We answer at 3am
Open 24 hours, seven days a week, public holidays included
We come to you
The van carries the workshop, so nothing gets towed anywhere
4.9 Star Reviews
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You hear the price first
We quote before we drive out, and that number does not change
Transponder Key Programming
What a transponder key is
Pull the plastic head off an ordinary car key from the last twenty five years and you find a small glass or plastic chip inside. It has no battery. When you turn the ignition, a ring around the barrel wakes the chip up and asks it a question, and the engine only fires once the chip answers correctly.
Car makers added this because hot wiring used to be easy. It works, which is why nearly every car sold in South Africa since the late nineties has one.
The classic sign your chip is the problem
The engine cranks strongly, catches for half a second and cuts out. The battery is fine, the starter is fine, and the car sounds healthy right up to the moment it dies. Often an immobiliser light flashes on the dash at the same time. Your car has decided the key cannot be trusted.
If that sounds like your car but the key is not the cause, we go deeper into faults on the car's side under immobiliser and key recognition problems.
Cloning compared with programming
Two roads lead to a working chip key.
Cloning copies the identity of your existing chip onto a new one. The car cannot tell the difference between the two, so it needs no setup on the vehicle at all. It is quick and it suits you when you already have one key that works and want a second.
Programming writes a brand new chip into the car's own memory. We need this when every key is gone, and it lets us delete old keys at the same time. It takes longer and it gives you more control.
We tell you which one your car allows and which one makes sense for your situation.
Chips that fail on their own
Chips usually die because of what happens around them. Heat inside a parked car, a drop on a tiled floor, water in a pocket, or years of vibration on a keyring loaded with house keys. Sometimes the chip works loose inside the head and moves too far from the ring around the barrel to answer.
An intermittent key that starts the car on the third try is worth sorting out early. It rarely gets better and it tends to fail completely at the worst possible time.
Keys for older cars are our bread and butter
A lot of the cars driving around Port Elizabeth were built between 2000 and 2015, and almost all of them use plain chip keys. We carry blanks and chips for the common ones, so a Toyota, a Volkswagen, a Ford or a Hyundai of that age is usually sorted in one visit.
We do the cutting too
A chip only matters once the blade turns. We cut and pair in the same visit so you leave with a key that opens the doors and starts the engine, rather than a key that does one of the two.
How transponder key programming works
Tell us your make, model and year and describe what the car does when you turn the key.
We confirm whether cloning or full programming suits your car.
We come to your vehicle with the right chips and blanks on board.
We read your existing chip, or read the car when no key is left.
We clone the chip or write a new one into the car's memory.
We cut the blade if you need one and test the start.
We remove old chips from the system if you ask.
We're out this way most weeks — so you'll find us near:
What affects the price of transponder key programming?
Transponder work depends on the route your car allows:
Cloning an existing working chip compared with programming a new one from scratch
The make, model and year, since the chip type differs across brands and years
Whether the blade needs cutting as well
Whether old keys are being deleted from the car's memory
Where you are in Port Elizabeth or Gqeberha and what time we come out
Phone us and describe what your car does when you turn the key. We will tell you which route it takes.
GetKeys Auto Locksmith
51 Seaview Rd, Farms Port Elizabeth,
Gqeberha, 6390
084 513 4914
Open 24 hours, 7 days a week
FAQS
How do I know if my car has a transponder key?
Most cars sold here from the late nineties onwards do. The plastic head on the key is fatter than an ordinary key because the chip sits inside it.
My car starts and then cuts out straight away. Is that the chip?
That is the usual sign, especially when the immobiliser light flashes on the dash. The engine gets going and the car then shuts it down because it does not trust the key.
What is the difference between cloning and programming a chip?
Cloning copies your existing chip onto a new one and needs nothing done to the car. Programming writes a new chip into the car's own memory, which is what we use when every key is lost.
Does the chip have a battery?
No. It draws its power from the ring around the ignition barrel, which is why a chip key still starts the car when the remote buttons have gone flat.
My key only works every second or third try. Can that be fixed?
Yes, and it is worth doing before it fails completely. The chip is usually loose, damaged or reaching the end of its life, and a fresh paired chip clears it up.
Can you do chip keys for older cars?
Yes. Cars built roughly between 2000 and 2015 use plain chip keys and we carry blanks and chips for the common models driving around Port Elizabeth.