If you want a discount.........

[It shouldn't]

......... do not scream at me and call me names.

Guy comes in and starts of whining and hand wringing (he seriously was wringing his hands. Oddest sight). He lost aaalll his keys. He neeeds heeeelp!!

Of course he has an older model GM with a VATS chip key. Big bucks making a key for one of those, since it is labor intensive. When I tell him the price (over $200), he starts screaming and accuses me of high way robbery. Tells me I'm just out to get rich of of him. There is also the b-word thrown around.

First of, I don't own this place, I don't set the prices. Second it IS labor intensive it takes up to 2 hours alone just to program the chip, not including the time to take things apart and put back together to make the mechanical portion of the key.

Well, why does he still have to pay for the service guy to sit there while programming?
Because WE still have to pay the service guy to sit there and DO the programming.

Whhyyy am I unwilling to give him a discount. Throw in more b-words for good measure.
I MUST ask the boss about allowing a special discount for him.
Sure thing, I'll leave him a message (on the bottom of the pile)

[CyberLurch]

But Bullwinkle, that trick never works!

Seriously, though, I can kind of understand his frustration. Those keys ARE ridiculously expensive. But just because he's lost his keys isn't a reason for a discount. I wish a locksmith would have given me a discount when I locked myself out of my car a couple of years ago. It cost me $130, and that didn't even involve making new keys. I'm really glad that my older-model GM, which is SUPPOSED to have those special keys, for some reason DOES NOT.

[Nunavut Pants]

B-word... I wonder if he was implying that your parents were strangers, or if he was implying they were canines?

[CyberLurch]

B-word... I wonder if he was implying that your parents were strangers, or if he was implying they were canines?

Whether five or seven letters, it does not matter. Once the sucktomer becomes abusive, all goodwill toward him ceases instantly. I won't return abuse for abuse, but damned if I'll do anything for him beyond the bare minimums of my job, and guaranteed he's going to catch a chill from anything I have to say to him.

"Thank you for your business, sir, and I hope the rest of your day is just as pleasant as you've made mine."

[Pixelated]

Was this particular key a car key? 'Cause I have just found out about computerized car keys (why yes, I am indeed lost in the mists of the past. Pretty sure my buggy whip is somewhere in the living room ... )

I've got a used car which was handed over to me with ONE key. If ever I lose that key, it's gonna cost a heap 'o' cash to get another one. That is not, however, the fault of the key-makers.

[raw1989]

My husbands fob is 350 bucks to replace.

[Rosco the Iroc]

.

Of course he has an older model GM with a VATS chip key. Big bucks making a key for one of those, since it is labor intensive. When I tell him the price (over $200), he starts screaming and accuses me of high way robbery. Tells me I'm just out to get rich of of him. There is also the b-word thrown around.

First of, I don't own this place, I don't set the prices. Second it IS labor intensive it takes up to 2 hours alone just to program the chip, not including the time to take things apart and put back together to make the mechanical portion of the key.
:

Sorry but I'm with him.
being "IROC" and battling it for decades I know VATS. It's a simple resister chip.
Most cars had less then 20 different "codes" Hard part was knowing what "code" your car took. But the keys are cheap.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Kaba-B62-...&wl13=&veh=sem

[bainsidhe]

When you start insulting me personally, I'll respond civilly, but with a thinly masked veil of hatred. I get being upset, but calling you the b-word completely crossed the line. He was damn lucky he wasn't told to leave.

[Daskinor]

Sorry but I'm with him.
being "IROC" and battling it for decades I know VATS. It's a simple resister chip.
Most cars had less then 20 different "codes" Hard part was knowing what "code" your car took. But the keys are cheap.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Kaba-B62-...&wl13=&veh=sem

The problem is that he does not have a key to read the value off or get the cut. And its not something that can be looked up using the VIN number like on a Volvo. I know GM makes a tool to read the value, but it does not work on every Vehicle.

So basically they need to re-key the steering column. If I needed just a duplicate, yea 26 dollars from the dealer.

[It shouldn't]

Sorry but I'm with him.
being "IROC" and battling it for decades I know VATS. It's a simple resister chip.
Most cars had less then 20 different "codes" Hard part was knowing what "code" your car took. But the keys are cheap.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Kaba-B62-...&wl13=&veh=sem

Oh, yeah, the key 'blanks' are cheap.

It can take up to 2 hrs to figure out what the right resistor value is, because the only way to do that (unless the original car owner wrote it down somewhere) is the start at the lowest value and see if it starts. if not, go to next higher value, etc. Problem is when you use the wrong value the car computer locks out another attempt for up to 10 minutes. So you try one, no go, wait 10 minutes, try next, no go, wait another 10 minutes, etc. That's what takes up to 2 hours.

The other part of the labor is to figure out the cuts for the blade part of the key, which involves dropping the steering column, disassembly of the column to remove the ignition, disassembly of the ignition to measure the individual wafers and then putting it all back together.

Oh and the getting there. We charge a service call to show up and bring all the equipment with us. The only other option would be for you to tow it to our shop, which is a lot more expensive than our service call charge.

So, yeah, the key blank is a minuscule part of the $200 some charge.

Dude should have spend a couple bucks and gotten a spare made, instead of calling me b-words (think dogs, FYI) cause our service guy would actually like to get paid after spending almost 1/2 day making keys to his car.

[Rosco the Iroc]

At that price he should of gotten it bypassed.
I have my code down, good thing the wire leads kept breaking off the switch and I would be told I needed to get a whole new vats computer for the new tumbler.
I had to finally tell them to just match the pins to the old key it would work. The switch had no resistance.
Crap the tool is not that much and is aval. Also if the tumbler is OEM the code may be on the side of it.
Still say that's steep but I would of just nodded and out the door I went. No need to talk to you like that.

[Sparklyturtle]

Right now I'm glad I drive an old heap that doesn't have one of those fancy keys. I had to do a bit of hunting to find a place that carried blanks for my car since the cars themselves aren't made any more (Geo Metro) but my local Ace Hardware made me copies after Turtleguy lost his keys.

[wolfie]

Keys for AMC ("dead" brand, now part of Chrysler) are still readily available (my truck uses an AMC blank), and the newest AMC is older than the oldest Metro.

My car also uses a plain mechanical key.

[mhkohne]

Honestly, if a customer gets nasty like that, you should double the price for each 5 minutes he argues. There's no call for that and unless you are hurting for customers, no reason to put up with it.

[Sparklyturtle]

Keys for AMC ("dead" brand, now part of Chrysler) are still readily available (my truck uses an AMC blank), and the newest AMC is older than the oldest Metro.

My car also uses a plain mechanical key.

That's what I was told at the local key shop. I went to Ace Hardware, and got the keys I needed. The local key shop isn't there any more, by the way.