Smartkey Sensitivity

[Calliegirl]

So I've had my '08 ES 350 for a little over a week and I'm loving it.

But, the owner's manual indicates the SmartKeys should not be less than 2 feet away from cellphones, magnetized objects etc due to battery deterioration. Has anyone noticed accelerated depletion (girls) by keeping both in the purse or (guys) in pockets. I mean, how sensitive are we talking here and what may be done to prevent such from happening?

[rjt65]

a guy here.... interesting point you brought up from the manual.

Cannot keep 'em less than 2 ft yah right..how would we carry both keys and phone ? keep arms extended out at 180 degrees. at all times or u can blowup...In the car, where would you put your cell phone versus keys? sounds to me like MFG covering their butts, in case a battery depletes than anytime it depletes they can charge for new and say did you keep your cell at anytime within 2 ft of your keys?

Well so far no issues here (owner since April) , and car key fobs i speak my keys are in bottom left pocket , above them (cargo shorts) is my car key fob

I am no expert on the key fob but assume it uses RF signals to transmit, Cell phones have telecoils in them (to work with hearing aids), - it is feasible (I am not sure how close it draining battery needs to be or an expert on this subject buttt) theoretically 2 ft might be the max distance to pull the rf signal out of the key fob, thus taxing the fob and draining the battery faster

regardless, I rather replace battery than figuring out how to separate the 2 all the time.

cheers!

So I've had my '08 ES 350 for a little over a week and I'm loving it.

But, the owner's manual indicates the SmartKeys should not be less than 2 feet away from cellphones, magnetized objects etc due to battery deterioration. Has anyone noticed accelerated depletion (girls) by keeping both in the purse or (guys) in pockets. I mean, how sensitive are we talking here and what may be done to prevent such from happening?

[JGTNewLexusOwner]

Interesting that you bring this up Calliegirl. I have noticed that sometimes when I put my hand in to open the doors with my smartkey, it doesn't always open. Or, it is just less sensitive some times vs. others. It is sporadic but I really never read the manual (a guy here so this should be obvious..ha ha). I am going to monitor over the next few days to see if there is any pattern or if I have my phone and it does it. Nevertheless, I think rjt is right, I probably would rather replace the batteries than walking with my smartkey 2 feet away from my phone!

[AZ08LexusES]

Wow, I thought I read the whole owner's manual, but I missed that one. I keep my key in the right pant pocket (guy) while my phone is on my right side hooked to my belt. If the battery has depleted I really can't tell. I have had it for ten months now...

Now, I put a key in my wife's purse (girl) so that she will have it whenever needed, for instance, I drive somewhere with her so she can drop me off. I may leave the car and forget to take the key out my pocket. She leaves without it, next time she tries to start the car, no luck. But if it is in her purse, no problem. But then it was a pain, because whenever she did not want to take her purse and we wanted to lock it in the trunk, we couldn't because the key was in there. So, the key isn't in her purse anymore...

[Calliegirl]

I just checked the manual again to make sure I wasn't dreaming . It actually states "do not leave the electronic key within 3 ft of the following electronic appliances that produce a magentic field:

TVs

PCs

cell phones, cordless phones and battery chargers

recharging cellphones or cordless phones

glass top ranges

table lamps"

Page 28 of the Owner's manual. That's restrictive. I'll be curious to see how fast the keys deplete before the battery needs changing.

[mhawkin1]

I think the word 'leave' is the operative word here. Lexus does not want you to leave the keys next to any of these items. I don't think the keys being near any of these things for short stints will quickly drain the battery.

I am happy to hear that you are worried about something that I would have never thought about….makes me feel less nuts. ;)

[Calliegirl]

I think the word 'leave' is the operative word here. Lexus does not want you to leave the keys next to any of these items. I don't think the keys being near any of these things for short stints will quickly drain the battery.

I am happy to hear that you are worried about something that I would have never thought about….makes me feel less nuts. ;)

Except that I've always had my keys and phone in my purse when not in use. And now with the smartkey, it rarely leaves my purse. So, if there is anything to this depletion thing, it will likely happen for me.

Glad I can help you out with not feeling too nutty. It's no secret that I'm a bit OCD about my car, and maybe a couple other things