Help. Imprezza Replacement Key

[Trezzy]

Trying to get some advice for my father. He has a Subaru Imprezza GX Sport AWD registered 18/08/2003. He has lost one of his keys and wants a replacement but is not keen to part with the £300+ quoted by the Subaru dealer in Northern Ireland. The remaining key is a non retractable key with a single push button which operates the alarm. Also need to press button to start the car. I have seen various internet posts from people selling Imprezza keys, some cut and some uncut, some talking about chips and some talking about transponders. I would welcome some advice apart from the obvious which would be to bite the bullet and pay the money. Cheers. Trezzy.

 

[obi_waynne]

You might be lucky and find someone that offers a Subaru key with the immobiliser code.

A cheaper option may be to just get standard keys cut, bypass the immobiliser and fit an aftermarket system but I suspect that this will not work out much cheaper.

Be aware that if someone finds an Impreza key they are likely to keep on trying it on all the cars in the area until they get lucky! If a car is stolen and the key was missing you will struggle to get the insurers to pay out.

There may be cover under his insurance for loss of keys which will cover the cost of replacement keys and a change to the immobiliser code. This is only worth considering if he has a clean driving record with full protected no claims bonus. (Also the home insurance may provide this sort of cover although they typically exclude "motor vehicles or accessories thereof."

 

[Trezzy]

Thanks for the response Waynne and I have taken your advice and asked my father to check his insurance. Can I just clarify a couple of things. Are there 2 issues involved in a replacement key. Is one the transponder and is the transponder the same thing as a chip. And secondly, is there the issue of the remote control which locks and unlocks the doors and controls the alarm. Apologies for my ignorance. Thanks.

 

[obi_waynne]

They all work slightly differently and TBH I don't know about Subaru key fobs, but the general idea is that the key contains something to unlock the immobiliser on the engine. On some cars this is separate from the lock/unlock function and is a simple transponder but on most cars the remote unlock button switches off the immobiliser.

 

[Trezzy]

Thanks for all the replies I have been looking on ebay and have seen the following:HERE WE HAVE FOR SALE BRAND NEW SUBARU CLASSIC TRANSPONDER KEY WITH UNCUT KEY BLADE. THE KEY COMES WITHOUT A CHIP, SO YOU WILL HAVE TO PUT YOUR OWN CHIP IN IT AND GET THE KEYBLADE CUT. I don't understand the distinction between a chip and a transponder key. If I have to get hold of a chip for the key were can i buy one.