I bought a 370z... but it didn't come with the right key.
 

Greetings. Thank you in advance for any replies to my questions.

Quick story:

Two and a half years ago I purchased a used 2013 370z. I've been very happy with it. I purchased it from a Mitsubishi Dealership. Although the car was used, there were less than 3,000 miles on it, so I certainly felt like I was getting a brand new car.

Two days after I purchased it I discovered the physical key they gave me wouldn't lock or unlock the door. It just wouldn't turn. Of course I took it back to that same dealership that same day.

They confirmed it wasn't just me. Sure enough, the key didn't work. But they did not want to get in there and fiddle around with the inside of the door, to see what was causing the problem. They said it would "void all of the warranty if they did that." They suggested I take it to a Nissan Dealership, since it was still under warranty. Okay, fine.

Well, I never got around to it. After all, I didn't really "need" a physical/mechanical key. I could start, lock, and unlock the car without it. I figured I'd mention it the next time I did need to go to the dealership.

Fast forward to this past Friday. My "SERVICE ENGINE SOON" light came on, on the drive to work. The manual said much of the time this is related to an emissions problem, but not necessarily so. So this morning I took it to a nearby Nissan Dealership so they could check it out.

Do you want to know WHY that "Service Engine Soon" light came on?

Yep, you might have guessed the reason. It's because I don't have the original key! That key they gave me is not the right key for this car. (THAT, of course explains why this key wouldn't lock or unlock the doors.)

Furthermore, the service advisor told me that the service engine soon light will continue to come on, and eventually it will lock me out. It will lock the steering column, I believe he said, so that I'm not able to drive the car. (Some kind of a safety feature, or something.)

Nissan can set me up with a "good" key, or course... but it will cost me about $475, with parts and labor. (That's for just one key. An additional key will cost a bit more.)

A couple of questions:

Have you heard of this? A service light coming on after 2.5 years of driving, because I don't have the original key? Any idea why it didn't come on earlier than this? (I asked my service advisor this exact question and he didn't have an answer.)

Any idea how long I have until I'm "locked out?"

Note: I WILL go STRAIGHT BACK to that Mitsubishi Dealership at my very first opportunity, (probably tomorrow) and demand, politely, that they reimburse me for the cost of getting a new key. As I recall, I spent nearly $30,000 for this car. At that price it should come with a key that isn't going to eventually lock me out. Does anyone think this is an unreasonable request? How do you think they will respond?

Again, thank you for taking the time to respond.

The Mitsu dealership should be paying for at least one key for you.

Also, I have no idea how your car was starting if the key wasn't programmed for it. That makes no sense. I can see the physical key not matching the door tumblers, but the other part makes no sense.

So.. I have no basis for my thoughts, but I can't possibly believe the physical key being incorrect can cause what the dealership is saying.

This is part of the report given to me by Nissan:

Error Code B2191 Difference of Key

Description:

Performs ID verification through BCM and Intelligent Key when push-button ignition switch is pressed. Prohibits the release of steering lock (models with steering lock unit) or start of engine when an unregistered ID of Intelligent Key is used.

And yes, I agree, the physical key not matching the door tumblers shouldn't matter at all... but apparently I do need a whole new "registered" keyfob. But I still don't understand why I didn't have this problem a long, long time ago.

Well, hopefully the Mitsu dealer doesn't try to screw you over. I can easily see them saying screw off because it's been so long and you never properly addressed issue. But a good dealer will recognize their error and correct it at no cost to you. Good luck.

In the meantime, I wonder if pulling the fuse to the ESCL (steering lock) might be a good idea.

It's been 2.5 years and it was a used off brand car. I would be shocked if the dealership didn't just politely (or not so politely) ask you to leave.

You would be lucky if the Mitsu dealer will fix it for you. Should have got it fixed when you found out.

I'm with chuckles on this one.
Should the Mitsubishi dealer make it right? Yes.
Will they? I ain't holding my breath.
Make sure you bring your original paperwork with you. That will at least give you a timeframe for the original service call.
Good luck.

Kirk B.

It sounds to me like you got an electronic key that had been re-programmed to work with your car and they didn't bother the change the physical key. After a few years of use, the electronic key has started to fail.

Thanks to everyone who tossed in their two cents!

I'm actually one who enjoys going to court, whether it be for jury duty or for a small claims issue. I grew up reading Erle Stanley Gardner Perry Mason novels (the tv show was just okay) and I love that entire courtroom scene. If the Mitsubishi dealer doesn't make it right, I will definitely plan on taking them to small claims court. I do think I will have a pretty good case.

My point will be, of course, that even if I had "properly addressed the issue..." if I had taken it to a Nissan Dealer back then, Nissan would have come to the same conclusion... you have a key issue/problem. Mitsubishi would have had to address the issue then, too.

The fact that a couple of years have passed should be completely irrelevant.

We'll see what a judge says. (Assuming, of course, I don't get anywhere at Mitsubishi.)

reading this thread gave me a headache.. hope u found da solution.

next time just post da key points and get rid of all da tangents.

"I bought a 370z... but it didn't come with the right key".
Kinda sounds like the title of an old acoustic blues song.

It's a scam. Look up some of the YouTube videos regarding key fob scams. Dealers get a lot of repo and auction cars that unfortunately are always missing one or both key fobs. Since they're extremely expensive, dealers will either give you only one key fob hoping you don't complain, or provide you with one good and one from another car hoping you never use it. It's their way of saving $500 or more on the preparation of the car. Some high end marques key fobs cost thousands.
I'll bet Mitsubishi will not make it right because it was part of the sales strategy. All cars, whether new or slightly used, should come with two functional key fobs. Period!


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--> They confirmed it wasn't just me. Sure enough, the key didn't work. But they did not want to get in there and fiddle around with the inside of the door, to see what was causing the problem. They said it would "void all of the warranty if they did that." <--

Dealer knew it was not the "right" key. They just didn't want to make it right with you.

If one physical key works and the other didn't, we know what's the problem. Unless you only bought it with one car key.

I would have put in writing about the dealership buying the correct key for you at the time of the sale.
Please keep us informed on your situation.

No it doesn't - the title would be Zee Key Blues. What you've done is write the first line of the song.

Can you do the rest of the verse and maybe the chorus?

Or the "Key of Z Blues".

Kirk B.

Woke up this mornin' with a zee key in my hand
Fell outa bed - man I could hardly stand
Tumble down the stairs, and crawl into the street
Locked out of my car again - I'm dyin on my feet

I got them zee key blues... etc

Yes, when I bought it, they only gave me the one key fob.

Update:

I did go back to the Mitsubishi Dealership after work yesterday. I sat down with one of their Sales Managers and fully explained the story.

He was polite and personable. We talked for ten or fifteen minutes. Without him coming out and actually saying so, he did seem to agree with me that yes, we should have provided you with the right key, a physical key that will lock and unlock the doors and glove box!!

He said it wasn't up to him, but he made copies of all of the Nissan paperwork from my service call at morning. He promised he would be in touch with me soon. He did say he needed to pull up my file. He also he would also pull up their file from the person who they bought the car from, although I don't know how that information would be needed.

I do agree with one or more of the posters above that they probably knew, at the time, it wasn't the right key. I suspect that scenario is probably more likely than not.

The ONLY worry that I have is that too much time has passed. I suspect that will be their only "defense." I myself don't think that should matter, but obviously I'm a little biased.

We'll see what happens! Thanks again for the feedback and comments!

I'm hoping it all works out for you. Be sure to keep us updated!

Not to rain on your bad situation, but, you should have negotiated a spare key at time of purchase, when I bought my Z it came they were only offering me one key, after I negotiated the final price, I said take another $300 off or find me the spare key, guess what the 2nd key turned up while the car was getting detailed.

The moral of the story is; they will either find you a 2nd key or knock another $300 off no matter what the price you negotiated, they are always making money. ALWAYS.

Skipped past most of the responses so perhaps this was covered, but the reason you've not had any issue with the programming working is the second hand transmitter that was obviously programmed for the car somewhere along the lines works just fine. If it wasn't going to work it wouldn't have worked all along. Why after 2.5 years could you be having an issue? There is one answer.

The battery.

Replace the battery in the key fob and I bet it works just fine again. All you need from Nissan is the physical key insert ordered and then cut to match your tumblers.


And yes Mitsubishi dealer should cover the physical key replacement, or the entire fob if that's how it has to be ordered by vin.

This is a good thought, from ChaseZ. But make sure you use a good quality battery. Cheap ones sometimes give problems. It's definitely worth a try, if you haven't already.

This story falls under the heading of caveat emptor. The entire hassle could have been avoided by addressing the problem about 2 1/2 years ago, or by doing what the Mitsu dealer suggested...taking it immediately to the Nissan dealer. Seems to me that a used car dealer probably would have a legal obligation to provide an appropriate key at the time of sale. 2 1/2 years later...? Unless that's a really stand-up dealer, my suspicion is the the OP is SOL.

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

Note that I did replace the keyfob battery about six months ago. I replaced it because a different light appeared on the dash... the Intelligent Key System Warning Light. After replacing the battery, this light went away.

But you might be right... it still might be related to the keyfob battery. I bought two batteries at the time. Maybe I should replace it again already.

Note that the Service Engine Soon Light has yet to come on again. (The Nissan Service Manager said it eventually would.)

And after he told me the reason for the Service Engine Soon light was because of the key, I immediately asked him WHY I was just NOW seeing this light, after having had the car for more than two years.

He said he had no clue. But if it WAS related to nothing more than a weak battery in the keyfob, you would think he would have at least mentioned this possibility.

According to my 370z manual, there is ALSO an Unregistered Intelligent Key Warning Light . So this now brings us to three different warning lights that are all related to the Intelligent Key.

Thank you. It's been a bit more than two days since my visit to the Mitsu Dealership, and so far I haven't heard back from them. I hope to hear from them today. It shouldn't take three days to pull up my records and make a decision, one way or the other. (Shoot, even meeting me halfway would probably be okay at this point.)

Final entry. It took a couple of weeks... longer than it should have... but Mitsubishi came through and replaced the key for me.

I picked it up today, about an hour ago. I was in and out and ten minutes. They had already cut it ahead of time.

I now, for the first time since I bought the car in the summer of 2014, have physical key that can open the door and the glove box.

Thanks for everyone's comments and help.

:tup:

Was he in service or sales. The fact that service advisors are salesman aside.

Would he mention it? Who knows. Maybe he isn't think of it or maybe he would rather sell s $130 diagnosis than a $6 battery. Not that I have an inherent and well deserved mistrust of dealerships or anything of the sort.

Glad you got the new key finally. That's a small victory in itself. Was the issue with the other one ever resolved? Be interesting (and telling) to see if the issues pop up with this new key or not.

From what I've learned, when your vehicle is hooked up to a computer, to determine why a dashboard light comes on, the computer's diagnostic, the readout it gives you, is not always 100% correct.

Sure, it's probably correct a high percentage of the time, and that makes it easier for the technician, but it's not always 100% correct.

A GOOD tech will often look further, to confirm the computer's diagnostic is indeed the problem. That's probably not what happened when I took it to the Nissan Dealership. (But again, time is money.) When my Service Engine Soon light came on a few weeks ago, I now believe that my keyfob had somehow "lost communication" with the car, for a short period of time. (But not because if a weak or dead car battery or bad keyfob battery. I believe my batteries are fine.) That's all that happened. But Nissan saw the computer printout, saw that the physical key wasn't the right key, and said "Hey, you need a proper keyfob. But don't worry. We can set you up with one ...for several hundred dollars!"

Ha. There's nothing wrong with this keyfob. If there was I would most certainly have had problems with it a long, long time ago.

So yea, I should have been given a working physical key by Mitsubishi when I bought the car, but the keyfob they gave me was fine, and is fine. And they remedied the situation today by setting me up with a proper physical key for this car.

cool to see the dealership didn't eff you over, considering 2 years passed.

Kindly send a followup "thank you" letter to the dealership.