What connotations come to mind with the words “car keys?” Bad thoughts, like frantically ransacking your house, bags and pockets in search of them? Good thoughts, like being handed them for the first time at a dealership or flicking your wrist and hearing the engine come alive?
Either way, these experiences are likely to soon be stowed-away memories of a different time: The truth is, the history of car keys as we know them is quickly coming to a close.
Just about every other aspect of automotive technology has drastically evolved over the past century, and the keys we use to open and start our cars are no different. But car key history is unique in that instead of simply improving the feature, current technology has rendered traditional car keys obsolete, sending them the way of the dodo, car ashtrays and crank windows.
That renders the age-old question: How did we get here? Let’s take a look back.
The History of Car Keys Begins
Car key history can be traced back to 1910, but these early versions didn’t start the engine or ignition. Instead, the first car keys controlled the ignition’s electrical circuit. Using the key, car owners could switch off the flow of electrical current, making it impossible to start the vehicle. Once the switch was on, the ignition could be activated, although drivers still had to then crank up the engine.
Soon after, keys that could lock and unlock both the electrical circuit and the ignition became more common.
Because it was still impossible to start the engine without a key, car theft was not a concern, and “locking” a car wasn’t a practice. In fact, most early automobiles were roofless and some were even door-less.
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A major milestone in car key history occurred in 1949 when Chrysler unveiled the first car key that could start a vehicle’s engine all on its own. It was able to do so through the use of an ignition tumbler, or ignition lock cylinder.
In 1965, Ford became the first manufacturer to introduce double-sided keys that could be inserted into the tumbler either way. While seemingly elementary by today’s standards, these types of car keys remained the norm for decades.
This was also around the same the time the dual key, which could both start the car and unlock the doors, took hold. Prior to the 1960s, some vehicles still required two separate car keys.
Car Keys Meet Technology
Car key evolution was mostly dormant for the next quarter century but took some momentous leaps in the 1990s. It was this decade that saw the rise of the now ubiquitous key fob.
Remote keyless entry fobs allowed car owners to lock and unlock vehicle doors from afar by emitting a coded signal through radio waves to a receiver in the car. As technology developed, key fobs gained more functions, such as opening the trunk or sliding doors and starting the engine remotely.
(If you’re curious about the strange name, according to The Atlantic, “fob” may come from the word “fuppe,” which means “pocket” in the low German dialect.)
Car fobs are very expensive to replace. Make sure you’re protected with AAA’s Tire & Wheel Program, which covers lost keys and key fobs up to $5,000.
Car Keys Today
The traditional, mechanical car key is quickly becoming a thing of the past – if it’s not already a relic of automotive history. Almost all of today’s new vehicles have some version of a keyless entry and push-button start system. In fact, according to consumer auto research firm Edmunds, 91% of 2019 model-year vehicles had keyless ignitions. That’s up from 72% in 2014.
We’ve come a long way from having to carry one key for the engine and one key for the doors. But apparently one key is still one too many: Drivers can now store a digital car key on – where else – their phones.
Apple’s Wallet app includes a feature to add your car key. In order to do this, you need to have a compatible car as well as an iPhone or Apple Watch. Once installed, a user simply places their phone or watch next to the car’s door handle to unlock the vehicle. To start the car, they just place the phone or watch in the car’s key reader and press the start button. When an owner wants to share their key, they can simply send an iMessage to that user, which tells them how to add and use the car key.
Tesla owners can use the company’s smartphone app to do many of the same things. The app can track a driver’s smartphone from up to 30 feet away and automatically unlock the doors by the time they reach the car. But the electric automaker isn’t alone. About 31 brand marques, including BMW, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Hyundai and Lincoln offer digital car keys, making the trend’s rise seem more assured and imminent.
What are your thoughts on car keys today? Do you like the idea of a digital key on your phone or would rather have a tangible key you can hold? Let us know in the comments below?
For more automotive history, visit AAA.com.
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109 Thoughts on “The History of Car Keys”
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Keys, please!
I drive a 1999 Saturn with hand crank windows & a manual key to start the car. Don’t like the idea of technology taking over what should be a personal function to start & drive a car. I keep a spare key with me in case I need it.
I want to continue to use a key, It is easier and more foolproof than a fob and all the other tech wonders which I have no use for, people are just getting lazier and more
dependent on having things done for them and when they go wrong you suffer. When something does go wrong it will be very expensive to fix and a waste of your time bringing it to the dealership or garage.
As one can see, most of we seniors have a lot of problems with the technology forced upon us. Some of it may be good,but a lot of drawbacks. One suggestion-a beeper in the fob/key.so that if you can’t find it,you can call a number and set off the beep. One more, I once lost my key/fob somewhere in my house,and called my friend to say I would be late. He said,”look in the garbage”.I thought he was nuts,but I looked-there it was!
My Mazda has the “proximity key” and pushbutton start, but it the car battery is dead, the system does not work, so I have the backup key inside the FOB. However, when I unlock the door, I still cannot get into the trunk to get my battery jumper! I want my old keys back!
Good grief. Stop the useless and unnecessary techno crap with cars. Give me a key or I won’t buy a “modern” car.
Whether one likes the fob or the keys, if you left a pre-fob car for three or four months it would start right up (Unless you had a remote starter installed,) but almost all fob cars will have a dead battery if not run every three or four weeks. Why you ask? The fob cars require a radio receiver that operates all the time to hear the commands and do what it is programmed to do. If you want a car that does nor run it’s own battery down every three weeks or so, you are OUT OF LUCK for anything that has four wheels.
In my opinion, having a key is much safer. I do not want to have to rely on a phone that can easily be lost, stolen or inoperable.
WELL.. TECHNOLOGY DOES NOT REPLACE EVERYTHING. I PREFER TO HAVE THE KEY FOB. THIS BUSINESS OF USING MY I PHONE IS RISKY… BATTERY FAILURE OR ANY PHONE MALFUNCTION WILL CREATE HEADACHES. SOON WE WILL HEAR THAT SOMEONE WAS ABLE TO ACCESS YOUR CAR BECAUSE THE PHONE WAS HACKED OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
Push Start buttons are not infallible either. Mine broke after only 4 years of use! At first did not know it was that , as it was not completely broken, thought it could be fob problem and bought new batteries, etc… At the same time, the digital maintenance screen was throwing out many ‘other’ errors because of this issue but the car was not smart enough to tell me it was a problem with the push start button.
I prefer a key. Dead batteries can be a big deal to rectify. The fob is actually a pain to carry around. Replacing the button battery in my Hyundai is like disarming a bomb!
A key will not go dead and takes up very little room. I don’t want a fob-a-ma-jig, I want a good, solid, dependable car key.
GIVE ME A KEY!! My friend decided to let his son use his car one day but to do so he needed a ride to work. About an hour after being dropped off at work his son called saying that he was locked out of the car. The REASON? my friend had the fob in his pocket. Similar situation when the parking attendant forgot to hand the fob back to the driver!! The fob is the only reason why I still have my 17 year old car. The cars are now bundled with the fob so all the trim levels that I need come with fobs. Shall I start on spare tires? Someone please forward these comments to the auto makers. Obviously we are not in their surveys.
Like the Key. Hate the Fob. Smart phone is stupid.
My remote battery went dead. My wife had the spare in her pocketbook 1 hour away. The spare in the garage was dead. The car manufacture stated I should not leave the spare in a unheated garage, that is why it was dead. I am 79 years old and have been driving a long time. This is nuts.
I believe most fobs do have a physical key that you can remove to open the door. Hence, having a spare battery inside the car will work out well.
A bunch of folks have said it better than I could: I want a car key! Whose idea was the fob anyway?
If I lost or broke my phone, or even if it lost its charge I’d be up doubly, triply up a creek if I didn’t have a car key. At least with a key, I could drive to the phone store and get it fixed or replaced. I can imagine a number of messes if everything were on my phone. If my phone loses its charge nowadays and I’m away from home, I can at least unlock my car and charge up my phone. I say keep them separate.
I definitely prefer a key…. I have so often dropped the fob under the seats, can’t find it in which bag or pocket. You always know where your keys are! How many times have I inadvertently opened my trunk ????
Looks to me the majority prefers a key. Lets keep the pressure on to bring back the key to operate our cars. Too many problems can’t the Fob
I definitely prefer a key…. I have so often dropped the fob under the seats, can’t find it in which bag or pocket. You always know where your keys are! How many times have I inadvertently opened my trunk ????