tiplady

2014 RDX with Tech Package. My FOB died and when I tried to use the built in key I was unable to open the door? Any ideas?

Thanks

RenoTL

Could the battery in the FOB gotten dislodged a bit when you removed the built-in key? I know I had problems with my FOB not working and found that my battery was not properly and fully in place. Once I seated the battery well, it has worked flawlessly since.

RDX10

I think he means that he tried removing the key from the smart key fob and the key did not work to open the car like it should have.

tiplady

RDX10 is correct. My FOB battery died so I removed the built in key from the fob and inserted the key into the drivers side door lock. The key turns but will. It unlock the door. I replaced the battery in the fob and was able to unlock the car using the button on the fob. I tied the built in key from a secon fob and still no luck. I read the manual and did not see anything regarding disabling the built in key.

Brown13

Built in key should work even if fob battery is dead.Key should work even if fob is not there.
Key will not work if car battery is dead.If new car They gave You the wrong key/fob combination.

markAZ

That sounds like the problem. Hmmm...Never thought about that...might be a good idea to check if you have the right key before you need it.

Heading to the garage...

Comfy

Exactly. The mechanical key has nothing to do with any electronics. It's purely hardware / locksmith stuff. If it's not working, that's the wrong one.

tiplady

I can insert the key and turn left and right, but nothing happens. I'll contact the dealer.
Thanks!

tiplady

Called Acura and they said that if the key turns then it is the correct key as an incorrect key would not turn. Of course they have never seen this scenario before so I'll have to bring the car in. Very strange that both keys I have exhibit the same behavior.

thoiboi

For whatever reason, it could be that the door lock cylinders became detached from the lock mechanism inside the door panel. Surprising for a 3 year old car but not impossible considering not many people use that key and typically just use the fob to unlock/lock

tiplady

Thanks for the update!

chickdr

Please let us know what the dealer finds. That is a strange issue and would be quite bad if you were stuck in a parking lot in the rain somewhere....

tiplady

Will update when this gets fixed. BTW that's basically what happened.....My wife and I came back from a run (on a 40 degree day) and could not get into the car. Luckily I was able to have my son drive the spare fob to where we were stuck.

chickdr

What a horrible experience. Sad day for Acura....

tiplady

Here's an update. I removed the grommet on the inside of the drivers door that is in line with the door handle. I can see that the mechanical arm that rotates when the key is turned is disconnected. This is why the door will not open with physical key.

Also for the second time (this time with a different fob) we were unable to get into the car on a 38 degree day. Its like the fob is dead. I warmed up the fob in my hand with some warm air and it started working. No low battery message is being displayed.

chickdr

Have you tried changing the battery anyway? Maybe it is low but not enough to trigger a warning yet.

tiplady

Problem solved. Dealer reconnected the post inside the door and now the built in key is working.

chickdr

So glad there was a solution. I wonder if mine has the same issue. I may ask about it since we have a lot of issues with ours.