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This may have been mentioned at some point but after reading Bo's experience it left me wondering what everyone does with their keys? I have packed them in and I have stashed under a rock at the access point near the car or on the car somewhere. I have never had an issue losing or misplacing the keys however wondering what others do with them while on trip? I do always leave a valet key buried in the car just incase, (Yes I still have an actual key LOL! ) , as I can always smash a window as a last resort and be on my way. What do you guys do?
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I have a pocket on my life jacket, goes in there.
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fob is stashed in a zip lock bag ,, i had one fob get soaked , no worky after that, however that fob has a flip out key,, cool feature
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Shayne, check your owner's manual, most cars have one old-style keyhole hidden somewhere in case of a dead fob or car battery, mine is in the obvious place, but my wife's is actually hidden in the trim under the driver's side handle, It'll save you the cost of a window...
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scoutergriz wrote:
Shayne, check your owner's manual, most cars have one old-style keyhole hidden somewhere in case of a dead fob or car battery, mine is in the obvious place, but my wife's is actually hidden in the trim under the driver's side handle, It'll save you the cost of a window...
Cool.
I'll have to check this out. 2016 Outback so perhaps. I don't worry much about a flat battery as I can still bump start it in a jam Lol!
Thanks or the tip though!
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I recently replace a vehicle, and went from the "old fashioned key" to a key FOB. I'm not really familiar with the technology so I never "stashed" my keys anywhere and wouldn't with the key fob either. I brought both key fobs with me on my last canoe trip. Home is 6 hours from the access point so leaving one at home as a backup didn't make sense. Both FOBs were in waterproof pouches in different locations between my packs./canoe.
My vehicle also has the flip out metal tab to enter the vehicle should the FOB be DOA.
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Shayne, check your owner's manual, most cars have one old-style keyhole hidden somewhere in case of a dead fob or car battery, mine is in the obvious place, but my wife's is actually hidden in the trim under the driver's side handle, It'll save you the cost of a window...
Cool.
I'll have to check this out. 2016 Outback so perhaps. I don't worry much about a flat battery as I can still bump start it in a jam Lol!
Thanks or the tip though!
Every standard car we have ever had was bump started at one time or another...until we got a 2014 Ford Focus. Guessing that the engine management system was the culprit. With no power in the battery it kept it from starting when we rolled it down a hill after draining the battery. It also kills all power when it senses wheel spin. Dangerous when trying to get going on snowy roads.
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Petey- "Every standard car we have ever had was bump started at one time or another...until we got a 2014 Ford Focus. Guessing that the engine management system was the culprit. With no power in the battery it kept it from starting when we rolled it down a hill after draining the battery. It also kills all power when it senses wheel spin. Dangerous when trying to get going on snowy roads."
that's actually nothing new, cars now have an interlock to prevent them from starting in gear to prevent a runaway, plus all automatic and some manual transmissions have mechanical pressure pumps to lubricate them that only work when the engine is running, ( hint- trannys using 75w or 85w90 gear oil don't have pumps) continually trying to bumpstart them wrecks the pump (turns it backwards) and eventually the transmission.
as for the wheel spin there's usually a button or switch somewhere to turn off "traction control", it's not actually killing power, it's using the ABS system to apply brakes to the spinning wheel, which in turn kills the momentum of the vehicle to "allow the spinning wheel to slow down to the vehicle speed " (owner's manual words, not mine) It can actually be annoying and dangerous at times, like entering a snowy highway, because it 1) prevents the tire from using momentum to clear snow from the tread (self- cleaning tread), and 2) because you're literally dragging one wheel, it can prevent you from getting enough speed to enter safely from a snowy ramp to a dry highway.
I HATE TC and turn it off in poor weather because while it may be safer than some luddite who never learned to drive properly, it's actually more dangerous for people who DO know how to drive in bad weather and can control their wheel spin...
Warning to others with a locking rear end-I drive a 4x4 with a factory electronic locker in the back and TC has actually CAUSED me to spin because both back wheels will lock up if it detects spin, making them slide with no control whatsoever...
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If I'm just out for a paddle near home, I'll usually just stick the key in a zippered pants pocket. When I'm taking a longer paddle, or on a canoe trip, I stick the key on a small platform at the top of the spring above the front tire. It it bowl-shaped, so the key cradles in there and can't be seen. It is protected from weather, but yeah, an ambitious person could find the key and have at it. Still, the motivations for breaking in are two: 1) they want the car (160K miles on the 2013 RAV4, there are better targets in the lot,) 2) smash and grab....ok, my wallet is in there, if you dig around you'll find it I guess, but the presence or absence of the key is immaterial to that. If the key isn't handy a rock is. If it were a smash and grab situation, I would imagine they'd do it in the dead of night and go through as many cars as they could until an alarm went off.
Also, if I took the key with me, I know I'd be checking for it regularly. Is it still where I put it? Is it still where I put it? Is it still where I put it? I kind of like cutting myself off from it entirely.
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Dave; I never just " just stick the key in a zippered pants pocket", I've yet to find a fob that is truly waterproof, merely water- resistant, and tuck mine in a small, heavy-duty ziplock type pouch that came with some long forgotten electronics.
Years ago I forgot the pouch and just put the key in my pocket, and yup, I dumped...
that poor fob never worked again...
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If I'm just out for a paddle near home, I'll usually just stick the key in a zippered pants pocket. When I'm taking a longer paddle, or on a canoe trip, I stick the key on a small platform at the top of the spring above the front tire. It it bowl-shaped, so the key cradles in there and can't be seen. It is protected from weather, but yeah, an ambitious person could find the key and have at it. Still, the motivations for breaking in are two: 1) they want the car (160K miles on the 2013 RAV4, there are better targets in the lot,) 2) smash and grab....ok, my wallet is in there, if you dig around you'll find it I guess, but the presence or absence of the key is immaterial to that. If the key isn't handy a rock is. If it were a smash and grab situation, I would imagine they'd do it in the dead of night and go through as many cars as they could until an alarm went off.
Also, if I took the key with me, I know I'd be checking for it regularly. Is it still where I put it? Is it still where I put it? Is it still where I put it? I kind of like cutting myself off from it entirely.
All great points. BTW I'd love a 13 Rav 4 with 166 miles. Interesting you say this as my sons 07 Escape W/270,000 kms was a recent target of Break/Enter and attempted theft. There were definitely better targets in the lot and no valuables left in sight or in the car for the matter. Carpool lot at 401 near London. Ended up being a write off. Crackheads are obviously desperate.
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Scoutergriz - yeah, I am taking a bit of a chance there, all it takes is one quick kersploosh and thats that. I pledge to be smarter about that next season. Even a short paddle could result in a long walk home...
Shayne - sorry about your son's car. You never know who is going to show up. The worst I ever had is mice getting into the rav while I was on a 3 day trip in the adirondacks. They didn't find any food stuff, which I foolishly left available, but they pooped all over the blasted car! Turns out the rav has an open spot of entry where the cabin air intake is. Addressed that and no mice since.
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Scoutergriz - yeah, I am taking a bit of a chance there, all it takes is one quick kersploosh and thats that. I pledge to be smarter about that next season. Even a short paddle could result in a long walk home...
Shayne - sorry about your son's car. You never know who is going to show up. The worst I ever had is mice getting into the rav while I was on a 3 day trip in the adirondacks. They didn't find any food stuff, which I foolishly left available, but they pooped all over the blasted car! Turns out the rav has an open spot of entry where the cabin air intake is. Addressed that and no mice since.
Thanks Dave. Turned out OK in the end. We gifted him my wife's 13 Jetta TDI so he's happy with the fuel mileage upgrade. He used the insurance money to safety it and replace the overdue timing belt. On the downside my wife is back into a car payment she hadn't been with for 8 years so that sucks LOL!
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