I hate FOBs

General Discussion
1

They are convenient BUT, its that darn red button that I hate. Who came up with that absolutely stupid idea and what idiots approved it.

If it just set off one blast of the horn while depressed, that would be OK, but nooo… it has to set off the alarm. Bump up against a counter top with the FOB in your pocket and off goes the alarm, disturbing all you neighbors while you fumble through you pocket to find the darn thing and hit the lock button to shut it off.

If you have multiple vehicles, then the problem compounds because you have to press the lock key on every FOB until you find the offender.

The only cure seems to be to open the FOB and epoxy the red button so it wont move. I got along without this “feature” for 50+ years, I don’t need it now.

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2

I agree. it is suppose to be a panic button. but now a days nobody will even turn their head if they hear an alarm go off.

3

The word for the thing that a key attaches to is fob. It is not an acronym. The correct spelling is fob.

There is an acronym, FOB. It means Free On Board. It has to do with shipping, tariffs, etc.

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4

But is also a word, but you didn’t seem to mind that I spelled it BUT in my post.

5

Not so much. It was spelled that way to emphasize, implying the word would be shouted if read aloud.

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6

I have never set off the Panic Alarm by accident .

7

I’m not claiming that this isn’t a problem for the OP, but I think that the frequency of the problem probably varies with the specific fob’s design and–perhaps–with the person carrying it. I say that because, in the 11.5 years that I have owned my current car, this type of thing only happened once, a long time ago.

I’m curious: How many other forum members have a significant problem with the red “panic” button on their fob?

8

I have set mine off while in my pocket.

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9

I have set the alarm off while the key fob was in my pocket

But only 2 or 3 times over the years

So it’s not a significant problem for me

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10

On vacation I had the key fob in my pocket. Twice I found the tailgate flipped open for who knows how long. Once in the rain. Somehow the dang button got pushed. So I ended up putting the thing inside my coin purse and that solved the issue of inadvertent button pushing. The things (at least Acura) need to be redesigned to avoid accidentally pushing the buttons.

11

I have not seen a coin purse since before my grandfather died in 72!

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12

I think I’ve set it off once or twice but I never carry more than one fob with me. Just the car I am driving. The rest I leave at home.

13

I don’t know what else to call it. I got it for Christmas. Not those plastic things but a leather zippered case just big enough for a fob without the dealer stuff attached. Used it manly to avoid wearing holes in my pockets from coins but worked great for the fob for a month.

14

I never carry the fob in my pocket at home. The thing goes in a basket on the corner of the kitchen counter. When I use the car it’s in my pocket. I rarely have coins any more because I rarely spend cash. Everything is on a credit card so we get cash back and pay one bill a month for all those groceries and hardware store things and the stuff that goes bought through the month.

Maybe the alarm button works, it hasn’t gone off in years.

15

I have an 05 Town and Country. Any more I do work from a creeper instead of a hoist. If I leave my keys in my pocket while rolling around I will find the hatch open, horn honking or even the remote car starting. I find it wise to remove keys now. But my Buick fob is much better. If you hold the panic button down for 2 seconds it only chirps 3 times. You have to hold it a long time to go into panic mode. The remote start uses a combination of 2 keys to activate.

I think it’s a combination of design and user behavior.

16

BMW X3 key - back opened in rain-twice-had to buy a leather ($50) BMW key case to prevent inadvertent button pushing in my pocket

17

I pressed the panic button a couple times and when I did, I pressed it again to turn it off. Actually, any button on the remote will turn it off.

18

My Corolla doesn’t have a fob but the panic alarm goes off on my wife’s Tucson if I move the wrong way, like if I shift positions on the couch.

19

And your explanation is, or is this humor?

20

Then put them on a hook by the door going to garage . Problem solved , you are welcome.

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