6 ms·

For those wondering why this is possible, a lot of new cars unlock if your key fob is in your pocket and you simply put your hand inside of the handle to open y

For those wondering why this is possible, a lot of new cars unlock if your key fob is in your pocket and you simply put your hand inside of the handle to open your door. And then you sit down and press the start button and you're off. It's really a rather nice feature, although it's also something that seems silly until you get a vehicle with it. The range with normal usage is very short though. If I'm on the driver side of the car, it doesn't work on the passenger door, and vice versa.

rconti 9y ago
Yup. Like many new convenience features, it seems so silly until you use it and then you can't go back. My new Golf has it, and it works so well that the doors unlock as my hand is entering the door handle cup but before I even have a chance to pull on the handle. If my passenger needs to open the door without me unlocking it, i have to stand REALLY close to them. It's pretty impressive (in normal operation) how perfectly it works as the key-holder but how close you need to stand for it to work for someone else.
- ghrifter 9y ago
  I like manual windows but also automatic windows in cars. I still can't really fathom starting a car if I dont turn the key manually... I guess its like you say, silly until you use it
  - lisper 9y ago
    I prefer to start my car by turning a key. I like to be able to turn my engine off but leave the radio on.
    - innagadadavida 9y ago
      My push to start car does this if you push the button without applying the brake.
      - lisper 9y ago
        Sure, but when you arrive at your destination you (typically) can't turn the engine off without turning the radio off too.
        rconti 9y ago
        My VW keeps the radio on until the driver opens their door; passengers can get out with the engine off and the radio keeps playing, which is nice.
      - wccrawford 9y ago
        My wife's requires an odd sequence of button and brake pushes to make it happen, but it's possible.
        nasredin 9y ago
        >My wife's requires an odd sequence of button and brake pushes to make it happen, but it's possible. Have you tried electronics? 5,000 RPM should do the trick. 7,000 RPM for those extra-tough jobs. And I've heard it's much easier to make it happen in ehm... older cars.
    - amenghra 9y ago
      Keyless cars let you do that. Typically, on an automatic, the car decides between starting the engine or just having the radio based on whether you are pressing on the foot brake pedal at the same time or not.
      - lisper 9y ago
        Sure, but when you arrive at your destination you (typically) can't turn the engine off without turning the radio off too.
        strictnein 9y ago
        On my vehicle (Ford Explorer) the radio doesn't turn off until someone opens the door.
        ck717 9y ago
        My Mazda will keep the radio on if you turn the car off while it's in gear or neutral. Then you can put the car in park, and the radio will stay on until you hit the ignition button again.
        copperx 9y ago
        That sounds like a bug. Edit: after reading some Mazda forums, it looks like you can just hold the shift button (if you have an automatic) while on park to make the radio stay on, no need for neutral or other gear. You might want to try that.
        chadgeidel 9y ago
        Every single push-button start car I've driven has the ability of "engine off, radio on". On the downside my current car (2012 Mini Cooper S - push-button start) will only play the radio for about 10 minutes (??) after the engine is turned off.
    - codesforhugs 9y ago
      Cars with push buttons have ways to access ACC mode too, but they differ so you will usually need a manual to find out how.
- lisper 9y ago
  I drove a rental car with this "feature" recently and I hated it. I have a habit of pulling on my door handles to make sure they are locked. Every time I did it, the car unlocked itself, which rather defeated the purpose. And as far as I could tell there was no way to disable this behavior, which made it effectively impossible to verify that the car was locked as long as you had the key with you.
  - JoeAltmaier 9y ago
    Agreed. User interfaces should include very real human impulses. We're all somewhere on the OCD scale; repeated locking and testing should be accounted for.
    - lisper 9y ago
      For me it's not OCD so much as cognitive decline. I often just can't remember if I've already locked my car or not, but for some reason I can remember having tugged on the handle.
      - innagadadavida 9y ago
        Many cars only have this on the front two doors. So feed your OCD by pulling back door handles?
        rconti 9y ago
        Good advice -- I don't know of any cars that have this feature on the rear doors.
        lisper 9y ago
        My car is a coupe. It doesn't have rear doors.
    - JonathonW 9y ago
      Some do-- for example, Toyota's keyless system won't unlock the door again for a few seconds after locking, which gives you time to pull the handle to verify that it's locked.

rconti 9y ago

Yup. Like many new convenience features, it seems so silly until you use it and then you can't go back. My new Golf has it, and it works so well that the doors unlock as my hand is entering the door handle cup but before I even have a chance to pull on the handle. If my passenger needs to open the door without me unlocking it, i have to stand REALLY close to them. It's pretty impressive (in normal operation) how perfectly it works as the key-holder but how close you need to stand for it to work for someone else.

ghrifter 9y ago
I like manual windows but also automatic windows in cars. I still can't really fathom starting a car if I dont turn the key manually... I guess its like you say, silly until you use it
- lisper 9y ago
  I prefer to start my car by turning a key. I like to be able to turn my engine off but leave the radio on.
  - innagadadavida 9y ago
    My push to start car does this if you push the button without applying the brake.
    - lisper 9y ago
      Sure, but when you arrive at your destination you (typically) can't turn the engine off without turning the radio off too.
      - rconti 9y ago
        My VW keeps the radio on until the driver opens their door; passengers can get out with the engine off and the radio keeps playing, which is nice.
    - wccrawford 9y ago
      My wife's requires an odd sequence of button and brake pushes to make it happen, but it's possible.
      - nasredin 9y ago
        >My wife's requires an odd sequence of button and brake pushes to make it happen, but it's possible. Have you tried electronics? 5,000 RPM should do the trick. 7,000 RPM for those extra-tough jobs. And I've heard it's much easier to make it happen in ehm... older cars.
  - amenghra 9y ago
    Keyless cars let you do that. Typically, on an automatic, the car decides between starting the engine or just having the radio based on whether you are pressing on the foot brake pedal at the same time or not.
    - lisper 9y ago
      Sure, but when you arrive at your destination you (typically) can't turn the engine off without turning the radio off too.
      - strictnein 9y ago
        On my vehicle (Ford Explorer) the radio doesn't turn off until someone opens the door.
      - ck717 9y ago
        My Mazda will keep the radio on if you turn the car off while it's in gear or neutral. Then you can put the car in park, and the radio will stay on until you hit the ignition button again.
        copperx 9y ago
        That sounds like a bug. Edit: after reading some Mazda forums, it looks like you can just hold the shift button (if you have an automatic) while on park to make the radio stay on, no need for neutral or other gear. You might want to try that.
      - chadgeidel 9y ago
        Every single push-button start car I've driven has the ability of "engine off, radio on". On the downside my current car (2012 Mini Cooper S - push-button start) will only play the radio for about 10 minutes (??) after the engine is turned off.
  - codesforhugs 9y ago
    Cars with push buttons have ways to access ACC mode too, but they differ so you will usually need a manual to find out how.
lisper 9y ago
I drove a rental car with this "feature" recently and I hated it. I have a habit of pulling on my door handles to make sure they are locked. Every time I did it, the car unlocked itself, which rather defeated the purpose. And as far as I could tell there was no way to disable this behavior, which made it effectively impossible to verify that the car was locked as long as you had the key with you.
- JoeAltmaier 9y ago
  Agreed. User interfaces should include very real human impulses. We're all somewhere on the OCD scale; repeated locking and testing should be accounted for.
  - lisper 9y ago
    For me it's not OCD so much as cognitive decline. I often just can't remember if I've already locked my car or not, but for some reason I can remember having tugged on the handle.
    - innagadadavida 9y ago
      Many cars only have this on the front two doors. So feed your OCD by pulling back door handles?
      - rconti 9y ago
        Good advice -- I don't know of any cars that have this feature on the rear doors.
        lisper 9y ago
        My car is a coupe. It doesn't have rear doors.
  - JonathonW 9y ago
    Some do-- for example, Toyota's keyless system won't unlock the door again for a few seconds after locking, which gives you time to pull the handle to verify that it's locked.