Once you get the door open you can usually plug a programmer into the OBD-2 port under the steering wheel and pair a new key fob, then drive away.
Back in the day it was pretty easy to get the door open like this
Back in the day it was pretty easy to get the door open like this
If you want to see what's possible with modern cars, keywords like "VVDI" or "Abrites" and "All Keys Lost" will show you what aftermarket tools are capable of. Generally speaking, the capabilities in these tools are roughly equivalent to those the most sophisticated criminals have, as they're usually just stealing the techniques from one another in a big circle.
The level of security varies heavily from manufacturer to manufacturer.
For example, most modern VW cars require using an ECU exploit (which depending on the specific ECU, almost always requires physically removing the control unit and sometimes requires opening it) to extract encryption key data (CS/MAC) or physical extraction of the instrument cluster EEPROM.
However other manufacturers like Toyota seem to be more vulnerable to other exploits (I only research VW for the most part, so I frankly have no idea what's going on here), including a bizarre process which seems to require disassembling the steering column and unplugging a connector.
Automobile companies won't do that however, they'll serve you subscription spyware/adware laden services and you'll have no choice.
For example, here they market it as a way to find where you parked: https://www.ford.com/support/how-tos/fordpass/getting-starte...
I'm not sure what the effect of that observation is, though - key and immobilizer security is extremely important still, because cars which are stolen by any mechanism (tow, stolen key, transponder relay, etc) then need to be resold or broken down for parts. Especially in Europe where control module security is generally both more robust and more insurance regulated, many parts on a stolen vehicle are increasingly not valuable unless the immobilizer / key enrollment system can be bypassed.
"Among the nation's largest cities, Chicago stands out for both its high murder rate and for the number of its murders that go unsolved. In recent years the police have been solving about 4 of every 10 murders in the city, but police data show the rate is even worse when the victim is African American."
See https://www.npr.org/local/309/2019/10/09/768552458/chicago-s...
I don't think it was limited to Chevies.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/marketplace-car-thefts-1.6396...
the 90s era hondas up to about 2001 use various key-turn-rituals to enroll/program keys into the immobilizer, the later ones use the Honda HDS system which is just a specialty Toshiba/Panasonic ToughBook with an obd dongle and special software.[0]
I've enrolled keys myself for my 04 BMW with bootleg 'BMW MODIC' and 'BMW Rheingold' software packs pirated from The Pirate Bay.
You don't need existing keys for either system.
The trick (used to be) at the time that BMW keys were difficult to cut, and the key cutters were well controlled. This isn't the case any more, and in reality if a key was the deterrent you could always just program an immobilizer chip from another key, tape the key/chip to the column, and then use a pry bar and screwdriver to break the key tumbler and turn the switch without a key. This is neither rare nor hard to do -- and it used to be the defacto way to steal pre-immobilizer Hondas (breaking the column/tumbler, that is).
It was common enough that an in-joke at the Honda dealership I worked at was that a flathead screwdriver could be referred to as a 'lazy CRX key', a majority of those era cars encountered were so worn that a flat head would turn most of their tumblers by the time I got to work on them.
[0] : I was a Honda tech from 07ish to 09ish
So now I have an 80 and an 81 Accord... and I have also interchanged keys between them. The 80 doesn't open as easily, as I think it's less worn out. But there's practically no security on these old Hondas.
Right to repair has two sides of the coin.
I could get in the car, but it was not possible with the security system enabled without a currently working chipped key to program a new one without the dealership to do some I think cryptographic pairing of a new key to the car.
I could start the car and it would after one second shut itself off after buying a replacement key and tried many things with many scan tools before giving up and getting towed to the dealer.
There might be some sort of cracked tools out there but I was not able to find them, or get a straight answer if the very expensive software packages out there could actually solve the situation.
Would you rather a car where you could reprogram the keys yourself with a small chance it might be stolen? Or a car where if the keys get damaged you have to spend several thousand replacing all of the computers?
Might be able to short the right data pins from behind to ground and rip that out as needed. Or a hidden switch that does that.
I understand a lock, but just have a hard time seeing how it would actually lock (well), especially as a universal device.
A better way is to use a different kind of connector but you'll have to build yourself an adapter and to keep in your place or something.
But instead of spending days and weeks chasing it down, I spent maybe $30 on a battery cover with a little hidden flip switch. It was originally designed for turning on (illegal in my state)under lights, but I modified it slightly and had the switch connected to the ground terminal instead, so whenever I got off the bike I'd flip the switch and boom, problem solved, no more dead bike.
You can also put a lock on the hood, which is a good idea since that way nobody can disable the security system lol.
Edit: Also of note, the JL wrangler uses an RFID chip for the ignition startup itself. It's separate from the rest of the keyless go system.
All cars sold in the US since 2008 use ISO 15765-4 OBD over CAN for emissions diagnosis, and almost all use ISO 14229 UDS for manufacturer/dealership diagnosis.
The intent of OBD-III is to use some kind of wireless mechanism to notify the state that your check engine light is on. In California, for instance, you have to pass a smog check every six months, so people driving four months with a failed emission control system are contributing a lot of emissions.
It's been hung up forever because of privacy concerns, fears about rent seeking (being forced to buy a cell phone plan for your car), etc.
These sort of applications
https://www.nhtsa.gov/technology-innovation/vehicle-vehicle-...
are also hung up indefinitely because the cell phone industry is pushing "secure" solutions that involve cellular infrastructure but not promising to invest enough in their network to cover all the places you might want them. That and the rent seeking, privacy, etc.
I live in California and you only have to do it every other year [0]. My car is almost 30 years old, not super well maintained, and it's never failed.
There is usually a window between when the car will report there is not enough data to pass the emissions test, and when the car reports a failure of the emissions test. Maybe try unplugging the battery every night for a week and you can get a good idea of when you can get it inspected and passed.
Wife's 2005 CR-V will around once per year set P0325 (knock sensor, bank 1). I've replaced the knock sensor [twice], rang out the wiring, and checked/cleaned all the connectors. It's a 17.5 year old car with ~225K miles on it that sets a code once a year. It's not going to get any more fixed than it already is.
Alternative option is to sell the car to someone in a state that does not require emissions testing.
Also, if someone steals your catalytic converter, and there is not much damage, it is possible to “straight pipe” it for cheap and just not put in a catalytic converter. Although, I would assume inspection stations have cameras or mirrors where they can see the bottom of the car, so this might only be worth it in states that do not do inspections.
And indeed, many cars in the early 2000s supported key enrollment without cryptographic material using diagnostic tools, so it was only a matter of sniffing a dealership tool.
More modern cars from most manufacturers require cryptographic material from a central server to enroll keys. These systems are still often broken (look up XHorse for a popular product in this space) but generally require more in-depth physical access or complex software exploits to bypass the signing process or extract private key material from hardware.
It has an entirely separate and different physical connector for a CAN bus, one in the engine bay and another under the driver seat IIRC. This one has all the goodies--locks, entertainment system, full engine diagnostics and sensors, etc. I actually have the full factory service manual for the car and key programming is only possible with GM's tech 2 computer system connected to the CAN bus, not OBD-2.
For example, on modern VW AG cars, key programming is performed over the OBD connector, using specific UDS readLocalIdentifier and writeLocalIdentifier requests, but the data involved in the Immobilizer is both signed and encrypted using secret keys on a VW server (called FAZIT) over a subscription system called GeKo. The dealer diagnostic tool essentially sets up a tunnel over UDS between the Immobilizer software module in a control unit and the FAZIT server.
As an analogy: One can access a computers PCI bus over the Thunderbolt / USB-C connector, given the correct situation.
Post-2018-ish, they tend to have a gateway module, and accessing anything interesting requires you to get into the wiring "behind" the gateway where all the internal buses are. But that's also trivial, in most cars it takes about 20 seconds once your wrist knows the way.
> requires the $20k dealer computer system
Or knowing the messages it sends. It's only $20k because it can be.
> or some serious reverse engineering chops and weeks of time to figure it out.
Which someone then packages into a $500 car-stealer they sell on aliexpress and then all the criminals have to do is buy that thing and push a button.