Intelligent key port aka fobgina question
 

I've done a search of the forums and looked in the manual and haven't found my answer; here's my question:

What's preventing someone from stealing an unlocked 370Z by sticking something in the key port and starting the engine?

I mean if the key port is for use when your intelligent key battery is dead then this leads me to believe there is no sensor system active in the intelligent key and car. So the key port just seems to be a mechanical switch that allows the car to be started once something is in the key port???? I know it can't be that simple but I don't want to jam anything into my key port to find out the answer!!!

Go stick something in it and start it up. Report back.

:rofl2:

:tup:

Hah.

Jokes aside, just because the battery is dead in the fob does not mean that power is not supplied to it via the port on your dash(ie: it's still reading the fob when you plug it in).

Can you replace the batteries in the fobs or do you have to buy a new fob when the battery dies... you know Apple style?

Really? I don't see any contact points on the fob, just notches where I guess it secures in the fobgina.

you can replace the battery and it costs out of the *** with the dealership because you have to reprogram them, my dealer charged me 45$ for my infiniti g35 fob when my battery died, those dicks

in the fobgina, are you supposed to stick in the fob, or the key thats in the fob?

You should have been able to simply replace the battery on your own with no programming. The 370Z's owners manual shows you how for ours.

You can stick the fob in without the key portion, but the key's loop end makes for easier removal.

Wow you got ripped off. My dealership replaced my friends battery for free. Just put a new one inside. No reprograming required.

Yeah so I took a closer look at the manual. Recommended battery:
CR2032 or equivalent. That's a cheap part.

NOW back to my original topic: There really is no mention about the fobgina doing anything "intelligent". I really think it's just a switch mechanism that when the fob is place in, it allows the car to be turned on. Anyone with another intelligent key for a different vehicle that can try this out??? There HAS to be something else that I'm missing. Nissan wouldn't be so stupid to make it that simple.

The key port has a fingerprint reader inside. Stick your finger in and it will start the engine.

always imagined it worked like the store detectors... you know them poles at the entrance that light up when one tries to sneak something out?

they work on eddy currents and the like...

If nissan made a car that would start with any fob in it... that would be more of an epic fail than Toyota right now...

the fob works when in proximity of car. you could have the key sitting a couple feet away from teh car and it'll work. all the fobgina is there for is if the battery runs out, it supplies temporary power to get the fob working. it won't recharge it, but its enough to get the sensor to sync up and start the engine. you realize you don't have to put the key in the fobgina everytime you get in the car right? my keys always stay in my pocket.

i'm not sure what you're expecting out of an "intelligent" key, but that's about it.

Its likely inductive coupling (kinda like the "wireless" chargers for the phone with 40,000 fart applications.... what's the commercial name? Oh yea the iPhone). It probably induces a current in a winding or trace on the PCB in the Fob when you place it in the fobgina. That gives the Fob power so the RFID can be transmitted to the ECU with a dead Fob battery. Its not a simple switch - its an inductive power supply.

I think you nailed it
 

That sounds like a good answer to me

:iagree:...Corvettes have a similar set-up/fob slot

Thanks! Now that is a more constructive answer! Geeze 2 pgs of smart *** replies just to get an answer to a real question.

Welcome to the internet!! :tup:

Lol

Love it!

Did you guys know our fobs work with no battery? I know, wtf is this guy talking about, right? But I've tried it. I've removed the battery, gotten in my car with dead fob in pocket. Car starts right up.

As said earlier, its most likely using an RFID chip so the Z can just scan for that. The battery is mainly for the remote functions i believe (lock/unlock/panic).

Right, that's exactly what's happening. So here's what I can't figure out -- why do we need a fobgina at all then? What am I missing here?

Yep - that's the beauty of passive RFID.

The principle operation of the FOB inside the keyhole is the same as RFID tags. The keyhole powers the FOB if it has no battery.

But why do you need to power the fob at all? You don't need to power it to start the car. It's passive RFID, and you can start your car -- fob in pocket -- even with the battery completely removed. The only thing the fob needs power for is for the lock/unlock/horn buttons to work, and to be able to lock/unlock the doors by just pressing the button on the outside of the door. Well, you're not going to be using the buttons on the fob while it's in the fobgina for obvious reasons. And there's no reason to get out of the car while the fob is in the fobgina to hit the external door lock button. I just don't see the functional value of the fobgina. It's not like it recharges a dead battery or something.

maybe its in there because as guys, we inherently like to stick stuff in holes.

im just happy that we have the ability to leave the keys in our pocket and we aren't required to use the fobgina (like in bmws). the nissan keyless entry system works better IMO than some of the others. my friend's camaro has remote start but when you get in the car, you still have to insert the key and turn. what sense does that make? the only good thing that does is allow you to turn on the AC before getting to your car. if the biggest issue of the nissan system is a fobgina that may not serve any purpose, im ok with that.

:iagree: Now that's the most intelligent answer of this entire thread so far! :bowrofl:

so none of you got the button battery replacement warranty? it only cost me $3,500. Now whenever my fob battery runs out i get a new one FREE. i dont care what you guys say. $3,500 for free button batteries for as long as i own the car.... SICK DEAL :p

That is not exactly true. You wouldn't want a passive RFID for your car, they are much easier to duplicate.

In this FOB, the car and the FOB exchange a sequence of encryption messages. Furthermore, the FOB never sends the car the same message twice. A microprocessor changes the sent message every time (based on an encryption key). This is the most secure method.

Okay, whatever. You obviously know way more about RFID than I do. But you completely sidestepped the main point I was trying to make about the fobgina having no functional value in this car (other than being a hole to stick your fob into if you don't want to keep it in your pocket). You previously stated that the keyhole powers the fob if it has no battery. What I'm saying is that there's no value in doing that as far as I'm able to see. i.e., the functions of the fob that require power won't/can't be used while the fob is in the keyhole/fobgina anyway.

Probably places it closer to the RFID antenna/receiver.

Ok, you busted me. :rofl2: That would make for one interesting 911 call, wouldn't it?

The FOB performs several functions:

1) It allows you to remotely lock/unlock doors and activate the emergency alarm.
2) Allows you to lock/unlock the doors and trunk if you are in the proximity of the car.
3) Allows you to start the car as long as the fob is inside the car.
4) Prevents other people from unlocking your door by pushing the buttons on the door handles.

Obviously the FOB is designed to be beneficial if it has batteries. If it runs out of battery they still provide you with some ways to turn your car on until you replace the battery. If the FOB has no battery, you cannot remotely lock/unlock your car. That is the same with any remote key-less entry system.

My apologize, but I fail to see what your point is. Are you saying that a device without batteries is (mostly) useless? Yes, I agree it is.

From the 370Z Service Manual:

No, I'm saying that the fobgina is useless, not the fob itself. As I previously mentioned, just to experiment, I have taken the battery out of my fob, left the fob in my pocket, gotten in my car and it still starts my car. So obviously the fob does not need power in order to start the car. So what's left that does require power? Well, you mentioned pretty much all of them above. But here's the rub. You can send power to a fob with a dead battery by sticking it into the fobgina, right? Well, you're not going to remotely lock/unlock the doors or activate the emergency alarm while the fob is stuck inside the fobgina. Or to put it another way, by sticking your fob into the key hole, it'll power up the buttons on your fob, but your access to those buttons will be obstructed by the very fact that you have inserted the fob into the key holder. So what's the point of even having a fobgina to stick it into? As I said, you don't need it to start the car up.

Is the fobgina© where the dealer sticks a new remote into to program it with the Consult III? You have have up to four (4) remotes.

Oh, good question! If that's how they program additional remotes, then its necessity suddenly makes a lot more sense.