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I have a 2002 Daewoo Lanos SX which uses coded key. From time to time the car will stop detecting the key and I get into a situation where I'm unable to start the vehicle. The problem usually lasts between 1 and 5 minutes and after that the car recognizes the key. So far I'm unable to detect what happens when the key does get detected and I'm unable to reproduce the problem at will. I've tried replacing the keychain, turning various power consumers on and off (like AC, fans and so on), but as far as I can see, the do not have any effect on the key recognition.

They key itself is sealed, so I can't just replace the battery.

The local authorized repair shop keeps telling me that everything is working fine and that there are no problems with the system.

So where do I start solving this problem?

UPDATE The key itself looks like the AKK153 on this page.

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1 Answer

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It does sound like a low battery on the key. I would look into possible replacement of the key, as other electrical items like the AC, should not be interfering with key detection.

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I'll see if I can get another key. Also, are wireless power transfer systems in cars common? The key itself looks too small to contain a battery and a circuit board, so I always assumed that it must be powered from something inside the car, like the way passive RFID tags are. – AndrejaKo May 5 '11 at 14:49
@Andrejako, I am not sure if the key is passive or not. Is it like a fob that has lock and unlock buttons as well? – jzd May 5 '11 at 19:18
No. It just looks like a regular key. There's no way to open it and there are no buttons on it. The plastic part has around 1/5 volume of the "smart" key for 2009 Toyota Corolla. I just found an image of similar key, so I'll post it. – AndrejaKo May 5 '11 at 20:13
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@andrejako most of those types of keys do use the RFID type system you are referring to – Larry♦ May 6 '11 at 1:59

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