Car keys stopped being simple pieces of cut metal decades ago, but pricing has not caught up in most people's heads. The same phrase, replacement car key, can mean a $40 job or a job north of a thousand dollars depending on the vehicle and how many working keys you still hold.
Understanding the key types and the locksmith-versus-dealer choice before you lose a key is worth real money, because the worst time to learn any of this is in a shopping centre car park with a dead fob.
The four kinds of car key
Almost every key on Australian roads falls into one of four buckets, and the bucket sets the price:
- Basic cut metal key: pre-immobiliser vehicles, broadly pre-mid-1990s. Cheap to duplicate at a locksmith, often for the price of a house key and a coffee
- Transponder key: a chip in the head must be programmed to the car's immobiliser or the engine will not start, even though the doors unlock. Standard on most cars from the late 1990s onward
- Remote or flip key: transponder plus buttons for locking, with the blade folding into the fob on many models. Both the chip and the remote need programming
- Proximity or smart fob: keyless entry and push-button start. The most convenient and the most expensive to replace, particularly on European makes
Locksmith or dealership?
An automotive locksmith cuts and programs keys for most makes at typically 30 to 60 percent below dealership pricing, and the difference in turnaround is often bigger than the difference in price. The locksmith comes to the car and usually finishes the same day. A dealership frequently orders the key from the manufacturer, which can mean days or weeks, plus a tow if the car cannot be started or moved.
Dealerships earn their place at the margins: some very new models, some prestige marques and some fobs with security architecture the aftermarket has not cracked yet can only be coded with factory tools. A good automotive locksmith will tell you on the phone whether your exact make, model and year is one they can do, so the first call costs nothing either way.
All keys lost: the expensive scenario
Everything changes when the last working key is gone. With no key to copy, the locksmith must decode the locks or pull key data through the car's diagnostic port, generate a new key from scratch, and on many models reprogram the immobiliser so any lost keys are wiped from the system, which is worth doing anyway if the key was stolen.
All-keys-lost jobs commonly cost several times the price of adding a spare while you still had one, and on proximity-key vehicles the gap is widest. The car also is not going anywhere until it is done, so add the cost of the day around it: missed work, a tow if the locksmith cannot attend where it sits, a hire car if parts are ordered.
A spare key now is the cheapest insurance you can buy
Duplicating a key while a working original exists is the easy version of every job above. The locksmith copies the cut and clones or registers the chip against the car with the original present, often in under an hour at your driveway.
Run the comparison for your own car: a spare cut and programmed today, versus an all-keys-lost callout at whatever hour and location the loss happens. For most transponder and remote keys the spare costs a fraction of the emergency, and for proximity fobs the argument is stronger still. One key for a household car is not a spare, it is a countdown.
Broken keys, worn keys and dead remotes
Not every key problem is a lost key. A blade snapped in the ignition or door can usually be extracted and a new key cut from the pieces or from the lock itself. A key that needs wiggling in a worn ignition barrel is warning you; copying a worn key clones the wear, so ask the locksmith to cut to the factory code instead.
Dead remotes are often just batteries, a two-dollar fix worth trying before anything else. If the remote works intermittently after a new battery, the fob's internals or buttons are failing, and replacing it while the transponder side still starts the car is far simpler than replacing it after.
Frequently asked questions
Can a locksmith make a car key without the original?+
Usually yes. Automotive locksmiths can decode the vehicle's locks or use the diagnostic port to cut and program a new key for most makes, working at the car. It costs more than copying an existing key, which is exactly why a spare made now is the cheap option.
Why does a proximity fob cost so much to replace?+
The fob contains encrypted electronics that must be registered to your specific vehicle, the hardware itself is expensive, and some manufacturers restrict programming access. Aftermarket automotive locksmiths still commonly beat dealer pricing by a wide margin where the model is supported.
Will a replacement key from a locksmith affect my car warranty?+
No. Having a key cut and programmed by an automotive locksmith does not void a manufacturer's warranty. The key must simply be compatible and correctly coded to the immobiliser, which is the locksmith's ordinary work.
My spare key unlocks the doors but the car will not start. Why?+
It is almost certainly an uncoded transponder: the blade is cut correctly but the chip was never programmed to the immobiliser. This is common with cheap online spare keys. A locksmith can usually program that same key to the car, which is much cheaper than a new key.