Question 1

Do I need to bring my 2016 Lexus GS somewhere for key replacement?

Accepted Answer

Not at all. I come to wherever the car is parked, whether that is your driveway, your office, or a parking structure in Vista near Buena Creek. Everything I need travels with me: the fob, the blade stock, cutting equipment, and the diagnostic programmer. The Lexus dealer requires you to either drive in or tow in, and if you are all-keys-lost, towing is your only option before I can even get involved. With me, the car stays exactly where it is. I do the programming on site, test everything before I leave, and you walk away with a working key without moving the vehicle once.

Question 2

How does mobile smart key replacement work for this car?

Accepted Answer

You call and give me the year, make, model, and VIN. I confirm the correct fob for your 2016 Lexus GS and walk you through pricing on the phone before anything else. When I arrive, I connect to the OBD port, run the fob registration through professional diagnostic equipment, cut the emergency insert blade to your vehicle's lock profile, and test every function on site. Door handles, buttons, the insert key in the door cylinder. Nothing gets handed over until I know it all works. The whole visit usually runs 30 to 45 minutes depending on whether it is a spare key add or an all-keys-lost situation, which takes a bit longer due to a timed reset in the process.

Question 3

What do I need to have ready when you arrive?

Accepted Answer

Three things: the vehicle, a valid photo ID, and proof of ownership such as your registration or title. I pull the VIN from the dash or door jamb to verify the key specs on my end. That is it.

Dealers sometimes add steps on top of that, including VIN-based parts orders that can push your appointment out by days. I carry inventory for the GS, so there is no waiting on a parts order from a regional distribution center before we can even start.

Question 4

I have one working smart key for my 2016 GS. Should I get a spare now or wait until I need one?

Accepted Answer

Get the spare now. This is one of those situations where waiting costs you more, and not just in money.

If you are down to one fob and it fails or gets lost, you are looking at an all-keys-lost procedure. That takes longer, costs more, and means the car is not going anywhere until I arrive. With a working key in hand, adding a second is a faster job, the vehicle communicates normally with the programmer, and there is no timed security reset to wait out.

GS owners on forums mention this one pretty regularly after the fact. They put off the spare, something happens to the one fob they had, and suddenly a simple add-a-key job turned into an emergency call. A spare cut and programmed now, while the car is running fine, is the low-stress version of this.

Question 5

My 2016 GS still starts fine but the door handles stopped sensing my fob. Is the key failing?

Accepted Answer

Probably not the fob. If push-to-start still sees the key and the car runs, the fob is communicating with the vehicle. Touch-unlock on the door handles uses a separate antenna in each handle, and those can act up on their own. Wipe the handle surface clean and retest. If it is isolated to one door, that points to the handle sensor or the wiring on that door rather than the fob. If both handles quit at the same time, check the CR1632 first. A low battery hits the passive entry range before it affects the start function, so that symptom pattern actually makes sense.

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