I have a 2002 tl type s that over this past weekend, I was out at a state park hiking, and lost the only key I had to the car. After searching through the woods for 3 hours, I finally gave up the hunt. Since the nearest Acura dealer is 100 miles away, I contacted Honda who ordered and received a new key for me based on the S#. They tell my that I have to get the car to them so it can be programmed, which involves an expensive tow.

I have an extra keyless remote so I can get in the car, and now have the unprogrammed key and was wondering if there was a way to bypass the immobilizer to drive to the dealer and get things reprogrammed. I have the manual and it looks like on the 5 pin harness going to the immobilizer I should be able to jump from pin 1 (12V) to pin 2 and 3 to provide the proper signal to the PCM. The problem is that I don't know for sure if the PCM is looking for a 12V signal or a grounded signal (or something else). I was trying to get this information before driving out to the park to re-live my outdoor experience. Anyone have any information on this one?

Thanks

I am unsure if that will work, i wasnt able to get it to work on mine and had it towed to the dealer.

I would think if it was that easy, you'd hear about car thieves stealing them that way.

This begs the question: How do thieves bypass the smart key system? Not looking for an actual technical answer that a thief could use, but is there flaw in the smart key system that they take advantage of? Expensive cars with sophisticated anti-theft devices still get boosted. Just wondering.

Sophisticated devices to grab the codes.

Just to let you know how things turned out. I called Acura in Minneapolis and they sent a set of cut keys down to Honda in LaCrosse, WI. I used the unprogrammed key to move the car in neutral so I could push it out of the parking spot and load it on a trailer. Once at Honda, they programmed the keys and I was back in business again. Needless to say, I ordered two keys so this won't happen again. In the process, the state park folks offered to watch the car for me (however I got a call at 1:00a.m. one night by the Highway Patrol wondering about the car), and a week after I lost the keys I got the car back. I didn't try the bypass because I didn't want to take a chance to damage anything.

On the road again....