Motoring Discussion > Faraday Cage Miscellaneous
Thread Author: Duncan Replies: 25

 Faraday Cage - Duncan
New car. Keyless entry. (What is the point?)

Should I put the keys in a Faraday Cage at home? Would a steel biscuit tin - or similar - do just as well? Would that stop those wavy things getting in or out? How will I ever know, until one day my nearly new car isn't there any more?

tinyurl.com/2nuayyee
Last edited by: Duncan on Tue 15 Feb 22 at 07:32
 Faraday Cage - Zero
Only expensive desirable cars are stolen in remote keyless thefts.

You have no worries.
 Faraday Cage - Clk Sec
First chuckle of the day...
 Faraday Cage - smokie
I'll be honest, I got one ages before I got the MG, like the £5 one in your link but only £3 I think.

I don't use the car that much and if I keep the key in my pocket I either keep setting off the alarm or I go out and all the windows are open, due to accidentally pressing it in my pocket.

So I leave the key in the pouch on top of the fridge. Seems straightforward enough. And the thing works.
 Faraday Cage - Crankcase
Lost my car key the other day, just as we were going out. It just vanished between getting the car out and putting my shoes on.

Used the spare, never used before, which worked.

Out for hours, chucked it with rain. Got back and key was in the flowerbed, so utterly drenched.

Worked fine, amazingly.

As to keyless, I liked the way the Zoe locked itself as you walked away, unlocked as you approached. My Octavia doesn't have keyless, but Skoda forums report those that do can find it expensively unreliable.
 Faraday Cage - BiggerBadderDave
My key (or fob) is always in the same side pocket as all the shopping bags I'm holding. So keyless entry is fabulous.

Not so good when you drop it into the MOT garage and walk away with the fob.
 Faraday Cage - smokie
... or like I did once forgot to give it to the meet and greet man at Gatwick. Luckily remembered just as we were about to go through the first stage.
 Faraday Cage - Kevin
Keep the fob where you keep your money Duncan.
 Faraday Cage - tyrednemotional
>> Keep the fob where you keep your money Duncan.
>>

....I don't think having it offshore is going to help...
 Faraday Cage - Duncan
>> Keep the fob where you keep your money Duncan.
>>

How do you know about that?
 Faraday Cage - Kevin
> How do you know about that?

There's a 'clunking' noise when you sit down.
 Faraday Cage - Biggles
I think my wife's handbag must have the properties of a F. c. She's always complaining that they key doesn't work but strangely when it is in my pocket it does.
 Faraday Cage - Mike H
>> I think my wife's handbag must have the properties of a F. c. She's always
>> complaining that they key doesn't work but strangely when it is in my pocket it
>> does.
>>
Same with my wife, I also had the problem occasionally. I tracked it down to a phone being too close to the keys, I guess it's interfering with the signal.
 Faraday Cage - Bobby
What kind of car is it?
Many of the new keyless cars now don’t Transmit after the key has not moved for a set time.
I proved this with a new Fiesta and Seat Arona.
 Faraday Cage - Rudedog
On many keyless open/start cars you can disable the function in the infotainment system if you don't want to use it.

I know on mine I like to use the keyless start but when I want to disable the keyless entry then I just lock the doors with the fob and then lightly touch the door handle which disables the keyless function until you reopen the car (this is now part of my everyday routine when parking up).

One pain with keyless entry is when you wash the car, if the key fob is anywhere near the car each time you brush any of the door handles it locks/unlocks which on mine includes unfolding the mirrors.

 Faraday Cage - VxFan
>> One pain with keyless entry is when you wash the car, if the key fob
>> is anywhere near the car each time you brush any of the door handles it
>> locks/unlocks which on mine includes unfolding the mirrors.

I'm sure you can disable this in the infotainment system ;)
 Faraday Cage - smokie
Or just don't' wash the car :-)
 Faraday Cage - Runfer D'Hills
I only wash the car if there’s a Solstice or an Equinox, or every 10,000 miles whichever comes first. ;-)
 Faraday Cage - hawkeye
Mrs H's Mazda keys live in a Faraday box. I tried the biscuit tin (good excuse for emptying it) and it was useless. Approached the car with the tin and it flashed its lights and swung the mirrors out. Faraday box; no reaction, even with the box pressed agin the window. As for desirability, erm ...

I'm concerned that it might be an excuse for the insurers to refuse a claim if the car is stolen because we failed in our 'duty of care' to look after the keys.
 Faraday Cage - Zero

>> I'm concerned that it might be an excuse for the insurers to refuse a claim
>> if the car is stolen because we failed in our 'duty of care' to look
>> after the keys.

Not likely, as long as its locked and the keys are in a secured house you have done all you can reasonably do.

In truth the vast majority of car thefts from homes, is breaking into the home and stealing the physical keys
 Faraday Cage - VxFan
I thought most of the keyless thefts are after the high end market cars? Jags, Range Rovers, BMWs, Mercs, etc.
 Faraday Cage - Zero
Jags less so, Range rovers and fast audi's are favs,

The Range Rovers (specially SVE's) end up in containers at Harwich or Felixstowe, and the Audis are used in smash and grabs

For sure a Mazda and an ole fellas Toyota aint it.


Unless of course the toyota is the GR Yaris
Last edited by: Zero on Tue 22 Feb 22 at 13:45
 Faraday Cage - Duncan
>> Mrs H's Mazda keys live in a Faraday box. I tried the biscuit tin (good
>> excuse for emptying it) and it was useless. Approached the car with the tin and
>> it flashed its lights and swung the mirrors out. Faraday box; no reaction, even with
>> the box pressed agin the window.

This is something I have been playing with for a few days. I was going to use a metal biscuit tin, but SWM decided that she wanted the tin for - I don't know - biscuits, or something!

So I tried one of these
traditionalsweets.com/product/simpkins-mixed-fruit-drops/
first of all lined with foil, that worked fine, then without any liner, that worked too - or rather more accurately, it didn't. "no key detected" was the message.

So there you are. Another job jobbed.
 Faraday Cage - Zero
classy,
 Faraday Cage - tyrednemotional
>> classy,
>>

...well, probably more so than the Werther's Original tin one might have expected....
 Faraday Cage - Shiny
A Faraday Cage and an RF Shield are not the same. A Faraday Cage will probably not shield RF signals very well, RF shields are generally grounded and Faraday cages are generally not as they are designed to protect the contents from electrical charges.
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