http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releas...-rci012905.php

I am wondering is the RL's keys are the same or similar to the ones evaluated by the researchers.

 

One thing's for sure - stay the heck away from Johns Hopkins.

 

NO.... "Keyless remote control systems to lock and unlock car doors do not use RFID chips" It pretends to the Modbil quick access key develop like 8 years ago.

 

We know of two RL owners in the SF area had their cars entered and items stolen without signs of forced entry.

 

There are a number of TL folks that had cars entered and stolen (most notably in Atlanta and SF).

I didn't know the RL had the same issue, but doesn't surprise me.

-josh

 

Happened to my RL here in Chicago. Of course I figured out after the fact that I hadn't locked it.

 

So it wasn't due to someone triggering the keyless system.

 

Obviously not - my point really is I wonder if reported break-ins with no signs of forced entry were also possibly just opening unlocked cars (in the same manner that "unintended acceleration" cases were nothing more than people mashing the gas pedal but wishing to blame something else - like Audi - for their mistake).

 

I agree that this is a very likely cause. A few times I almost forgot to lock the doors.

 

I too have forgotten to lock the doors but I have been lucky that nobody has tried to enter.
Does anybody think that it would be a good idea to make it programmable to enable the car to auto lock after a few minutes if the fob is not in the vicinity?

 

I think it would be a good option to enable, but not to have it set at the factory without user customability.
I have always missed the auto lock function of the old aftermarket alarms, many in the 80's and 90's would auto lock the car after you turned off the ignition and opened a door then closed it.
Of course none of the factory alarms did that.

 

Well I'm sure you've all noticed that the backup keys in our fobs are 70s technology. I'm sure every car jacker worth his job knows how to open those without much trouble. Frankly it's a disgrace that a car in this price class has such shoddy keys. Security of the keyless entry is rather pointless when the backdoor is wide open.

 

The Key has a transponder built in, you cant start the car unless the key is coded into the cars computer.
Its not 70's tech.... cmon now.

 

Hmm, that's news. I thought the backup key was a fully mechanical affair. Does the transponder prevent the door from being opened too? My key's at the shop now so I can't check what it looks like when removed from the fob. Never noticed any contacts for a transponder but I could have easily missed them.

 

in the small part of the plastic on the key, there is a different chip imbedded, if you get a blank key from any vendor other than Acura (try a local locksmith or other utility shop) and have a key cut exactly as your acura key, it will unlock the door through the mechanical lock, but if you try to start the car, it will not start, it will crank but the system will not initialize the fuel system.
Acura has designed a fail safe to start the car in the event the fob fails, and its not reliant on the same system either. So if either part of the fob system fails, the receivers or the fob, you can still start the car with a properly coded key.
The only way to code the key is to have it read through the car using HDS tool.
Ans I will repeat what I have said before, the Acura system gives the owner of the car a backup to start the car, whereas the Lexus and other button only systems do NOT have a backup system to start the car.
If I am mistaken, someone can correct me on that point.

 

Thanks Sotiri. I wish my door was a little better protected with a more advanced mechanical lock but it's good to know at least the car can't be started that easily.

When I checked out an M45 last year the guy showed me the key embedded in the keyfob for when the battery died in the fob. At least that's what I remember.

 

well nothing can protect you from a slimjim or a brick.
Every tow guy knows how to slimjim a door, even ours can be done. Hell, I have been able to unlock doors with a good coathanger... and picking off the power lock button on the inside.

 

A few times I've done more than that... I actually DO forget to lock the doors.

When I come back to the car I'm grabbing the handle all sorts of ways trying to get the darn "beep beep" sound and finally just pull and the door opens.

Stupid me.

 

so have I, much to my amazement.
Get this, I remember to lock the car in the garage, but I forget to lock it on a city street.
I think its because the habit isnt there yet, old fob's you use it to lock and unlock, now we are conditioned to not use it to unlock, and so we probably forget to use it to lock... and its counter-intuitive to go to the door handle to lock as we walk away.

 

For me I was just used to my other car having the auto-lock/unlock feature and stupidly assumed that my new Acura had the same type of function as my lowly Chevy. Walk up to it, it unlocks, walk away, it locks (all this assumes you have your keyfob, I'm not suggesting the car is prescient). It's a minor nit and I recognize there's only so many features that people are going to want/accept and a car builder has to figure out where to draw the line.

 

I take it that feature can be turned off though? There are certainly times I want the car to remain unlocked when I walk away from it.

You get used to the keyless ignition really quickly I must say. It's confusing when I drive my wife's A6 or my loaner TSX

 

The RL is smart enough to know if the fob is in or out of the car. The Chevy will lock your keys in the car if you leave them on the seat and you exit the car. The Chevy system we can do without.

 

Errr, so the RL is smart but the owner is dumb (leaving the keys in the car)? Please don't count me in your "we" and instead speak for yourself. The Chevy system just takes enough of a push on the car to rock it and cause the little ball bearing in the key fob to move and generate the signal that unlocks the car, if the owner actually left the keys in the car and walked away. You do understand, of course, that the RL system you prefer will NOT lock the car so that should the driver walk away with the keys in the car the next (non-owner) to walk up to the car and try the door will be rewarded with an unlocked car with keys? I'm not saying either system is better (certainly wasn't my intent) - leaving your keys in the car is always bad - but you seem to overlook that:
A) getting the Chevy to unlock is pretty simple and
B) not locking the car when you leave your keys in it and walk away isn't exactly a feature I see a marketing department wanting to brag about

For the previous poster, yes, it's very simple to disable the feature on the Chevy; there's a switch on the fob to turn on or off the passive lock/unlock feature.

 

So, knowing this, every thief will walk up to every Chevy and shove it... and if it unlocks, they're rewarded with a Chevy and keys, too....right? So how is that more secure?

Whereas if you leave your keys in an RL and try and lock it, it will not lock... and if you're paying attention you'll notice that you get no beep and no flash, and then you'll remember that your keys are in the car.

Me? I use the handsfree system to unlock but generally use the key fob button to lock the car, because having to hit that little button on the door handle seems counterintuitive.

 

I too fail to see the advantage of the Chevy system and to state that you could be rewarded with a Chevy! What is second prize - Two Chevy's?

 

That actually made me laugh out loud....