Keyless Ignition

I'm thinking I would like to have the key-less ignition package installed on my 06 650..
Anybody herd of it being done?

It's called comfort access and it is a great thing to have.

Originally Posted by bokmeipai

It's called comfort access and it is a great thing to have.

Personally, like the push button start I could do without it. Its more techno-junk, to me. I have comfort access in my 3er and its a pain in the ass if you are not traveling solo. Still use the key to lock/unlock more often than not.

doubt it can be done cheap as you would have to get new key fobs which are expensive and if anybody can do it, it has to be a dealer as reprogramming will likely need to occur and new key fobs ordered... (I think that's the part that will be a problem, as I doubt BMW will issue you a different type of key fob than the original - the comfort access key fob has extra electronics inside from what I understand)

try asking your dealer as well, they may know

It requires extensive overhaul from what I have heard. Door handles/control unit/ignition unit/ key fobs. It would prob cost a couple thousand just in parts to convert. Not worth it at all.

whatever you spend on the electronics - spend an equal amount on advil. you're going to need it.

I figure with labor and parts this may run you 5K easy...

an idea is go to the dealer, see what they have and trade in your car for one with the keyless ignition... while you're at it look at 07's and 08's as well..

in my state, you only pay sales tax on the difference, so if you can get the price difference under 5K, you got yourself a good deal...

Haven't heard of it being retrofitted. It's great to have but you'll need to stick the fob in now and then just so the internal battery gets charged up.

Originally Posted by JESMAL

Haven't heard of it being retrofitted. It's great to have but you'll need to stick the fob in now and then just so the internal battery gets charged up.

dunno if things changed in the 07, but mine has a CR2032 battery that I had to replace - 4 dollars... I tried to stick it in, hoping it would charge, but it didn't...

I think the non-comfort access keys are the ones that charge themselves... I could be wrong though

Mine's the comfort access key fob. It charges when I plug it in. Never had to change the battery. iDrive will warn me of low battery status if I drive the car without plugging the key in for a stretch of 4 months. Once that happens, I just drive for the next 2 weeks with the fob plugged in and the battery will be full again. Really neat.

interesting... maybe mine charges then and the cr2032 is a backup... how long do you have to leave it in for it to charge.. since mine's a weekend driver, likely I just haven't left in in long enough...

I drive mine for a total of not more than 1.5 hours a day. So it's basically stuck in the ignition for that amount of time.

Try digital guard dawg or stardrive from what I hear they are the top keyless ignition systems available. I'm also in the market for one as well I'm leaning towards DGD but I live in CT and I'm looking for a top tier installer i can trust with my 645

To me, this keyless ignition stuff is probably built in and I'd think it would be too expensive and too much of a pain to convert it.

Originally Posted by docpaulo

I figure with labor and parts this may run you 5K easy...

an idea is go to the dealer, see what they have and trade in your car for one with the keyless ignition... while you're at it look at 07's and 08's as well..

in my state, you only pay sales tax on the difference, so if you can get the price difference under 5K, you got yourself a good deal...

I think trading your car might be the better option in this case. I have a 1998 silver BMW 328is Coupe and I might eventually trade for a newer model. The used ones I saw were 2008 and up with the keyless ignition already built into it.

Originally Posted by coug60

I'm thinking I would like to have the key-less ignition package installed on my 06 650..
Anybody herd of it being done?

I have Comfort Access in my 07' 650i and I also had it in my 06' 530i. I have to tell you it's not worth the bother or the $$$. I'm not sure it's worth the $1,200 that it costs as an option.

The only thing it does is allow you to open the doors without touching the key. In older models you may have to to insert the key but in newer models with or without CA you do not need to put in the key. In fact in my '12 F10 without CA there is not even a key slot.

There are at least 7 sensors in the car and like the convertible top it's way over engineered. Installing is would be a nightmare.

Also to clarify some earlier points, there are 2 different key fobs, one for CA, and one for non-CA cars. The standard key does have a rechargeable battery and needs to be put in the key slot to re-charge.

The CA key has a CR2032 non-rechargeable battery in it. This battery will not charge in the key slot. You do have to change the battery in it every few years.

One thing that can happen with a CA key is that if the battery is low, or even randomly the key looses it's memory it can send a false or bad signal to the car. Driving with the key in the slot will re-program it and it will be fine again.

This happened to me this weekend. I used the spare key and I got a steering lock error. Ran the car with the regular key and no problem. Put the spare key in the slot and everything was fine. I confirmed this with a friend that has an M6 and he has seen similar things with the CA keys.

I would imagine that the standard key if not used for a long period and not re-charged in the car would loose it's memory as the battery drained and then you would see some issues with that key.

As for the upgrade, I feel the same way about the CIC computer, and the Heads-Up display. I really want both but it's not worth the cost to do it. I'll wait a couple of years and then get a newer year with those options.

Originally Posted by docpaulo

dunno if things changed in the 07, but mine has a CR2032 battery that I had to replace - 4 dollars... I tried to stick it in, hoping it would charge, but it didn't...

I think the non-comfort access keys are the ones that charge themselves... I could be wrong though

I have a 2008 LCI and it ha the same battery. It's waaaay better. When the battery dies, just change it. The old units were sealed units and needed to be replaced when the battery died. Super expensive!