Here's a riddle relating to the RL keyless entry system. You misplace one of your RL keyless entry system transmitters. Pretty sure it's around the house/garage but in your old age you can't find the damn thing. The second transmitter hangs on the key holder in the kitchen not more than 15 feet from the garage when not in use. So, of course we can open the car door and start it without the key in our immediate possession. In fact, one day my wife took our daughter to school, forgot the transmitter and was able to get home ok, because she didn't turn the ignition off.
So, how can you confirm that the lost key is in the vicinity somewhere hiding under a cabinet?? It can't be in the RL, right??
We think we finally figured it out (at least one way to do it). Let me hear your ideas/suggestions.
Thanks
MarkD

 

I think it has to be somewhere in the car because if you drove the car away and did not get the "key out of range" or a similar type of message, then the key is moving with the car.

If this is the case, then you should be careful taking the car out because technically, anyone can steal the car at this point.

 

It could be in the RL, but not in the trunk, because you would not be able to close the trunk.

Did you confirm (assuming the FOB are properly linked to thec car) which transmitter is starting the car? When you turn the starter knob you are greeted in the MID with Welcome Driver 1 or 2. If the MID displays welcome driver 2 and the transmitter hanging on the key holder is No. 1 then No. 1 could not be the transmitter starting the car, right? Therefore transmitter 2 which started the car is inface in the car someplace.

If my scenerio in incorrect then I admit I AM WRONG

 

Its got to be in the car because otherwise the car would not start.
The system is specifically designed to allow the starting of the car when the key in INSIDE the occupant space, and not outside the car-even just next to the door.
If a fob is in the trunk, still the car would not start, and neither would it let you close the trunk.
Start looking in the side cracks, under the seat, and in all the usual places-glove box, coin holder.

 

Usually it is in the center console where the cupholders are, but the little shelf is up, so it is not apparent.

 

All good responses. I took transmitter #2 with me to the car wash in the MDX which is several miles from home. My wife was able to start the RL which was still in the garage, which pretty much confirms that the transmitter is either in the car (which I checked closely, but admittedly, could have missed) or in the vicinity of the garage. I think we've established that the transmitter is not in the trunk but I thought that if the transmitter was inside the car, you couldn't lock the car with the door button. Anyway, when we do get in, the MID shows Driver #2, and Driver #1's transmitter is the one that's MIA. You're right about security. . . if we leave the car in the driveway, someone could start it and drive away. I'll do some nook and cranny searching tonight. Thanks to everyone who responded.
MarkD

 

Your last comment about the display showing driver#2 as the transmitter being recognized makes it even stranger and just got my attention.

If I read you correct, it's the OTHER transmitter that's missing. Maybe you have a rare coincidence going on. That coincidence being; 1) you have truly lost the transmitter somewhere far far way, and 2) the entry system is broken somehow and is stuck in the "enabled" mode.

 

I don't think that's right - If you get in the car and have both fobs with you, "Driver 2" is the one that seems to get recognized. I think it's obvious that the missing fob is in the car - otherwise you would see the "Keyless Remote not Detected" warning on the MID.

 

Maybe I misunderstood him. Clarify this point GotSand. Didn't you say the car starts with the #2 fob still in the kitchen? Am I crossing facts from separate postings? My last post was based on the assumption that fob#2 is still in the kitchen and you can get in the car and see it says "welcome #2" and drive away. if that's not true then I agree my thought on the subject isn't valid.

By the way, if you find this fob come by and search my car for a thin "credit card" remote. It controls my radio and I lost it in the car. I feel it's in the car because we used it WHILE driving one day and then noticed it was gone while STILL driving before we even stopped. Figured it fell between the seats but after several 20 minute searches we gave up. Never saw it again. It's been 2 years! Hope your transmitter isn't as good a hider.

 

The few times my wife has used the #2 fob in my car & I get in next time with mine in my pocket it will still say wellcome driver 2. I have to totally repair my fob by mashing the 2 buttons to get the car to recognize it.

 

When that's happened to me I just lock the doors manually (while sitting in the driver's seat) and unlock them with the #1 fob and all's well again.

LL

 

The fob #1 must be in the car somewhere. The fact that you get #2 profile on starting does not necessarily mean anything.

I have occassional troubles with relinking the fobs, so for example, the car starts with profile #2 even though I have key fob #1. I have to lock and unlock the car with key fob #1 in order to restore the #1 profile. I do not understand why that happens.

And oh, by the way, key fob #2 is in the house, about 15 feet away, and the car still starts in the presence of key fob # 1, only in this case, I know where key fob #1 is, and it is not lost as in the case of gotsand.

I am pretty sure gotsand's fob #1 is in the car somewhere.

Page 168 of the 2006 Manual:

The engine may not run, and some
malfunctions may occur, if the
remote is:
-Outside the vehicle.
-On the dashboard.
-On the rear interior panel.
-In the glove box.
-In the door pockets.
-In the trunk, etc.

The engine may not start if the
remote is subjected to strong radio
waves.
Also, the engine may not start if the
remote is too close to the windows.


NOTICE

Make sure you know where the remote
is when you are inside the vehicle.
Remember that you can start the engine
without using the built-in key when the
remote is inside the vehicle.
Make sure you always carry the remote
with you.

 

I had the same thing happen with my Razr cell phone. It slid somewhere under the seat and I couldn't see it for the life of me. I had to call it just to pinpoint where it was. It ended up wedged in the motorized seat mechanism and it took me 15 painful minutes to extract it.

Check your seat rails!

Rob144

 

Continued thanks for all the posts. Transmitter #1 is the lost one (my key unfortunately). The wife uses transmitter #2 (she has taken the RL and made it her own). She uses it to lock and unlock the car every day which pretty much explains why Driver 2 shows up in the mid. Its been our experience that we can enter/start the RL with the #2 transmitter either in our possession or hanging in the kitchen 10-15 feet away from the garage which we've done while searching for the lost key. We don't leave the house without the transmitter beyond the one time my wife left the house with the #2 transmitter still hanging in the kitchen. She got back home safely because she didn't turn off the ignition. She never mentioned seeing the MID message "keyless remote not detected" which may not surprise those of you who share your ride with a loved one who is not particularly "tech-minded" but loves to drive the RL despite that. I'm the forgetful one in our family so I will scour the car tonight looking everywhere even in the seat rails. I hope this thread has been some fun.
MarkD

 

I'm betting on either the passenger seat crack, somewhere under the seats, in the center console or the not-an-ashtray.

Or could it be on the outside, hidden by the windshield wiper fairing?

 

she uses the #2 transmitter to lock and unlock the car...
wait, you cant lock the car if a fob is in the car, you can only lock the car with the KEY.
So if she is locking the car with the remote, or by the dimple-Houston we have a problem, cause you arent supposed to be able to do that.

 

I find it hard to believe that you can start the car with the remote 10 - 15 feet away. I left my keys on the workbench once and got into the car and it wouldn't start, and that's much less than 15ft away. Heck, if I trying starting the car too quickly after I've gotten in (still not completely in my seat) it doesn't turn right away.

Something's fishy.

 

I agree with GoHawks, the FOB has to be in the car to start. That said, I would like to know how car is locked if FOB1 is in car. Has anyone tried locking the car with one FOB in hand and the other FOB in the car? If that works, then everything makes sense and FOB1 is lost inside the car.

Regardin ssim3 comment, he Driver 1 and Driver 2 settings only change when car is unlocked or when memory button pushed. Thus, if your wife used FOB2 and did not lock the car before you used, then Driver 2 settings will remain. You can either push Memo1 to change settings or just touch the lock dimple quickly before you get in.

 

The key fob has to be in the car. I put key fob 1 in the car.

I LOCKED the car with key fob 2 from the outside with key fob 1 sitting on the passenger seat.

I unlocked the car with key fob 2, got in and started it, and the car said welcome driver 2

I shut off the car, moved key fob 2 into the house, 30 feet away from the car, and got in again and started the car. It said welcome driver 2. key fob 1 was still sitting on the passenger seat.

I took key fob 1 out of the car 10 feet away, and the car would not start.

Your key fob 1 is in the car somewhere.

 

have you checked inside the glove compartment in the tray that is in the top of the glove comparment for the manual? you have to press the button at the top of the inside of the glovebox to open up the tray.

 

This is REALLY off topic, but is that a jeepney in your avatar?
And let us know if you find it and where cause this is very interesting.. BTW I read somewhere that theives can gain the code being transmitted by your keyless start FOBs so you guys should be careful. The article said something about wrapping your FOBs in foil when not in use to prevent that. I'm not sure how accurate that is though. That kind of makes me glad that I don't have that feature on my TL. Sounds fun though.

 

I wonder if Acura Service dept (or someone) has a handheld transponder that can act as a "homing device" to 1) prove the fob is really in the car, and then 2) zero in on it's location. Probably not, but it would be cool if they did. Call the dealer. You never know what suggestions they may have.

 

If it's not in the car, then the car wash guys must have set it on the windshield...it then fell down into the fairing by the wipers. Voila...outside the car, but close enough to start the engine, and traveling with you.

Logical?

 

Go to the dealer. If it's in the car they'll find it. I temporarily lost a sunglass lens between the seat the center console. I finally extracted it after a great deal of searching.

The fey fob is so small and slippery I'm surprised this doesn't happen more often.

 

This is why I'm aggravated that the RL doesn't have a place to PUT the key (like BMW, Mercedes, etc.). It's not stupid enough to include a "dummy" key to start the car (which is often left 'on' by car washes, glass tinting places, etc.), but the fact that I have to hand a fob to someone and explain what it is and not to lose it is, well, stupid.

 

So i have seem to have an issue, no matter what i try i cant get the Drive 1 remote recognized. I have tried the link/unlnk method, but doesnt work. Any suggestions?

 

If the initial dealer set up is correct, simply locking and unlocking it with Driver 1 should work, but since you have tried all that, I think going to the dealer to get Driver 1 reprogrammed is most likely your best bet.

 

OK, I'll bite...did the riddle of the phantom fob ever get solved??

 

So i finally got the driver 1 recognized again...painful i tell you...i did the link unlink 50 times, opened the door and loced the door with the remote 1, and not sure what did it, but it finally took. Also i reloaded the NAV software, now it works good.....BUT my seats and steering wheel never return to the memory positions any suggestions?????

 

Key fob #1 is still MIA and I started the car last Sunday from outside the garage when my wife and key fob #2 were in the kitchen in the house at least 20 feet away. I can do that regularly, but I don't want to drive away from the vicinity of the house, because the car might be out of range if I wanted to restart it. I really searched the car under the seats and in between the console. My best guess is that my key #1 is in the garage underneath something which allows me to start it without a remote physically in my possession but nearby. I, too, wish there was a way to find it electronically like a beeper or something. We're managing ok without that second key. My wife drives the RL most of the time anyway.
For pnoi521: my avatar is a jeepney (my wife is Filipino) and when we lived in Manila, I was always riding or dodging those suckers. Cheap, colorful transportation but crowded for American butts.
MarkD

 

Again, the car will not start if the fob is not in the interior of the vehicle. There are pages in the owner's manual (128 and 136 in the 2005 manual) that show the schematics of where the fob will operate in terms of keyless access and starting the ignition.

 

That's all true if we assume everything is working properly. GotSand; I suggested the possibility in the beginning of this thread that maybe your security system is broken. Did you take it to the dealer?

One other question; you said the system always shows Driver 2 as the one registered eventhough the Driver 2 key is not in the vicinity. Did you try locking the door and unlocking it while the Driver 2 key is not near the car? If so, then check what the WELCOME screen says. If it still says Welcome Driver 2 then I'm more and more convinced you have a broken system. If it says Welcome Driver 1 then I agree the fob might still be in the car and it's using Driver 1 to activate the ignition

 

You can start an RL with the key on the moonroof (outside the car).

 

Here's my suggestion to figuring out whether the fob is in the car. Unlock the door with the fob you have, then remove the key from the fob and put the fob in the house as far from the car as possible.

Get in the car (bringing the back up key with you) and try to start it with the start switch. If the car starts, I would believe the fob is in the car. Just to be sure though, drive away from your house and turn the car off.

If you are able to start the car using the started switch, the remote IS lost in the car (or you have a major security issue). If it doesn't start, than you use the manual back up key to get home and start searching the garage.

 

This past weekend the valet kept my fob & the display showed an orange fob & said fob was missing. Even stayed like that after I retreived the fob. he was only 3-5 feet from the car. So yours is either in the car or your electronics are farked.

 

I lost my key #1 too. I pray every day that I don't lose #2.
I can't believe there isn't an RF locater device available. There has got to be some tool I can use to walk around the house and have it indicate I am within 5-10 feet of the damn thing.
Does anyone know what frequency it transmits ?
anyone know of an rf frequency locator ?

 

As you can see this has happened before. It almost happened to me last month but luckily I saw it fall and new where it went. Had I not known the exact location there's no way I would have ever found it.

Between the seat and the center console there is your typical gap. However, the car is laid out in such a way that if something falls down there it can get lodged between the center hump and the seat rail in an almost impossible position to find. Even moving the seat fully forward and fully back doesn't help. There's no visibility to this location. Get a ruler (etc.) and try fishing down there.

Be persistent when checking this location because even though I new EXACTLY where it was, it took me 15 minutes (and my daughters little hands) to finally get it out. I never did see it until it was finally removed. I was only going by touch

 

You DID give her the little hands back?

I have a wooden dowl about 18 inches long. I have used it more than once to slide it along the seat rails to dislodge keys, cell phone, stadium tickets and credit cards, all of which tend to be sucked down there at the most inopportune moments. It is also less messy than little hands which have an annoying trait of leaving blood stains on the leather.

<ducking>

 

Good idea about the dowel. I should keep something like that in the glove box because I'm sure this will happen again -- when those little hands aren't available

By the way, no blood. It's all good.

 

There probably is a way to build something like that. Search the web. These fobs are transponders. They both transmit and respond to signals (unlike a dumb keyless remote). You theoretically should be able to zero in on it

When I was in High School I knew a guy who was an electronics wiz. He probably could have built something to do this in a weekend using radio shack parts! To bad I don't know where he is anymore