I Was Having Some Issues With My Challenger's Key Fob

[mxz600]

Doing a search to find some answers I came across this video of Farm Girl having a problem with her key fob.

I know people are not going to care about my key fob issues, but this is a video with "Farm Girl". Everybody likes videos done with Farm Girl.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_24McYeG7fQ

[wyliec]

Farm girl is clothed to heavily this time.

[billybovine]

I have to agree that she is wearing an abundance of clothes in this vid.

Now to the key fob issue. A clear case of RTFM. It is all covered in there. The battery in the key fob is on it's last legs and needs to be changed. Available in almost any corner store. Also they accidently discovered how to start the car, with a dead battery in the key fob. Really, all covered in the manual as well.

[DGoebel]

I wonder if most Challenger owners are having too much fun driving their Challengers to read the ... manual (at least until they go into winter storage).

[mxz600]

I have to agree that she is wearing an abundance of clothes in this vid.

Now to the key fob issue. A clear case of RTFM. It is all covered in there. The battery in the key fob is on it's last legs and needs to be changed. Available in almost any corner store. Also they accidently discovered how to start the car, with a dead battery in the key fob. Really, all covered in the manual as well.

Hey Billy, sorry about the fully clothed Farm Girl.:(
But the main thing here is, don't you know real men don't need to RTFM!!! Joking aside, I am a manual reader. Today's technology is sometimes over my head so I have to get out the book from time to time.

My fob wasn't doing any of the classic symptoms associated with a low or dead battery. I never had a problem entering a locked door when using the handle or starting the engine. I had an intermittent problem where the fob wouldn't unlock the door or start the engine. If I opened the locked door with the handle and closed the door, then the fob would work. I could lock and unlock the door or start the car. Come back to the car later and no go, odd. My spare fob that never gets used would act the same way. I figured the battery couldn't be bad in that one also. I thought I might have a computer problem with the car.

Before taking it to the dealership I figured I'd change the battery just in case. What did I have to lose except $3.00. Well, it seems to have fixed the problem, got my fingers crossed.

As far as the fob that never gets used not working, I do find that odd. Battery's have quite a shelf life but I'm sure Dodge uses the cheapest Chinese batteries they can get their hands on. I bought a 2 pack of batteries so I'll change the battery in my spare fob as well.

[billybovine]

Hey Billy, sorry about the fully clothed Farm Girl.:(
But the main thing here is, don't you know real men don't need to RTFM!!! Joking aside, I am a manual reader. Today's technology is sometimes over my head so I have to get out the book from time to time.

My fob wasn't doing any of the classic symptoms associated with a low or dead battery. I never had a problem entering a locked door when using the handle or starting the engine. I had an intermittent problem where the fob wouldn't unlock the door or start the engine. If I opened the locked door with the handle and closed the door, then the fob would work. I could lock and unlock the door or start the car. Come back to the car later and no go, odd. My spare fob that never gets used would act the same way. I figured the battery couldn't be bad in that one also. I thought I might have a computer problem with the car.

Before taking it to the dealership I figured I'd change the battery just in case. What did I have to lose except $3.00. Well, it seems to have fixed the problem, got my fingers crossed.

As far as the fob that never gets used not working, I do find that odd. Battery's have quite a shelf life but I'm sure Dodge uses the cheapest Chinese batteries they can get their hands on. I bought a 2 pack of batteries so I'll change the battery in my spare fob as well.

My comments where directed at the video, not at you.

There are 3 different systems at work with these new key fobs.
First are the push button functions on the fob. They send a signal when the button is pressed. These functions only use battery power, in the fob, when the button is pressed. The car is always listening for a signal and is using battery power all the time. That technology has been around for a long time.
Second are the proximity functions. Door unlocking when you get close or engine starts with a push button. The key fob cannot be transmitting all the time. That takes too much power. But needs to be listening for a signal from the car all the time. So the fob needs to consume a small amount of power whether it's being used or not. So even the spare fob battery is going to run down over time. But should last longer than the active fob. IMHO maybe a good idea to change out the battery in the spare fob if the battery in active runs down.
Third function is starting when the battery in the key fob is dead. That is a simple transponder chip. Same technology that's in our Spyder key. No fob battery power needed at all. FCA vehicle, like your Challenger or my RAM, have their transponder antenna in the start button. Some other companies have their transponder antenna in a slot in the glove box to slip the key fob in. This info will be in the owners manual.

The flat battery in our fobs are very sensitive to temperature. Especially when they have been run down a bit. So if it is in a cold place. The fob may not work. Put it in you pocket for a while and it may start working again.

[Bob Denman]

:shocked: What key fob? :shocked: