YOUR AUTOMOTIVE SOURCE FOR WEST CENTRAL NEBRASKA | THE NORTH PLATTE TELEGRAPH | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2014 | C1
"NUISANCE" SAFETY PROCEDURE DOES HAVE A PURPOSE BY RAY MAGLIOZZI Dear Car Talk: While on a recent business trip with a bunch of fellow engineers, the battery in my 2010 Toyota Highlander with a keyless-start system went dead. Of course, we blamed it on the youngest member of the team, whom we had forced to do the long drive that day. But the reality is that the battery was four years old, and it just died. Luckily, we found a helpful engineer from Boeing who happened to be parked near us -- an electrical-power expert, too! He jumped the car for us for about five minutes and got the basic lights and beeps working again, but the car would not start. The green "ready" button was lit up for the push-button starter, but no response. So after checking all the stuff we could think of, we got the owner's manual out and handed it to the rocket scientist on the team. In time, the rocket scientist found the problem. In order to start the car after jumping it, one has to open and close the driver's door with the ignition off ! Bingo -- it worked. Why have such a nuisance safety procedure? Most folks would have headed for the tow truck or dealer before figuring it out. Please comment! -- Steven Outsmarted by a car. Welcome to my world, Steven. The reason you needed to open and close the door is because of the way the smart key communicates with the keyless ignition system. With a push-button start system, the car and the smart key have to talk to each other. Before starting the car, the computer asks, "Are you there, key?" And the key responds: "Yo, dude, it's me. We're good." But the computer doesn't know to look for the key unless the driver's door is opened and closed. That's its signal to check for the presence of the correct smart key. Otherwise, it doesn't even ask. And since the battery died when the door was closed, and then you opened the door while the battery was still dead, the computer never got the (open door/closed door) signal to check for the presence of the key. But congratulations on saving yourself time and money by reading the owner's manual and solving the problem. Resorting to the owner's manual is atypical male behavior, Steven. It's a humiliation greater than even asking for directions! I'm both proud and ashamed of you.
& 10 Automotive Transportation
1005 Cars
1010 Boats & Motors Sea Nymph, 14 Ft, 5 horse Johnson gas motor, Minnkota electric motor, $2000. 308-362-7481
1031 Pickups DODGE 2001 DAKOTA CLUB CAB, box cover, V6, 2 wheel drive, come look and drive, make a decent offer. $4500. (308) 368-5802.
1028 Auto Parts/Acc. 4- BF Goodrich radial l o n g t r a i l T / A t i r e s , TOYOTA 2005 TUNDRA SR5, 140,150 miles. 31x10.5R15 mud/snow. $15,000. (308) 368-5895 Good tread left, $150. Bug shield/deflector, fits CHEVROLET 1987 3 most full size pickups, QUARTER TON, 4 excellent condition, $25. wheel drive, lots of re(308) 530-3369 Mark. pairs done last 5 years, $2000. (308) 539-4243
1031 Pickups
Dream vehicles bought & sold here!
FORD 2013 F-250 diesel. 1032 SUVs F X 4 L a r i e t . L o a d e d . NISSAN 2003 X-TERRA 68,000 miles. Must go. Green - 4 wheel drive, $38000. 308-746-5675 160,000 miles, fair condition. $4,800. other Rev it up in the offers considered. 308520-0965 or 308-660 Classifieds ! -4020
SUBSCRIBE TO THE NORTH PLATTE TELEGRAPH TODAY: 1-800-753-7092, (308) 532-6000
OR WWW.NPTELEGRAPH.COM