GREAT SOUTHERN LOCK
Tool · Car keys
What kind of car key do you have?
Three questions. It tells you which of the four key types you are holding, what replacing it actually involves, and what to have ready before you ring anyone.
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Most people ringing about a car key cannot say what type it is, and that is completely reasonable — nobody is told. But it is the single thing that most changes what the job takes and what it costs. Answer three questions and you will know.
1. Does the key have buttons on it?
2. Roughly what year is the car?
3. Do you still have a working key — any working key, anywhere?
Why the key type is the whole question
Four types, four different jobs. A basic key is cut in minutes. A transponder key has to be cut and programmed to the immobiliser, which is why a copy cut at a hardware counter will turn in the barrel and not start the engine — a genuinely common and expensive surprise. A remote head key adds the buttons. A proximity smart key is mostly programming and almost no cutting, and it is the type where make, model and year matter most.
If the tool says transponder and your copy will not start the car
That is the expected behaviour, not a fault. The blade is right and the chip is missing or unprogrammed. The fix is programming, not another cut key.
If you only have one key left
Get a spare. Cutting a spare while a working key exists is a straightforward job at a time that suits you. Originating a key with none left is a longer job at whatever hour it happens to be. The gap between those two prices is large and entirely avoidable.
More detail on both: car key replacement, what it costs, and locksmith or dealership.
Talk to a person
Every question on this page has a specific answer for your actual lock, car or building. One call, straight to the mobile, 24 hours.
- No call centre
- Price before any tool comes out
- ABN 73 112 836 867, insured
Questions
Common questions
How accurate is this tool?
It gets the type right for the large majority of cars on Melbourne roads, but it is working from three questions rather than looking at your key. Treat it as a good starting point, not a quote. Make, model and year on the phone is what makes a price accurate.
My key has buttons but the car has a normal ignition. Which is it?
A remote head key or flip key — a transponder key with the remote built in. Both the chip and the remote get programmed to the car.
Can you do proximity smart keys?
For most makes and models, yes, at the car. A small number of very recent models gate programming behind manufacturer authorisation, and we will tell you that on the phone rather than after arriving.
Does the emergency blade inside a smart key need cutting?
Usually yes if you want it to work in the door lock, and it is worth having. It is the thing that gets you into the car when the fob battery dies.
Can I replace my car key myself?
For a pre-1995 car with a plain mechanical key, yes — any key cutter can copy it. For anything with a chip in it, no. A transponder, remote head or proximity key has to be programmed to your specific vehicle with equipment that talks to the car's immobiliser, and an uncut, unprogrammed blank bought online is a piece of plastic until someone with that equipment finishes the job.
Can I reprogram my car key myself?
A small number of models allow an owner to add a spare key using an on-board procedure, and only when at least one working key already exists. Most do not, and none allow it when every key is lost. If your handbook describes such a procedure it is worth ten minutes of your time before you ring anyone. If it does not, no amount of button-pressing will do it.
Is it possible to track a lost car key?
Not the key itself — car keys have no GPS and the transponder chip only responds at a range of a few centimetres. A Bluetooth tracker on the keyring will show you the last place your phone saw it, which is genuinely useful indoors and useless once the key is out of range. If the key is gone rather than mislaid, the security question matters more than the tracking one: whoever has it can open the car, which is a reason to have the key deprogrammed rather than just cut a replacement.
Locked out, or need a key cut right now?
One call goes straight to the mobile — no call centre, no queue. You speak to a locksmith, not a switchboard. Can't talk? Text a photo of the lock and we'll come back with a firm price.