RESOLVED - Bought a new Lexus - can't get a second key for 3-5 months???

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This whole thread is reinforcing for me to keep my 2000 Honda forever.
$5 for a duplicate key, at the local hardware store. The cost of keys for new cars was already a shocker for me, but to find out you have to wait months to get another key? How crazy is that.
Might not have certain safety improvements, but the biggest factors in safety is tire quality and how you drive.
Doesn't have a black box either, or worries that the manufacturer is sending data on the car to Lexus Nexus.

New Hondas come with 2 keys at present. You have to consider how others are driving, how many don't even have a license and how many are uninsured, so a new Honda with much better passive safety, current generation ACE Body Structure, airbags and Honda Sensing is something to consider. You don't have to spend Lexus dollars to get all that.

It's LexisNexis! And you can opt out of LN collection and also delete all data they have accumulated. Depending on the Honda model and trim, data is not streamed if you don't add the HondaLink app to your phone. Data stays on the vehicle.

[Stinky]

This whole thread is reinforcing for me to keep my 2000 Honda forever…..

Might not have certain safety improvements …..

If you continue to be happy with your 2000 Honda, that’s just great.

But you might be amazed at the incredible advances in car technology in the last quarter century. High quality backup cameras, lane departure and blind spot warnings, improved airbags and seat belts, crash avoidance systems, dynamic cruise control, etc. And the list goes on and on.

If you venture into a dealership, you might also be amazed by the price of today’s cars. Much higher than what you saw in 2000.

Of course, choose what’s right for you.

[LilyFleur]

I would not be surprised to ultimately learn that a specific integrated circuit chip used in the keys could not be obtained by Lexus/Toyota in their normal supply chain, so instead of giving everyone 2 keys and stopping sales of cars because of lack of keys for them that they made the decision to give everyone one key and to use the chips for the 2nd keys in the first keys of new cars they intend to sale.

The chip shortage is long over. I'm retired from a chip company (every single Apple Car Play car has at least one of our chips) and met a coworker Monday while getting lunch. Not only are lead times completely back to normal, orders are way down. So much so that the company shut down all the fabs for 2 weeks. They also forced all employees to take 2 unpaid weeks off. Chip shortage is done.

I don't know about Lexus. My son bought a used 2004 Honda S2000 and it came with only one key. I bought him one for his birthday. $300 for the key and $75 to program it which needed the car to do this.

I have a 2019 Accord and have misplaced my spare key. I was shocked at the price from the dealer to replace it. I found a local automotive locksmith who orders the part from Honda and programs it, for $235 (excellent reviews online, if you can trust that). I need to have this done, because evidently if you have only one key and you lose it, you have to have your car towed to the dealer and then pay the $350 or so!

[CloseEnough]

I expressed my EXTREME FRUSTRATION about spending a lot of money on a new "luxury" vehicle, and not being able to get a second key for 3-5 months after purchase.

Has anyone else faced this issue? Does anyone have a work-around? I feel like I've hit a wall with both my local dealership and with Lexus Corporate.

Yes, this kind of happened to me, but not with a luxury Lexus, just a run of the mill Toyota, model year 2023. Still paid $35K for a new car, more than any other car I have bought.

I got upset like you, got frustrated, beat on Toyota (not the dealer) through their online feedback mechanism, and got my second key about 6 months after I bought the car. My real problem, other than they shouldn't be doing this any more (chip shortage is done, I'm pretty sure), was concern that I might lose the one key I had. Than in a rare stroke of maturity, I rationalized "I have never lost a key and not found it" and decided to just be extra careful with the one key I had.

And, most importantly, I just decided to LET IT GO. There are more important issues to focus on, is what I decided. In the end, I love my new car, have two "smart" keys now, and am still (I think) in good graces with Toyota. Good luck.

[obgraham]

Look up “Carkeysexpress”. They have some mobile on-the-spot keyfob trucks, often in Costco parking lots, where I got one recently in the Phoenix area.
Good legitimate service, mine was $199.

[Stinky]

[Topic is now in Personal Consumer Issues - car purchase terms. mod mkc]

We purchased a new Lexus from our local dealership in late February 2024. We got one key with the vehicle, with the promise (from the salesman) of a second key in the mail in about 3 weeks.

We haven't received the second key yet, so I called the local dealership, who told me that I will be getting a letter from Lexus itself (or a message in the Lexus app, or a text message, or an email) sometime in the future telling me about how to procure my second key. They had no information about timeline for getting the second key. The dealership seems to be "out of the loop".

I then called the national Lexus Corporate number. I was told that I might be getting a letter sometime in April, May, or June of this year, and the key would come after that.

I expressed my EXTREME FRUSTRATION about spending a lot of money on a new "luxury" vehicle, and not being able to get a second key for 3-5 months after purchase.

Has anyone else faced this issue? Does anyone have a work-around? I feel like I've hit a wall with both my local dealership and with Lexus Corporate.

Today, we finally got the second key for this car.

Took delivery on the vehicle on 2/26/24. Got second key on 10/1/24. Just over 7 months for that second key.

I’ve called Lexus about every month since July to check on the key. They always said “You’ll get a letter from us when your second key is available”. But when I called last week, even though we have never received a letter, the key was magically available.

And what’s further bizarre is that a relative bought a new Lexus in May and got his two keys at time of delivery.

I appreciate all who weighed in on this thread. This community is just great for providing feedback on issues like mine.