Renault - Key Cards - security improvement

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Wed 3 Oct 2007 13:14
Key Cards - security improvement - Collos25
I got this from the Renault forum interesting info for people who were going to waste their money on EBay.

Renault key cards - IMPORTANT INFORMATION

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As of 4 June 2006 You will NOT be able to buy a new keycard from Renault without supplying the VIN number and proof of ownership of the vehicle. The following vehicles are involved:

Megane II
Scenic II
Clio III
Modus
Laguna II
Vel Satis
Espace IV


The reason behind this is due to a major security issue that has been discovered outside the UK. The senario is this. You take your vehicle for some work to be carried out. The dodgy technician has a blank keycard. He programs that keycard to your vehicle. Then they either come to your home address and steal the vehicle or sell the key and the address to a friend who then steals it

So the procedure is that you or us a dealer has to provide customer specific details to Renault France who will authorise the card to be ordered. The card then arrives at the dealership with your VIN number already coded to it. We then apply to Renault for the programming code and have 1 hour to program the key before the code expires.

So if anyone is considering buying a New key from Ebay for example. You will NOT be able to get it programmed fullstop as the Clip will not allow a non Vin encoded key to be programmed as explained above. Note also that a new Vin encoded key Cannot be programmed to any other vehicle even it is has not been programmed to the origional one.
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Wed 3 Oct 2007 21:39
Key Cards - security improvement - Screwloose
Andy

There's a lot more to this sudden change of policy than just security; non-dealer access to the vehicles' CAN network has been severely restricted by this little tweak.

Also key re-coding after replacement of failed ECU's has thus become a dealer-only activity - even for those who have spent thousands on dealer-level scan-tools. [And they are hopping mad about it.]

It has always been possible for any keys to be copied whilst out of your hands; this way Renault become the monopoly supplier of key-cards - they won't use this to extort high prices ... Will they?

Just another way that cars are becoming more and more tied to their supplier's services.
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Wed 3 Oct 2007 22:43
Key Cards - security improvement - carl_a
Just another way that cars are becoming more and more tied to their supplier's services.


This is why eventually cars will be leased rather sold in the majority of cases.
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Wed 3 Oct 2007 23:17
Key Cards - security improvement - Screwloose
carl

I see that you've been reading my piece on the last similar thread.

I'll give it five years.
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Thu 4 Oct 2007 10:37
Key Cards - security improvement - Bill Payer
You often see MB keys for sale on eBay and they can't be re-programmed.
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Thu 16 May 2013 19:09
Key Cards - security improvement - boss123

keycards cant be reprogrammed but they can be virginised reset to zero by replacing the rom ic within ,so that they can be taken to the dealer for reprogramming this reduces the cost dramaticaly as the dealer doesnt get to supply you with a new card they can only charge for programming your old card as a new one.

(Edit - attempt at free advertising removed.)

Edited by Avant on 16/05/2013 at 23:29

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