive. Test it with just a zip-tie or other temporary measure before you make a mess.


I secured the cord inside the dashboard so that in case the transponder ever comes loose I will be able to recover it easily.
This view is looking towards the steering column from where my side vent is removed:


With the transponder in position and the rubber cover installed, test your key.


Follow-up edit: I just completed the same job on my Passat. It had an identical tumbler and coil, but was much harder to access. To make sure that the transponder stays in place I used some E6000 industrial adhesive (Black). I was so happy with it, that I scraped off the glue I used on the Boxsters and used the E6000 on them. Great product.

I am not recommending that anyone do this. I was simply curious enough to experiment with it until it worked and thought I'd share. Future plans for it will probably be a remote starter.

[itsnotanova]

Sounds like a good idea to me.

[Chuck W.]

Nice job!

Originally Posted by 78F350

It will be stolen, then abandoned when the thief realizes how much it costs to maintain.

Haaaaaaaaaa.....

[spendy]

If it were me, I never would have found the transponder in the yard! Glad you got lucky.

Interesting info. Thanks for posting.

[antny]

I was wondering how this project went.

[flaps10]

I love the disclaimers.

My woman's kid drives her "old" (2004) volvo S40. Being a typical teen he busted the key wide open while being the coolest guy in the room. Told his mom he needed her key (response: hell no). In the volvo key, for which the "key" is just a plastic spud, there is a circuit board inside.

Some how the kid managed to lose the board with battery on it in the bowels of the car. The fob no longer worked to lock the car, but because the circuit board was somewhere near the driver's seat the car would still start. I'd reckon it would have been possible to start with a screw driver.

Glad he found the missing pieces before taking it to the car wash and vacuuming it out. That would have been puzzling for a minute or two.

[Jamesp]

78F350 if you don't write for a living you should. Really enjoyed it, reminded me of Douglas Adams.

[78F350]

Originally Posted by Jamesp

78F350 if you don't write for a living you should. Really enjoyed it, reminded me of Douglas Adams.

Ah, thanks. I grew up on Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Douglas Adams, and Twain. My wife doesn't always get my sense of humor.

[brjak]

I just tried it. Worked like charm. (97) 986.

So, I assume I can just buy a replacement blade have it cut and be good to go. I know the electrics won't work. But, at least it will be nice to have some replacements.

Can anyone confirm, no electrics in the key fob is ok.

[78F350]

Originally Posted by brjak

I just tried it. Worked like charm. (97) 986.

So, I assume I can just buy a replacement blade have it cut and be good to go. I know the electrics won't work. But, at least it will be nice to have some replacements.

Can anyone confirm, no electrics in the key fob is ok.

Yes, you just get a blade cut to match your current key, no electronics required.

BUT, if you want to replace the electronics for the locks, it looks like PW has a good DIY for an aftermarket keyless entry:
http://986forum.com/forums/diy-project-guides/56773-3rd-party-keyless-entry-diy-why-not.html

I did a similar keyless entry install on a friends car a few years back that included a remote start feature.

[antny]

That 3rd party keyless entry works like a charm. Really easy to install for 15 bucks.

[Porsche-Eh]

Hi everyone: Not sure of the best place to post this as there are dozens of spare key threads, so maybe I'll make a new thread, but at any rate my KEY DIY KD-X2 arrived on Friday I purchased it on e-bay for $225 USD with free shipping - took about 3 weeks to arrive.

FAQ:
Did it clone my key pill = YES

COST = $225 for the unit and $12 per unique pill decoded (you can make unlimited clones after you decode your pill - I made 4 copies. $10 for ten blank (can be written) pills.

How long did it take = 3 hours to fumble through very poorly translated Chinese=English screens on the iOS APP (i.e. Apple), creating a burner Twitter account (you need to log-in using Twitter or Facebook; no-way I was going to give them my real account details; pre-pay $12 USD via Paypal into my wallet)

Ease of Use After Doing it Once = VERY EASY. Once you know what to do, you can copy your pill in about 5 minutes.

Do you just need the key = NO, you need your car in running order; you have to be able to turn your ignition from OFF to ACC back and forth 5 times so the KEYDIY can "sniff" what is transmitted between the pill and the coil. Note, I had to remove the plastic/rubber surround that goes around the ignition switch (i.e., where you put the key in the ignition) as this was blocking my sniffing attempts.

Do you need to take the pill out of your key? NO, it can be decoded while it is in place in your key. In fact, you need to leave it in so you can complete the above procedure)

Does the cloned pill remotely lock/unlock doors = NO, the remote functions are controlled by the fob transmitter which is unrelated to the car start function.

Can the KEY DIY Copy Remotes = MAYBE - I have not tested it yet but it looks promising. If your remote actually locks and unlocks your door now you can also sniff what is transmitted and the KEY DIY will clone your remote to one of three blank remotes it comes with. I've tested the sniffing and it works but my original remote never unlocked doors from day 1 of having purchased the car (2 years ago) so I would just be cloning an un-working remote.

Build Quality = Excellent. Very well built unit but with terrible English translations on everything.

Where did I buy my key blades? Keys in the Post.

CONCLUSION: I went from 1 to 4 working (manually open and lock doors - it still sets the alarm properly, just not remotely, and it starts the car) keys (blades & pill) for under $300. If my remote functions had been working I would likely have additional working remotes as well. At some point I'll break down and get an INDY to get at least 1 remote working with my car and then I can test copying it.

Hope this helps everyone! I'll clean this post up a little and add some picts and make a new thread I think.

[particlewave]

Originally Posted by Porsche-Eh

Hi everyone: Not sure of the best place to post this as there are dozens of spare key threads, so maybe I'll make a new thread, but at any rate my KEY DIY KD-X2 arrived on Friday I purchased it on e-bay for $225 USD with free shipping - took about 3 weeks to arrive.

FAQ:
Did it clone my key pill = YES

COST = $225 for the unit and $12 per unique pill decoded (you can make unlimited clones after you decode your pill - I made 4 copies. $10 for ten blank (can be written) pills.

How long did it take = 3 hours to fumble through very poorly translated Chinese=English screens on the iOS APP (i.e. Apple), creating a burner Twitter account (you need to log-in using Twitter or Facebook; no-way I was going to give them my real account details; pre-pay $12 USD via Paypal into my wallet)

Ease of Use After Doing it Once = VERY EASY. Once you know what to do, you can copy your pill in about 5 minutes.

Do you just need the key = NO, you need your car in running order; you have to be able to turn your ignition from OFF to ACC back and forth 5 times so the KEYDIY can "sniff" what is transmitted between the pill and the coil. Note, I had to remove the plastic/rubber surround that goes around the ignition switch (i.e., where you put the key in the ignition) as this was blocking my sniffing attempts.

Do you need to take the pill out of your key? NO, it can be decoded while it is in place in your key. In fact, you need to leave it in so you can complete the above procedure)

Does the cloned pill remotely lock/unlock doors = NO, the remote functions are controlled by the fob transmitter which is unrelated to the car start function.

Can the KEY DIY Copy Remotes = MAYBE - I have not tested it yet but it looks promising. If your remote actually locks and unlocks your door now you can also sniff what is transmitted and the KEY DIY will clone your remote to one of three blank remotes it comes with. I've tested the sniffing and it works but my original remote never unlocked doors from day 1 of having purchased the car (2 years ago) so I would just be cloning an un-working remote.

Build Quality = Excellent. Very well built unit but with terrible English translations on everything.

Where did I buy my key blades? Keys in the Post.

CONCLUSION: I went from 1 to 4 working (manually open and lock doors - it still sets the alarm properly, just not remotely, and it starts the car) keys (blades & pill) for under $300. If my remote functions had been working I would likely have additional working remotes as well. At some point I'll break down and get an INDY to get at least 1 remote working with my car and then I can test copying it.

Hope this helps everyone! I'll clean this post up a little and add some picts and make a new thread I think.

That's awesome

If you wanted to make some money back, you could rent it out for $20-$30 +shipping, throw in a pill (and maybe the burner acc login) and make an instructional video.
I have two keys, but would do it for the added security of a third.

[maytag]

Originally Posted by particlewave

That's awesome

If you wanted to make some money back, you could rent it out for $20-$30 +shipping, throw in a pill (and maybe the burner acc login) and make an instructional video.
I have two keys, but would do it for the added security of a third.

^^ this! ^^
I ONLY HAVE ONE KEY RIGHT NOW.... I'd make a couple at this price, and happily pay you the rental plus a fee. :-)

[A 986 S]

I'd love to be able to duplicate my key's pill. Do let me know if you decide to rent out your gizmo!

Cheers - dj

[Starter986]

I'd be in.