2016 Ford Explorer
Key Replacement - Save vs Dealer in Ventura County

2016 Ford Explorer Smart Key Replacement - Fast, Affordable & Professional

A woman near Simi Valley Hospital called me on her lunch break. She was in the parking lot across from the hospital, standing next to a 2016 Explorer, holding a smart key that did nothing. No door unlock, no dash recognition, no start. Dead.

She had already called the dealer. They told her earliest availability was eight days out and she would need to tow the car in. Eight days without a car when you work at a hospital is not a small thing.

I got there in about twenty minutes. Popped her old fob open on the hood to check the internals. Both CR2025 cells were corroded on one side, and one of the battery contacts inside the 164-R7989 housing had green buildup on it. The fob was not dead, just not making good contact.

Cleaned the terminals, dropped in fresh CR2025 batteries, snapped it shut. Fob started talking to the car again. Doors locked and unlocked from ten feet, push-to-start fired right up, remote start kicked on from across the lot.

But she also wanted a spare. Smart move. I pulled a blank M3N-A2C31243300 from my stock, cut the HU101 emergency insert blade, and ran PATS programming through the OBD-II port. Ford's system has a built-in ten-minute security timer during key registration, so we stood there and talked about hospital parking for a bit while it counted down.

Both keys tested and working before her break ended. She kept the old one as her primary and tucked the spare in her bag. No tow truck, no eight-day wait, no dealer bay.

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