OEM? Refurbished? Aftermarket? What Does All of This Mean with Car Key Fobs?

Replacing car keys on modern vehicles sometimes leaves you with more questions than answers. In some cases, the wrong information can lead you towards a pricey mistake and it's not uncommon where the old adage "pay once, cry once" is your best policy.

At Francis' Keys, we are sensitive to our customer's desires to not break the budget when it comes to adding or replacing a fob to their vehicles. Our experience in the smart phone repair industry over the last decade has taught us how to balance quality with price and we will be certain to offer you the best product for your specific need.

Unfortunately, there is a lot of confusion as to what the difference is between the various products available on the market, and we'd like to take a moment to offer you the facts. First, and to be brutally honest, the days of going to the hardware store and having your traditional metal key copied like a house key are largely over. Newer vehicles use Keyless-Go technology, AKA "Push to Start", and require specialized programming with equipment costing thousands of dollars in investment and ongoing subscription costs. Some vehicles, such as many of the European models, are even more labor intensive and require module removal from the vehicle and EEPROM work that requires specialized training.

Even vehicles that still use traditional keyed ignitions require specialized programming to pair a new key with your vehicle's immobilizer system, and the blanks are often high security and require expensive cutting machines that are precisely calibrated and microprocessor controlled. Very few vehicle keys can be cut on the old-fashioned machines we remember in the local hardware stores of yesteryear. There are some hardware stores that are doing automotive keys, but their abilities are often limited.

With that in mind, it's crucial to understand what products are the right choice for your specific vehicle. To be honest, it depends on the technology the manufacturer used during the year your car was made, and for all intents and purposes, the newer the vehicle, the more sophisticated the system. Not all products sold are reliable and, in some cases, they will not work at all. Far too often we meet customers who purchased a fob via Amazon only to find out it is of low quality and not reliable. At Francis' Keys, we do the research to determine the product that is compatible with your vehicle and save you time and ultimately money over the long haul.

So, what is all of this "Aftermarket", "Refurbished", and "OEM" stuff? The following is a rundown of what that all means and some facts you should be aware of:

OEM

OEM, or "Original Equipment Manufacturer", is the actual fob that came with your vehicle when new. These fobs are sometimes made by the vehicle manufacturer in-house, but more often are produced by a supplier to the manufacturer. For example, Denso is the OEM supplier of fobs to Toyota. These fobs are generally regarded is the highest quality and most accurately matched available.

Francis' Keys' network of suppliers carries these fobs for most vehicles and are available to if you prefer the original. They are always the most expensive option and whether or not they are mandatory depends on your specific vehicle. In most cases they are not, but certain applications they're the only option. Certain Toyota Prius models only seem to accept brand new OEM fobs, for example. Ultimately in most cases they're an option but not absolutely mandatory.

Refurbished

Refurbished key fobs are essentially used OEM keys that have been remanufactured to function the same as OEM new. These are typically key fobs recycled from wrecked vehicles and other sources, repairs made to the shell or internal electronics or both and sold for a substantially lower price. Being that they are essentially a used part, they can be an excellent alternative to a brand-new OEM provided they are thoroughly tested and function correctly. We have seen some that weren't working correctly, so the odds, while low, are greater than a new OEM key for defects.

Refurbs are very useful for certain vehicles that only work with OEM. We mentioned some Prius models that only seem to work with brand new OEM, but more commonly we've seen vehicles that only work with OEM in either new or refurbished condition. Mazda vehicles seem to only work correctly with OEM however a refurbished version is acceptable in most cases

Aftermarket

Aftermarket fobs are a little more broad in scope. First, it is important to realize they are NOT made by the OEM supplier and while using similar technology, are not identical internally. Therefore, while in most cases, they're compatible with the average vehicle on the road, they're not always going to work. Typically, older vehicles work very well with aftermarket fobs, but newer ones can be hit or miss. We mentioned Mazda and Toyota being two manufacturers that sometimes do not recognize aftermarket fobs.

There are basically two types of aftermarket fobs: Clones and Universal. The clones are typically copies of the OEMs and have the same style shells and button configurations. Logos are absent but they look identical. Quality is all over the map with some being cheap "China Copy" types from Far-East manufacturers of unknown origin. They're rarely built as well as OEM and while they may work, for how long is totally unpredictable. These types of fobs are found typically on Amazon and other online retailers, but quality is not particularly high.

Other aftermarket clones are very high quality and just as good as OEM and sometimes better. The cost of these is much higher than the lower end clones previously mentioned but are worth the added cost. Ilco, a reputable key manufacturer, produces aftermarket fobs with excellent reputations and we've used them here with great success. They are less expensive than OEM new but typically are around the same price as the refurbs. We like them and prefer to sell ones of that quality level. We don't purchase our keys from Amazon.

The third type of aftermarket fobs are universals. These are proprietary fobs sold by companies like XHorse, Autel, KeyDIY, and Lonsdor. They are typically their own technology and are flashable (some call it "remote generation") to the protocols of a variety of different vehicles. They are useful and with keyed ignition older vehicles can often be an excellent choice and perform better than OEM. Keyless-Go variants are not as reliable, and we typically use them only for emergency (loaner) fobs if we need to order the correct one for your vehicle. There are other companies that might tell you they're as good as OEM or a high-quality aftermarket clone, but our experience is that they're temporary solution and not really something we recommend for long term use. But they have a purpose and with older keyed vehicles can be excellent in that application

To wrap things up, what is the best decision you should be making? It comes down to this. Choose a licensed and insured locksmith such as Francis' Keys who is dedicated to quality first and foremost but is also aware of price constraints. Certainly, it is viable to expect a lower price than a dealership, however if you're shopping solely on price, you will ultimately create problems for yourself. What matters most is purchasing the correct fob for your application. If OEM new is the only option, that is what matters. What we can assure you is that even in those circumstances, we will be able to beat the dealer prices. But it's important to note that even if the fob looks like the original, it may not actually be the case. That's why we're here and you have our commitment to providing the reliability you deserve at a price that is fair.