GM introduces a super keyfob.

[Roadrunner]

1) You lose a Focus key and the dealer charges $80 to fix it. I bought a brand new one from eBay for $12 on a "Buy it Now", so if the guy is still making a profit, you figure the true value of it. I programmed it myself BEFORE losing the second key. Same with the fob/ Bought two of them brand new for $20.

 

You lose the second key though, you have to get the dealer to interface with the PATS system to reset it.

 

Interesting to note. And it looks pretty damn easy to program: http://members.aol.com/abacuses/patsinstr.jpg

 

I just wonder if it comes with working lock/unlock buttons, because as I said, the car won't accept a key in the door without setting off the alarm (stupid but understandable security feature). I barely remember what the Focus key looks like - is it integrated?

[Ron W.]

I didn't think remote start systems ran that long. I thought most cut off after 10-15 minutes.

 

20 minutes max on mine, and yes during a Minnesota winter it gets used often.

97 F150 non-pats Viper brand remote start because of the lifetime warranty versus Fords 12/12

Edited November 10, 2006 by Ron W.

[swenson88]

Seems to me most of the info this key fob from GM shows makes better sense coming from your dashboard, not a key fob. Probably not a bad idea to tell you how long your car has been running since you used the remote start so you're not wasting gas for 15minutes (longer than my whole commute), but not necessary by any means. I have no use for remote start at all, and I live in Massachusetts. I see no reason to be burning gas just so my car is warm when I get in it. The only time my vehicle gets turned on is when I'm ready to drive away.

[J-150]

I think you interpreted that wrong. The point is you use it to see how long your car has been "warming up" since you started it remotely on --say-- a cold day.

 

You know there are people who even forget about that, and leave the engine running for like half an hour without noticing.

 

I just leave my car running for a minute or so before leaving my house. I know remote start doesn't sound like much, but it's a cool feature to have if you're in a hurry doing other things before leaving. Car is ready by the time you enter it. I think it would be great if in the future GM --or anyone else-- allowed you to do something similar with cooled or heated seats.

 

 

 

so you think that GM encouraging excessive idling, which is against the law in some municipalities, is a good idea?

 

Great for wasting gas and spewing unnecessary exhaust fumes into the air. And sorry, DoD doesnt make up for that.

 

 

And anyone that doesn't look at their gas gauge obviously isnt looking at their other gauges either. So they desrve to run out of gas, overheat, lose oil pressure, etc.

 

How about taking exisitng fobs and making them smaller...

 

I don't know... maybe like Ford did with the Fusion key maybe? Now that is some useful shit right there. Far more that telling me how long my car has been idling.

[Anthony]

so you think that GM encouraging excessive idling, which is against the law in some municipalities, is a good idea?

 

Wow! GM has a secret agenda to destroy the Earth with this keyfob! Next stop, the universe!

 

[pcsario]

Yeah, I don't get where he and Richard got that idea. I wasn't even talking about remote start in general, just the fact a lot of people still think you need to leave the car warming up for several minutes.

[Edgey]

Richard likes to come up with every excuse in the world why a feature shouldn't be available on a Ford and GM is stupid for bothering their customers with this. My favorite excuse for why Ford didn't have an iPod connection in their vehicles is because Ford's brilliant safety engineers discovered it was a potential hazard. In the meantime, those same engineers couldn't figure out that their CD3 cars would perform terribly in crash tests. But of course, the IIHS tests are completely bogus!

[RichardJensen]

Richard likes to come up with every excuse in the world why a feature shouldn't be available on a Ford and GM is stupid for bothering their customers with this. My favorite excuse for why Ford didn't have an iPod connection in their vehicles is because Ford's brilliant safety engineers discovered it was a potential hazard. In the meantime, those same engineers couldn't figure out that their CD3 cars would perform terribly in crash tests. But of course, the IIHS tests are completely bogus!

Did you notice where they stuck the aux jack on the new Fords?

 

Right above the parcel tray (it's not on the head unit), and in case your memory has shortened, I posited that Ford's designers didn't want the cord running past the HVAC controls, and potentially getting tangled in the shifter.

 

And that's not even remotely related to the CD3 crash test performance. As though there was some mastermind at Ford directly in charge of everything, and that said mastermind was bent on making Ford look bad under every possible circumstance.

 

But if you want something that's even bigger than your current GM keyfob to further clot your pockets, and which displays data of marginal use OUTSIDE your car, then go right ahead and cough up the $250 for it. The thing looks about half the size of a flip-phone, so if you want to carry something that bulky around with you for the sole purpose of knowing how much gas you've got in your car while you're on the way back from Target, in order to find out if some jerk came by and siphoned you dry, well, at least now you'll know before you get in the car.

 

I can see a value in iPod integration, I can see a use for aux jacks, and remote start, etc (although I personally have no desire for any of these features). I have absolutely no idea why any significant number of rational human beings would want to know how much gas they have in their tank BEFORE they start the car--or that they'd be willing to pay $250 for the privilege of getting such information 20 seconds earlier than they normally would get it.

Edited November 10, 2006 by RichardJensen

[OAC_Sparky]

I have no use for remote start at all, and I live in Massachusetts. I see no reason to be burning gas just so my car is warm when I get in it.

You're not a woman like my wife, in a thin skirt or pair of pants on her way to work. Her only complaint about her Taurus is that the leather seats are damned cold when she gets in.

 

And women are buying many more cars today, these little things count.

[Edgey]

Did you notice where they stuck the aux jack on the new Fords?

 

Right above the parcel tray (it's not on the head unit), and in case your memory has shortened, I posited that Ford's designers didn't want the cord running past the HVAC controls, and potentially getting tangled in the shifter.

 

And that's not even remotely related to the CD3 crash test performance. As though there was some mastermind at Ford directly in charge of everything, and that said mastermind was bent on making Ford look bad under every possible circumstance.

 

But if you want something that's even bigger than your current GM keyfob to further clot your pockets, and which displays data of marginal use OUTSIDE your car, then go right ahead and cough up the $250 for it. The thing looks about half the size of a flip-phone, so if you want to carry something that bulky around with you for the sole purpose of knowing how much gas you've got in your car while you're on the way back from Target, in order to find out if some jerk came by and siphoned you dry, well, at least now you'll know before you get in the car.

 

I can see a value in iPod integration, I can see a use for aux jacks, and remote start, etc (although I personally have no desire for any of these features). I have absolutely no idea why any significant number of rational human beings would want to know how much gas they have in their tank BEFORE they start the car--or that they'd be willing to pay $250 for the privilege of getting such information 20 seconds earlier than they normally would get it.

 

The Auxiliary Jack can be found in several locations on Ford vehicles. For example, the MKZ has it in the center console. How you are suppose to use your Ipod if the cord gets pinched by the armrest, I don't know! The new Expedition has it just above the parcel tray, which makes a lot more sense.

 

I guess the point is that Ford found a way to get this feature available in most vehicles, even if it's half-assed until they can redesign the dashboards.

[RichardJensen]

For example, the MKZ has it in the center console. How you are suppose to use your Ipod if the cord gets pinched by the armrest, I don't know!

IIRC, there's also a power point in the center console. The idea being that you plug the iPod in, close the lid, and "fuhgeddaboudit"..... Doesn't work as well if you're going to be shuffling by hand, but if that's what you're aiming at, the TripTunes interface available in Jan. makes more sense.

 

Ford put those aux jacks in areas where the cord wouldn't get in the way of normal vehicular activities (assuming, of course, that you leave your iPod in the center console on the MKX/Edge). That required more engineering and the cooperation of different suppliers, and would take more time than simply calling up Delphi, or Clarion, or whoever and saying, "We want an aux jack on the head unit, how much and when?"

 

The end result, however, works better in most instances, than just stuffing a jack on the head unit.

 

Should Ford be doing more to stay ahead of these trends? Heck yes. However, that's a matter different from the question of whether Ford should've taken the extra time to integrate the aux jack apart from the head unit.

[ebritt]

My keyfob has lock/unlock, open trunk and panic button. I use all but the panic button. I use the oprn trunk button all the time and it is very handy. I would like to have had the remote starter cause it gets cold in the winter here at 4 AM when i go to work and havin the car warmed up and defrosted would be real nice.

[J-150]

My keyfob has lock/unlock, open trunk and panic button. I use all but the panic button. I use the oprn trunk button all the time and it is very handy. I would like to have had the remote starter cause it gets cold in the winter here at 4 AM when i go to work and havin the car warmed up and defrosted would be real nice.

 

 

 

block heater is a better idea. Less harmful to your car. Uses less energy. Produces less harmful emissions.