Dodge Challenger Forum banner
21 - 40 of 44 Posts
This still plagues a ton of Dodge\Chrysler\Jeep vehicles, my 08 even had the win module swapped out and it STILL does it, one of my new fobs won't work with it now but the old one works fine, at times I'll have to hit "unlock" and then it will know it is there when I hit push to start.
 
This morning, the message appeared when I tried to start my 2009 SRT with about 18000 miles. I retrieved the spare fob from the keybox and it, too, would not work.

After popping the start button and using the fob like a key, I drove to work thinking the Entry Module failed. Why not? I have a 13 year old Neon with the original remote battery...the batteries must last forever.

Not so. I tested one fob battery and it was a 2.4v; replaced it with a new one (3.4v) and everything worked. It seems a coincidence that the batteries failed in both fobs despite one never being used.

But that wasn't the only coincidence today. Driving home on I-85, I came up on another black Challenger and we pushed the left lane for all traffic would tolerate for about 5 miles. At the next to last exit for me, a third black Challenger joined us. How often does one see three black Challengers in a row on an Interstate highway? Got to be a good omen.
Where I am, I may see 3 black Challengers in a year.
 
trouble with 1 keyfob

Knowing we have 2 fobs to work with,I have had alot of trouble with just 1.The same one.They say you are suppose to switch off,so the car can learn them,I can only use one that works.The other always says''keyfob not detected''.Frankly,this makes me mad.It has seemed to always be like this for the most part.I think,I will have to take it to Dodge and get it reprogrammed.The price they want,is crazy though.I guess I have no choice.I have to have a back-up.What ya all think on this?
 
if it says key fob not detected, first thing to do is change the batteries, chances are that the battery has died in that one, instead of replacing it. I had to change the battery in mine within a year after I bought it. As for programming it the dealer shouldn't charge much to get your fob to relearn the programming, only if you buy a new one should they charge you for that.
 
Buy the batteries in bulk from eBay; buy quality such as Sony or Panasonic or Maxell. Be sure they are dated at least 7 or more years ahead of the date you buy them (they will say in the ad or on the packs) and change them out about every 6 months. Very cheap insurance against dead fobs.

I find the biggest issue with fobs is them being in your pocket and pressing on something else when you sit. That can have a button depressed for a long time and wear out the battery in short order, leaving you wondering why it went bad so fast. I am all too aware of that as when in the garage, I often see the lights/horn flash as I either trigger the alarm on or off unintentionally with the fob and other stuff in a pocket. Carrying it around the car will also activate the readiness feature so the vehicle is "awake" and receptive to keyless entry, etc.

In any event, we have numerous cars and changing the batteries reduces the number of times the "key fob not detected" appears. As a side note, you can still get that in your EVIC with a fresh battery. Just move the fob in your pocket away from your other keys and it should work. Happens with the Dodge, BMW and others as well. Fickle beasts.
 
I tended to sit in the car at lunch while at work and listen to the radio for 45 minutes each day, I think if the cars in accessory mode its in constant communication to the fob which may prematurely wear the battery out some. Still, some last longer than others. The batteries weren't very expensive at the dealership.
 
I replaced both batteries for both fobs.Still the same problem.When the car is out of storage I might run to Dodge and see what they can do_Only thing I can do I guess.Thanks for the info :)
 
I'm not going to act like I know how the key works, but some of the logic here just doesn't make much common sense.

If a keyfob is always talking, sending out pings (running down the battery) then that makes sense that the car would know its in proximity.

However, for those that are saying that once it gets a certain distance away it stops sending pings to conserve battery that does not make sense. If it did that how would it ever know it got back within proximity without sending ping. Sending the ping is how it calculates distance.

What likely happens is it sends a low powered ping every few seconds regardless of where the keyfob is. In fact, the one place it might conserve power is when its actually in the car. It very well may ping less often if the last ping was successful.
 
The battery in the key fob is a Panasonic CR2032. I went to Walgreen's and purchased a set of two Energizer batteries for $6.99.
Dollar store - 3 for $1 Just sayin...
And yes I use them, work fine and they are Lithium as well
 
Would there be anything detrimental to removing the battery from the FOBs or a FOB if you're planning on storing the car for the winter anyways? I'm guessing that the memory in the FOB doesn't need to keep power supplied to retain data since the fob continues to work after changing batteries.

Take it easy
Jay
 
You have to be correct or how would the doors unlock or the car start without pressing a fob button?

Easy. When you touch the door handle, ]the car sends out an "interrogate for fob" signal. The fob RESPONDS, it doesn't sit in your pocket all day transmitting. Likewise, when you push the "start" button the car sends an interrogate to make sure there's a valid fob inside the car. It only takes milliseconds.

Also the short-range RFID chip that still works to let you start the car with the fob used like a key doesn't have a battery at all. The "interrogate" signal from the car actually powers the chip so it can respond.

In all cases except pushing the fob buttons, the fob is RESPONDING to an interrogation from the car. That's how come the fob doesn't eat through batteries in weeks. Probably the most battery-consuming thing that happens to a fob is when you push the buttons a lot, because that does make the fob transmit.

I know that some cars have smaller fobs that take less pocket space, but I'm glad these are big- that means they can use the 2032 battery which lasts longer than the little bitty ones, and its also probably THE most common disk cell out there. Every Walgreens and CVS has them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: vert
Sounds like a trip to the dealer to reprogram your FOB.
 
check to see you didn't put the battery in upside down. an easy mistake to make and it will make a difference. If it still doesn't work, I'd definitely take it to the dealer to have them check it out and figure whats wrong.
 
I changed the batteries still nutin anyone have an idea
The win module is bad. This is a known problem to dodge and the dealers. This is the module that detects the fob. Replacing. the batt is not what made it work again. This problem is intermittent and I had it happen a few times to me. Put the key in and drive it and the next time you get in it works just fine. It will go out on you eventually. If its under warranty you get it replaced free. If not and you cant do it yourself it will cost you. I was told by the dealer not to start the car with the key but call them and get it towed to the dealer. The reason is they need to pull the code to fix it under the warranty.
 
Hate to brimg a dead thread up, but just used the search and found this thread, i wamt to add that i tried all these with no success, i started looking and found that you can pop the push to start button out and it allows the fob to go in as a key, my real goal was to see if there was a setting to turn off the alarm so it didnt go off everytime i used my key to open door, when i saw there was none, i said forget it it, left the push start button out incase i needed to go somewhere, and closed my door.
Out of habit i hit the lockbutton and the doors locked. I opened back up and put the button back in to place and key fob still works. For anyone that might have this problem, give this a shot to and see if it fixes it. It worked for me.
 
21 - 40 of 44 Posts