# Keyless system - a nonsense !



## Roberto Mourao (Nov 3, 2014)

Hi people,
I would like to express my dissatisfaction with this system, that has brougth me frequent problems.
I see no point in it and it appears to me that its completely unesuful !
If I had the option to take it out and replace by a standard key, I would even pay for it.
Several times I have left the car parked, locked, with the engine "on" - and this "sophisticated machine" has no system to turn it off or warn you in this situation.
I take my time today to write at this Forum to testify the following situation: my wife forgot her key in my car and went away with her car WITHOUT the key !
One hour later she arrived at a parking lot in the city centre, turned off the car and left, when she noticed she didnt have the key - her car is closing the parking lot and the owner demands her to pay for several cars that cant go in or out... In the meantime I had to hire a freighter to take the reserve key to her...
Does someone else have such problems or I'm an isolated case?!
Regards,


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## luigi524td (Apr 4, 2005)

*This is your FIRST POST - Really!?!?!?*

You're a very isolated case; keep the key-less access and replace the clueless spouse. :rofl:

I have a friend whose spouse regularly leaves her purse and keys on the roof or trunk-lid of her car - then drives off. :tsk: I don't know if it's early old-timers setting in :dunno:


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## Roberto Mourao (Nov 3, 2014)

*Keyless...*

I bet there are many people with the same complaint...lets see what other owners think...
Thanks for your comments


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## chaswyck (Oct 12, 2014)

I've has comfort access in my MINI for the last three years and I love it. Never had a single problem. Just keep the key in your pocket (and I mean never take it out for any reason because there is no reason to) and you'll be fine. Comfort access was one of the big reasons I ordered the Premium package.


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## Roberto Mourao (Nov 3, 2014)

*Keyless*

OK - I see up to now I´m outnumbered... 2 x 1
Lets see if I´ll have some support...if not...


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## Carbon Fiver (Aug 5, 2013)

Roberto Mourao said:


> Hi people,
> I see no point in it and it appears to me that its completely unesuful !


+1 in favor of Comfort Access. I love not having to take the key in/out of my pocket; when I drive my wife's car with a key it feels like a relic.



Roberto Mourao said:


> Several times I have left the car parked, locked, with the engine "on" - and this "sophisticated machine" has no system to turn it off or warn you in this situation.


How did you lock the car if you didn't have the key with you? If you had a keyed car and left it with the engine running it'd stay running too.



Roberto Mourao said:


> I take my time today to write at this Forum to testify the following situation: my wife forgot her key in my car and went away with her car WITHOUT the key !
> One hour later she arrived at a parking lot in the city centre, turned off the car and left, when she noticed she didnt have the key - her car is closing the parking lot and the owner demands her to pay for several cars that cant go in or out... In the meantime I had to hire a freighter to take the reserve key to her...


How could she have left her key in your car and started her car without her key? Was her car started, then she went into your car, left her key in your car, then went back to her car and drove off? User error.



Roberto Mourao said:


> Does someone else have such problems or I'm an isolated case?!


You're an isolated case. I've only had one "incident" and that was that I tried to close/lock my trunk with the key still in the jacket I had put in the trunk. The trunk kept re-opening until I realized that the car was telling me that the key was inside.


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## mrblahh (Oct 9, 2006)

pretend it doe snot exist, or p ull out the module

Mine got wet, something spilled onto it and it disabled the whole car I pulled it out and I do not really miss it


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## Campfamily (Sep 20, 2010)

Another Comfort Access fan here.......when I first got the car, I was concerned about driving off without the key, starting the car with the key on the roof, locking the key in the car, leaving the car running when I walked away, etc. I have found that the design of the system is such that it precludes you from doing all of these, or if it can do it, it let's you know you're about to do it. Example, if you start the car with the key in it, then remove the key and drive away without the key, the car lets you know with a very loud audible warning and a bunch of displays on the dash. YOu'd have to be completely brain dead to miss it. You can't lock the key in the car, it knows and will unlock it. I have never walked away leaving the engine running except deliberately; no more than I leave my car running with the key in the ignition running and lock the door.

Keith


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## guyver626 (Mar 5, 2013)

Why would anyone ever need to take key out of pocket? That would avoid any issues to begin with. I agree with the above post. If the key is 3feet from the car the system knows and will tell you no key nearby. I've never had any issues with comfort access


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## andrewtanko (Oct 30, 2014)

Comfort access for the win!


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## need4speed (May 26, 2006)

Most people seem to like it. It goes to show nothing can please everyone. N4S


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## dhstadt (Apr 14, 2008)

Would not buy a car without comfort access. Absolutely no reason not to have the key on your person all the time.


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## Autoputzer (Mar 16, 2014)

I remember my VW Rabbit's door locks would freeze every winter. There I was, pouring Wild Turkey on my keys trying to get in my car. I've been going without my key fob on the Cobalt because of the killer ignition switch. I've been too busy to take the car in for the recall. But, I'm looking forward to getting the key fob back.

I'm thinking about having the BMW Comfort Access fob surgically implanted under my skin, sort of like a pacemaker.

I have to admit, the key/fob all-in-one on my 2002 M3 was rugged. They went through the washer and dryer several times and kept on working for over twelve years.


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## chaswyck (Oct 12, 2014)

Looks like the jury is in on this one.


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## BHHouston (Nov 3, 2014)

Ok, here is my 2 cents after having used 'Comfort Access' for the last 5 years on a couple of cars. Here are the pros and cons.

Pros:

So easy to use if you do it every day. Saves you time from messing around with your pockets and getting the key out. I love it.

Cons:
1. Let others who are not familiar with the system drive the car and they often end up not locking the doors. Don't get 2 cars in your household and have one with it and one without it. You are going to get very frustrated.

2. When you change your cloth, because you don't touch the remote often, sometimes you don't remember taking the key with you. Especially frustrating if you live in a condo and you have a long walk to your car. By the time you get to the car you have to go back again.


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## chaswyck (Oct 12, 2014)

Re Con #2 - Put it on your key ring with your house and office key.



BHHouston said:


> Ok, here is my 2 cents after having used 'Comfort Access' for the last 5 years on a couple of cars. Here are the pros and cons.
> 
> Pros:
> 
> ...


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## Roberto Mourao (Nov 3, 2014)

*My X3 dont...*

In this blessed sunny country (Brasil) the taxes are so high if you want a good car you pay twice for it... I payed aprox. $ 100M for my X3 2014 - but BMW here also wants to make easy Money and they bring cars with the minimun luxury items possible...
I know my X3 2.8i is kind of "empty" - it doesnt have any alarm to warn me the engine is running - 3 or 4 times, in a hurry, I pick my things, get out of the car and while I walk away I press the "lock" in the key - the car stay "on" with the doors open. I only noticed it when I arrived back.
My point is: what´s the problem in putting the key in the panel ?! at least you know where it is ! your car wont start without it, and there´s no way you go out without the key...
I only began this issue because I see no point, no advantage at all...if I had the option I´d probably buy a car without it ! 
By the way, before the X3 I had an Audi Q5 - I miss it !!! for various reasons...
Hopefully in the near future I´ll be back at the Audi Fórum again.


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## JCM-Houston (Sep 8, 2014)

I love the keyless access, and honestly don't understand how anyone could have a problem with it.

I also have never forgotten to turn my car off when I park though.


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## dhstadt (Apr 14, 2008)

Roberto Mourao said:


> In this blessed sunny country (Brasil) the taxes are so high if you want a good car you pay twice for it... I payed aprox. $ 100M for my X3 2014 - but BMW here also wants to make easy Money and they bring cars with the minimun luxury items possible...
> I know my X3 2.8i is kind of "empty" - it doesnt have any alarm to warn me the engine is running - 3 or 4 times, in a hurry, I pick my things, get out of the car and while I walk away I press the "lock" in the key - the car stay "on" with the doors open. I only noticed it when I arrived back.
> My point is: what´s the problem in putting the key in the panel ?! at least you know where it is ! your car wont start without it, and there´s no way you go out without the key...
> I only began this issue because I see no point, no advantage at all...if I had the option I´d probably buy a car without it !
> ...


So you cannot remember to shut the car down and that is a fault of comfort access. In 50 years of driving I do not remember ever forgetting to shut the car down before exiting. Me thinks the problem is not comfort access.


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## BBinTN (Oct 29, 2014)

+1 on Comfort Access as must have

I had on my prior vehicle (non-BMW) for last four years and just got on my F15 because I wouldn't get another car without it. Its even better on F15 as I can just tap top of door handle to lock so shouldn't ever need to reach into pocket for remote. Perhaps its worth going into vehicle settings to sound chime when locking doors. If you hear the sound for door lock the car will be off, if not there would be an issue......


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## mcleod52 (Jan 29, 2015)

Rick D said:


> Two words..BUH BYE....


+1 - reading my mind


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## bighorns (Mar 6, 2013)

Love comfort access. I've never had any issues with it, other than my trunk not always opening. (Weak battery?) In that case I can just slide my hand into my pocket and hit the button.


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## dhstadt (Apr 14, 2008)

HikerToo said:


> I see this thread went down hill part way through, but we just bought a 2012 X3 with keyless ( our 2011 328 does not have it).
> and it is taking some getting used to, I thought I needed the keys out to unlock the doors to get in, then where do you put them after you get in...
> have not tried the different scenarios,
> walking away with key when car is running,
> ...


If you have Comfort Access you have a FOB not a key. Leave the FOB in your pocket. This isn't difficult.


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## bighorns (Mar 6, 2013)

The only thing I've ever used the key for is to close the windows when I've gone out to the garage, and realized that I sat on my fob, and opened them all.


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## Oaker55 (Mar 7, 2014)

There are two ways of looking at this. I can see why men wouldn't have a problem with Comfort Access. We put the prox key in our pockets never to be seen again. In that case, the system just works. For women, it's a totally different story. A lot of the clothes they wear don't have pockets and a lot of women won't put things in their pockets if they had them (it't that fashion kind of thang) so they have to put a little for thought into things. In my wife's case, when we got our first car with a prox key, she didn't want anything to do with it, she had convinced herself that the whole thing was useless and it was going to be a nightmare. Ask her today and she will tell you that you will take the prox key from her by prying it from her cold, dead hand. It takes a woman a little more to manage the system because they tend to throw everything into their crapbag, I mean purse. My wife likes to lock her purse in the car sometimes so she has to take the key out of her purse to accomplish locking her purse in the car, but she manages. What it really boils down to is the user understanding the system first of all and then taking responsibility for using the system properly. That means being observant when you get out of the car to the fact that the car may still be running and shut it off. I don't really see what the problem is with knowing when the car is running or not and shutting it off before you get out of the car.


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## Oaker55 (Mar 7, 2014)

dhstadt said:


> If you have Comfort Access you have a FOB not a key. Leave the FOB in your pocket. This isn't difficult.


Technically speaking, the fob is a prox key.


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## Fish23 (Apr 24, 2012)

My wife has a 2013 335xi (with M pkg and Comfort Access) and she has a good solid key ring from Coach that she attaches to one of the metal loops that holds her purse handles. That way, her keys and Beemer fob are always handy.


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## twowinns (Mar 25, 2007)

I recently bought a used BMW without Comfort Access, after having the feature on my two previous BMWs. Man, I really miss that feature. It was so nice never having to pull keys out of my pocket, and not having the keys dangle from the dashboard. If I ever buy another BMW, it will have to have Comfort Access. Worth every penny, IMO.


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## HikerToo (Nov 8, 2014)

Ours must not have Comfort Access, it has a keyfob, that must have the button on it pressed to unlock the doors, but than does not need to be inserted into the dash 
So it can not be left in your pocket as others say....as far as I can tell.


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## Gary J (Dec 18, 2013)

So why don't you use just the key?


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## bighorns (Mar 6, 2013)

HikerToo said:


> Ours must not have Comfort Access, it has a keyfob, that must have the button on it pressed to unlock the doors, but than does not need to be inserted into the dash
> So it can not be left in your pocket as others say....as far as I can tell.


Are there little ridges on top of your door handles? If yes, you have Comfort Access.


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## twowinns (Mar 25, 2007)

If the key has to be inserted to start the car, you DO NOT have Comfort Access.


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## Oaker55 (Mar 7, 2014)

HikerToo said:


> Ours must not have Comfort Access, it has a keyfob, that must have the button on it pressed to unlock the doors, but than does not need to be inserted into the dash
> So it can not be left in your pocket as others say....as far as I can tell.


When I got my Z4 I knew I had comfort access but one of the fobs did not open the door by touching the handle and one did. Both of them would start the car without putting the fob into the dash. I had it checked out at the dealership and one of them was bad and had to be replaced. Both now work properly. If you do not have to put the fobs in the dash to start the car you must have CA. I would have it checked out at the dealership.


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## bighorns (Mar 6, 2013)

Unlocking is easy on mine--just touch the handle. But sometimes I have to press down on the ridges to lock. Trunk sometimes hesitates to open also.


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## bdb (Mar 14, 2002)

I had it on my X3, and several times when going for a coffee I managed to lock the car and leave it running.
Weird feeling really.

I also never really got to the point where I trusted it to lock when I walked away. So wasn't really worth it for me, and I assume not too many of you wear skinny jeans!


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## Mykatie (Aug 8, 2012)

Roberto Mourao said:


> Hi people,
> I would like to express my dissatisfaction with this system, that has brougth me frequent problems.
> I see no point in it and it appears to me that its completely unesuful !
> If I had the option to take it out and replace by a standard key, I would even pay for it.
> ...


I wouldn't get one without comfort access. I don't think there is any fault in the *system*.


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## mcleod52 (Jan 29, 2015)

Agreed too mykatie, at least so far in the 4 months of ownership


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## Mykatie (Aug 8, 2012)

There is BMW app you can get that will lock the doors and turn on the ventilation from anywhere. It will not open the vehicle but it supplies a number that when called will request your app password(and possibly other info) and they will unlock the car. MY BMW remote is the name. It will also set off the horn or flash your light. There is also a locate map. If you forget where your car is it will pinpoint the car and show your location. You see your location move on the map as you walk towards car.


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## HikerToo (Nov 8, 2014)

My handles do not have the ridges on top
I need to push button on fob to open the door locks
but it has keyless ignition, so no place to insert fob into dash like my 328i.
checking back with the dealers "Genius" now....


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## badreligion702 (Sep 1, 2014)

HikerToo said:


> My handles do not have the ridges on top
> I need to push button on fob to open the door locks
> but it has keyless ignition, so no place to insert fob into dash like my 328i.
> checking back with the dealers "Genius" now....


That is normal for non-comfort access. Keyless ignition is standard.


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## need4speed (May 26, 2006)

Looks like comfort access wins in a landslide. N4S


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## Fish23 (Apr 24, 2012)

need4speed said:


> Looks like comfort access wins in a landslide. N4S


I agree. A thumbs up from both my wife and me as we both have it, she on her 2013 335xi and me in my 2011 535 xi GT.


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## bighorns (Mar 6, 2013)

As others have said before, once you've had it, you can't go back!


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