Question 1

I'm locked out with no spare key. Can you come to me in Eucalyptus Hill?

Accepted Answer

Yes. That's the whole point of a mobile service. Call us and we come to wherever you and the Cayenne are in Eucalyptus Hill or anywhere in Montecito.

One thing worth knowing about the first-gen Cayenne: if the fob battery is completely dead, the car will still open if you hold the fob body directly against the door handle area, because the door antenna can sometimes power the fob passively enough for one read. It doesn't always work, but it's worth trying while you wait. If that fails, the emergency blade folded inside the fob operates the door lock cylinder manually.

Either way, we bring the tools and blanks to handle it on site. No tow, no waiting until the dealer has an open slot.

Question 2

Does my Cayenne have to go to the dealer for key programming?

Accepted Answer

No. Porsche dealers do require the vehicle on site for key work, which means if you're already stranded, you're also looking at a flatbed. One pattern that comes up repeatedly among Cayenne owners: Porsche Roadside Assistance finds a tow, the car arrives at the dealer, and the key work gets pushed to a later appointment anyway. You've paid for a tow and you're still waiting.

We come to the vehicle. All-keys-lost, shell swaps, blade cuts - done where the car is parked. For the 2004 Cayenne specifically, the key work requires proper diagnostic equipment, and we carry it. The dealer is not your only option and, for a lot of these jobs, not the faster one either.

Question 3

What do I need to show you to prove I own the Cayenne?

Accepted Answer

A valid photo ID and your registration or title. The name on the ID needs to match the ownership document. That's the standard, and we follow it the same way any professional locksmith operation does.

Where we differ from the dealer is that we verify this at your location instead of requiring you to produce documents at a service counter during business hours. If ownership is in a trust or business name, bring whatever connects you to that entity. Better to have it and not need it than to be standing in your driveway without it.

Question 4

My 2004 Cayenne shows a key warning on the dash and won't start, but the fob feels fine. What's going on?

Accepted Answer

A few things cause this on the first-gen Cayenne and most of them aren't the fob itself.

The door and cabin antennas that communicate with the fob can degrade over time, especially in cars this age. If one antenna is weak or has a broken wire, the car may not read the fob reliably - you'll get a key-not-detected type warning even with a fob that works perfectly two feet away. Owners report this showing up intermittently first, then getting worse.

The fob battery is the other common culprit. These flip key housings see a lot of physical wear, and a battery that measures voltage correctly on a meter can still drop under load. Try a fresh battery before assuming anything bigger.

If it's neither of those, the immobilizer module itself or its wiring is worth checking before anyone talks you into a new fob. A key that was working yesterday and failed today without being dropped or lost is almost always a power or communication issue, not a dead fob.

Question 5

Can I buy a replacement fob online and have you program it?

Accepted Answer

Sometimes, with caveats. Aftermarket housings for the first-gen Cayenne vary a lot in quality. The shell dimensions and blade retention can be off enough that the reassembled fob feels wrong or the blade doesn't lock properly.

If you're buying a complete aftermarket fob expecting to transfer your existing electronics into it, that can work. If you're buying one expecting us to program it as a new key from scratch, it needs to be the correct unit for your vehicle - the factory FCC ID on the fob matters here. Bring what you bought and we can tell you on the spot whether it'll work before anyone starts cutting or programming.

Buying blind online to save money sometimes saves nothing if the part turns out to be wrong.

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