Spare car key cost: why one spare now beats all-keys-lost

Almost nobody thinks about a spare car key until they are standing next to a car they cannot start. By then the cheap option is gone. This is the one piece of car-key advice worth acting on today rather than tomorrow, and the reason is simple money.

Two jobs, two very different prices

There are really only two situations, and they cost very different amounts.

The first is a spare. You still have at least one working key, and you want another one made. Because there is a working key to program from, this is the quick, straightforward version of the job.

The second is all-keys-lost. Every key is gone, so there is nothing to copy. A fresh key has to be programmed to the car from scratch, and the immobiliser side has to be set up with no existing key to work from. It takes longer and it costs more.

Same car, same key. The only difference is whether you still had a working key when you booked. That difference is what you are paying for.

Why a spare is cheaper

The immobiliser is the electronic gatekeeper that stops your engine starting unless it sees the right chip. When you have a working key, that key is already trusted by the immobiliser, so adding another one is a relatively simple step.

When every key is lost, that trust has to be rebuilt from nothing. That is more work, more time, and on some vehicles a more involved procedure. More time on the job means a higher price. It is not a markup, it is just a bigger job. You can read what that bigger job involves in what happens when you lose your car keys.

What changes the cost

A guide like this cannot give you a number, because the price depends on your vehicle. The things that move it are:

• Key type. A basic transponder key is cheaper than a remote or flip key, which is cheaper again than a smart or proximity fob.
• Make, model and year. Coverage and method vary from one model and year to the next, and the newest high-security platforms can be dealer-only.
• Spare versus all-keys-lost. As above, this is the big one.

That is why the honest answer to any key job starts with the same request: text your make, model and year, and a real quote comes back against your actual vehicle. Nothing is guessed.

When to get a spare made

The best time is while both your keys still work. The next best time is the moment you are down to one. A spare is worth making sooner rather than later if:

• You only have one working key, full stop.
• More than one person drives the car.
• It is a work vehicle you cannot afford to have off the road.
• Your only key is worn, cracked, or getting unreliable in the ignition.

Bring the working key when you come in. That is what the spare is programmed from. You will also need your registration or VIN and photo ID, because ownership is confirmed before any key is programmed. More detail on that is on the spare car key page.

The bottom line

A spare key made today is cheap insurance against an expensive, stressful day later. It turns a potential all-keys-lost recovery into a non-event, because you simply grab the other key. There is no downside to having one and a real cost to not having one.

If you are down to a single key, do not wait. Text your make, model and year to the key line and get a spare quoted while it is still the cheap job. If you want the technical side of how the spare is coded to your car, see car key programming in Adelaide.