# 'Deadly Convenience: Keyless Cars and Their Carbon Monoxide Toll' **URL:** \ **Category:** Safety\ **Created:** [May 13, 2018, 1:26pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307 "2018-05-13T13:26:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2018, 3:06pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/21 "2018-05-14T15:06:39Z")
> [@the\_same\_mountainbike](#): > > I don’t like them. Too many issues. And frankly, I don’t see any benefit to them. Have we gotten so lazy that we can’t turn a key? I love them. Very convenient. Wife’s 07 Lexus has it. Been driving with it for over 10 years now. No issues. Had to replace the battery once, but that was not biggie. For women the biggest benefit is they don’t have to fumble through their purse to find their keys. Even for Men…especially when you have 3 kids you’re trying to get into the car…and one is very young who’s fallen asleep in your arms. If you exit my wifes car with the fob while the car is still running it beeps to let you know. ---
**Author:** ![sgtrock21](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/sgtrock21/32/246_2.png) [@sgtrock21](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sgtrock21)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2018, 4:46pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/22 "2018-05-14T16:46:39Z")
There was a brief TV news report concerning this. Little detail and no new information. It did remind me that I have already owned at least 3 “virtually” keyless entry/ignition cars. 1954, 55, and 57 Chevrolets! When I owned them in the 1960s crime was almost non-existent. I didn’t know anyone who locked their house or car. The ignition switch in my Chevys allowed the key to be removed without turning it to the lock position. I carried a key in my pocket for trunk access or if my buddies pranked me by locking my doors. LOL. So with the key in my pocket I could open the door, climb into the driver seat, turn the ignition switch which protruded enough to on, then to start. I guess the old saying “The more things change, the more they stay the same” is true. Just kidding. As I remember other GMs of that vintage had a similar keyless entry/ignition “option”. ---
**Author:** ![TwinTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@TwinTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TwinTurbo)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2018, 4:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/23 "2018-05-14T16:55:52Z")
Some benefits to the consumer have been mentioned. However, I believe the primary reason it was developed was to reduce cost. The mechanical parts necessary to implement legacy keys cost more money in materials and labor to install them than the new electronic versions. This saves the manufacturer money which they simply pocket and tout the new version as a benefit to consumers… ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2018, 5:18pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/24 "2018-05-14T17:18:26Z")
> [@jtsanders](#): > > It seems to me that an electronic system for starting and finding the fob to allow starting is probably less expensive than the mechanism for the keyed ignition in the long run. Especially since keyed ignitions often still look for the signal from paired fobs before they start, to try and prevent theft. ---
**Author:** ![insightful](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/insightful/32/2732_2.png) [@insightful](https://community.cartalk.com/u/insightful)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2018, 8:39pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/25 "2018-05-14T20:39:45Z")
Two deaths per year…yawn… ---
**Author:** ![tce23233](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@tce23233](https://community.cartalk.com/u/tce23233)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:47am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/26 "2018-05-16T01:47:07Z")
I thought I’d heard on Click and Clack a few years ago, that with newer cars it was almost impossible to become poisoned by exhaust fumes in the garage. ---
**Author:** ![bing](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bing/32/4619_2.png) [@bing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bing)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 2:31am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/27 "2018-05-16T02:31:26Z")
That’s what I’d heard too but haven’t tried it. They also told us in the Army that diesel fumes as you sat in the back of the truck were not noxious too. I don’t know if that was true or not but I do know covering yourself with a poncho in a nuclear attack was stupid. ---
**Author:** ![B.L.E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/848f3c/32.png) [@B.L.E](https://community.cartalk.com/u/B.L.E)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 10:33am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/28 "2018-05-16T10:33:33Z")
I believe there have been cases of unsuccessful suicide attempts with newer ultraclean cars. ---
**Author:** ![TwinTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@TwinTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TwinTurbo)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:51pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/29 "2018-05-16T13:51:38Z")
> [@tce23233](#): > > I thought I’d heard on Click and Clack a few years ago, that with newer cars it was almost impossible to become poisoned by exhaust fumes in the garage. The key word being almost 😉 There’s two ways this can go wrong as well. You can be subjected to combustion byproducts that affect your physiology OR if your space is fairly airtight, the available oxygen gets consumed to a point where you succumb to hypoxia. ---
**Author:** ![RandomTroll](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/randomtroll/32/12184_2.png) [@RandomTroll](https://community.cartalk.com/u/RandomTroll)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 2:30pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/30 "2018-05-17T14:30:30Z")
[https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/16/business/carbon-monoxide-keyless-cars.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/16/business/carbon-monoxide-keyless-cars.html) ---
**Author:** ![dagosa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/dagosa/32/9837_2.png) [@dagosa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/dagosa)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 3:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/31 "2018-05-17T15:41:19Z")
I never thought cars belonged in garages unless they were electric or there for long term storage. A carport is all they “ deserve.” Garages are for our toys. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 5:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/32 "2018-05-17T17:41:32Z")
Spoken like someone lucky enough not to deal with -30F temps and foot-deep snow storms. 😉 Not to mention that in the summer when the wind drives 1 inch hail sideways, it’s nice to have the car in the garage so you only have to make a homeowner’s claim for your siding. ---
**Author:** ![bing](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bing/32/4619_2.png) [@bing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bing)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 9:23pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/33 "2018-05-17T21:23:40Z")
Not to mention rodents chewing on that soybean wiring. ---
**Author:** ![dagosa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/dagosa/32/9837_2.png) [@dagosa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/dagosa)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 10:08pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/34 "2018-05-17T22:08:16Z")
😉 Just the opposite. We live in mid Maine on a small mountain and average 100 plus inches of snow yearly. ( 200 inches is not unusual). I was convinced when tripping to Canada and noticed how many of them have car ports. Like the south, we are more apt to put cars under a carport year round then in a garage. The sun is the biggest enemy to an auto’s finish. Besides, we need the garage to store three boats and a work shop. . Did I mention carports are great places to have out door cook outs, rain or shine ? Besides, if a car can’t start out of doors in -30f temperatures, it needs a tune up or a new battery. Frost on windshields is no problem as frost, like rain, is vertical phenom. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 10:22pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/35 "2018-05-17T22:22:43Z")
My first house had a garage, my second house didn’t. My current house does. I far prefer a garage. In NH, for the record. ---
**Author:** ![dagosa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/dagosa/32/9837_2.png) [@dagosa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/dagosa)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2018, 10:38pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/36 "2018-05-17T22:38:31Z")
> [@MikeInNH](#): > > I love them. Very convenient. Wife’s 07 Lexus has it. Been driving with it for over 10 years now. No issues. Had to replace the battery once, but that was not biggie. For women the biggest benefit is they don’t have to fumble through their purse to find their keys. Even for Men…especially when you have 3 kids you’re trying to get into the car…and one is very young who’s fallen asleep in your arms. > > If you exit my wifes car with the fob while the car is still running it beeps to let you know. Exactly. My wife has one on her car. She has to lose her entire purse to lose the fob. Replacing any fob requires a bank loan so that’s huge. I see nothing but advantages to them in today’s cars where everything is under computer control regardless. Wish my truck came with one… ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 1:48am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/37 "2018-05-18T01:48:58Z")
Perhaps they should be an option. ---
**Author:** ![RandomTroll](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/randomtroll/32/12184_2.png) [@RandomTroll](https://community.cartalk.com/u/RandomTroll)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 5:19am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/38 "2018-05-18T05:19:01Z")
I’ve seen garages save marriages. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 1:34pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/39 "2018-05-18T13:34:15Z")
> [@dagosa](#): > > Besides, if a car can’t start out of doors in -30f temperatures, it needs a tune up or a new battery. Absolutely true. But at -30F I’m more worried about _me_ starting than the car. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2018, 1:58pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307/40 "2018-05-18T13:58:31Z")
> [@dagosa](#): > > Besides, if a car can’t start out of doors in -30f temperatures, it needs a tune up or a new battery. Perhaps. But I still prefer a garage. Especially when I wake in the morning and there’s a blizzard outside. 😁 [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307.md?page=1) [Next page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/deadly-convenience-keyless-cars-and-their-carbon-monoxide-toll/117307.md?page=3)