DealersEdge Professional Forums

We just found out the hard way that the flip key keyless remote transmitters cannot be programmed to a new vehicle once they are taken from another vehicle.

We had a couple of takeoffs of GM #20873623 and tried to resell them but they cannot be programmed.

All they are good for once a customer decides they do not want them anymore after upgrading to a remote starter is the battery and the blank key shaft if you have a laser cutter.

There are companies out there that have the ability to unlock them and make them usable again!

We sold all of ours to Midwest Keyless for that very reason.

Just out of curiosity Denise, what did you get for them?

AaronKeyMan wrote:Just out of curiosity Denise, what did you get for them?

Honestly, I sold them along with many other types & styles of keys & transmitters we could not use (other franchise brands). I am not certain what each transmitter was worth, by brand or type.

Are you a buyer as well?

Haha you got me! I work for a company that sells keys and remotes to dealerships, used car dealers, and rental car companies all over the world. We do indeed buy those products, but I usually push my customers a different direction. For around $8 to $10 each, I can unlock the remote and replace the blade, making it useful to the dealership again. Most of my customers save up their miscuts or bad keys and send them to us in batches to be repaired.

Perhaps AaronKeyMan could help us all out and simply tell us how to "unlock" the key transmitters???

LOL! Believe me, if that was possible, I'd go for it in a heartbeat! I've been a key and remote supplier for about 8 years, making my living by selling directly to dealerships. I am a dealer man through and through, and would love to be see the power of unlocking in the dealership's hands, but the technology used to unlock the used chips is kept tightly under lock and key by those who have it. There are only a couple places in the country that have the ability to do it, and all the companies that do what I do use their services. We have been trying to figure out how to unlock them ourselves for a few years, and we aren't the only ones! There have been some new products released to the aftermarket this past year that give you the ability to rewrite chip values, as well as a one size fits all cloneable chip released by JMA that will clone almost any key on the market. That makes me think that personal chip unlocking machines can't be too far down the road. If and when that technology becomes public, you can bet that the price of keys will come down quite a bit!