I recently lost my second key fob. I went on the Internet and bought a used one, took it to the dealership to get reprogrammed and they told me they cant reprogram it want wanted me to buy a new one for $250.00. I was wondering if anyone has had one reprogrammed a fob and how did you get it reprogrammed to work in your car.

 

That's one thing we haven't re-programmed. They're done on a RFID receiver: a tool which we don't have. I'm afraid it's probably a dealer item for you.

 

Modern BMW/MINI keys are custom programmed with keys pre-stored in the DME of your car. In other words, they are customized to each car with the information BMW stores on DME keys during production.

For BMWs, the programming is done exclusively by BMW AG, and all key orders are funneled to Germany. For obvious reasons, BMW doesn't trust the dealers in individual countries. I suspect similar arrangement applies for MINI.

You can call around and price compare dealer mark-ups for key customer orders. Whichever one you end up using, will likely require you to prove vehicle ownership (drivers license, title) before they take your order.

a

P.S.: BTDT for one of my (ex-)BMWs; haven't lost the MINI keys yet.

 

Like everyone stated they are coded to the vehicle per the vin number. We have a complete fob listed at $152.51 shipped as long as it is not a Comfort Access key. A Comfort Access key list for $206.11 shipped.

Hope this helps.

 

Hello everyone, I am new to this forum and the Mini community. Please excuse my English is not very good. I recently bought a Mini Cooper S 2007 and have only one key. I am looking for information about this topic because I have concerns whether or not we can reprogram a used FOB selling on ebay. I see that you cant do that and I find this article. The fob you get in your page is programmed and key cutted?

 

DO NOT buy a key from ebay, andy2002. The previous posts are correct about factory keys. The only way to acquire a useful key is thru a dealership and you will have to prove ownership and VIN number to the service counter. That can be done by fax or email with scanned images but they often require pick up in person. There has got to be some way for everybody to get the word on this issue as there are many who do buy from ebay and find the key useless. I just replaced a key this past weekend thru a dealer and it works fine.