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So, what happens what your PUSH button start fails??

22K views 48 replies 23 participants last post by  CivicGal29  
#1 · (Edited)
Hi,

In my humble opinion, I feel that this whole latest PUSH button start fade is a bit of a risky proposition. Car manufacturers are pushing PUSH button start and Smart key entry as some
great new convenience, with marketing lingo like "Now you will not have to struggle and fumble for you key every morning." What?? So reaching in your pocket and pulling out your key and
sticking it in the ignition and turning the key is REALLY a struggle?? Are you kidding?? They are coming up with these silly tech features that are over the top.
So what's next.....a push button to lower and raise the sun visors because that is such a "hassle"??

So what happens if you are on a road trip and the high tech electronics fail and the PUSH button start fails?? There is no back up option for a ignition key. What do you do? I would imagine
over the course of a 8-10 year period, with literally thousands of start pushes, the button would fail. Of course I understand that ignition switches can and do fail, but would you not think
that a physical key and ignition switch, with proven decades of reliability, would be much more reliable than the PUSH button start over a 8 to 10 year period??

Don't get me wrong, I am all for technology, but are these new tech features REALLY making driving easier and more convenient, or just making us all more lazy??

So, with that said, I am strongly leaning towards purchasing the new SE trim later this year....NO PUSH button start or Smart key entry. But boy, this is really gonna be a big struggle and hassle for me to pull my key out of my pocket and put it in the ignition and turn the key, I will
be exhausted!


Scottyrocks is right.......KISS: Keep it simple, stupid!

Just makes me, at least, wonder......
 
#2 ·
I'm glad i'm not the only one who had this very thought process. I feel like in today's automotive world they're also trying to bank on the fact that most consumers lease a vehicle. Which means it'll always be under warranty for any issues that may arise. So they can work out any sort of bugs that way while also not having to worry too much about the long term since a lot of people are leasing and constantly getting a new vehicle every 2-3 years.
 
#6 ·
Agree somewhat but the flip side of that is you can get a used vehicle coming off of lease with a 7 year, 100,000 mile warranty. People are always going to buy more used than new cars because they're less costly and, now, with the economy bombed, the average age of the typical car going down the road is about 10 years old. There was a buying spree a couple of years ago, and new car sales are killed again since the ones that needed replacing have been replaced. They can't afford to not advance car technology but it costs them new car sales IMO. There are a lot of 10 year old cars that look just as good and run just as good as brand new ones. That's a good thing, IMO.
 
#3 ·
Hi,

In my humble opinion, I feel that this whole latest PUSH button start fade is a bit of a risky proposition. Car manufacturers are pushing PUSH botton start and Smart ket entry as some
great new convenience, with marketing lingo like "Now you will not have to struggle and fumble for you key every morning." What?? So reaching in your pocket and pulling out your key and
sticking it in the ignition and turning the key is REALLY a struggle?? Are you kidding?? They are coming up with these silly tech features that are over the top.
So what's next.....a push button to lower and raise the sun visors because that is such a "hassle"??

So what happens if you are on a road trip and the high tech electronics fail and the PUSH button start fails?? There is no back up option for a ignition key. What do you do? I would imagine
over the course of a 8-10 year period, with literally thousands of start pushes, the button would fail. Of course I understand that ignition switches can and do fail, but would you not think
that a physical key and ignition switch, with proven decades of reliability, would be much more reliable than the PUSH button start over a 8 to 10 year period??

Don't get me wrong, I am all for technology, but are these new tech features REALLY making driving easier and more convenient, or just making
us all more lazy??

Scottyrocks is right.......KISS: Keep it simple, stupid!

Just makes me, at least, wonder......
I could not have said it better.

I have see nothing wrong with a manual choke other than today's engines are electronically controlled which is good technology. The start button is a marketing gimmick as is iMid IMHO. I will always change my oil when I want it changed which will err on the side of being conservative. It will kill countless whales but they don't live where I do so I can't play with them.

So go ahead and lose your key fob and enjoy the dead start button.
 
#7 ·
Lol so true and I'm sure your right ^ about in a few more years I'm sure they'll have it down and keys will be obsolete. Hell they say the cars are gonna be driving themselves in less then 10 years for mass market so keys gotta go before then right?!?
 
#5 · (Edited)
NJ14KCM, that's actually a fair point! Perhaps maybe in 5 years or so, Honda will have nailed the PUSH button and Smart key entry features, but for right now, its all a bit to risky for my liking.
 
#8 ·
And perhaps the BIGGEST auto marketing gimmick is rain-sensing wipers! Really, are you kidding me?? That one is just down right embarrassing, IMO. How sad is it that
car manufacturers now think people are so lazy to even push a lever to turn on their wipers?!
 
#46 ·
Related but different: In my new Honda with the 'Auto' setting for the lights; if the wipers are on for any appreciable period of time it turns the lights on. I like it. "Lights on when Raining".... It's a law we can live with.
 
#11 ·
I literally laughed out loud when I saw commercials for some new Fords(?) that opened the tail gate by touching the bumper with your foot.
 
#15 ·
Actually, the electronics that make the push button start work have been there for quite some time. On older vehicles the key was directly connected to the starter as a dumb switch but newer vehicles, even one with a key, will use computer controlled startup to protect the starter and battery, for security, and to save fuel. This also reduces electrical load on the ignition switch components and allows a lighter gauge wire to be used in the dash and column. Some engines also alter the timing to lower compression and make starting easier.

The Civic's push button start also has a failsafe in the form of an embedded NFC chip in the fob and reader in the start button, so if the car fails to detect the fob you can use the hidden key to open the door and hold the fob up to the start button and the car will read it that way.

The NFC chip is an independent system so it should always work even if the proximity system is totally inoperational.
 
#16 ·
My dads Infiniti has a key that pops out of the FOB that you can use to open the door and start the car if the push button feature fails which is a good design not sure if Honda's have this or not.
 
#17 ·
You can hold the keyless keyfob on the door button/push start button if it fails and it will work. This also works if the battery in the keyless fob is dead. That is the fail safe for the system.

As someone who loses their keys a lot, having the keyless is a godsend. I can just leave the key in my pocket and not have to worry about dropping it, leaving it on my desk in the morning, etc. Plus with the fail safe of being able to hold the key on any keyless component to over ride a dead battery, failed system, etc, I don't see a point in wanting a regular key.
 
#21 ·
Why worry about the needless complexity of a key? Lets keep it simple and go back to hand cranking engines...

Image


I for one love push button start, I'm very tall and the lack of a key gives me a little more knee room on the right side.
 
#22 ·
Back when sewing machines first were replacing people who hand sewn things, there was a group of women and men who would go around from town to town and destroy sewing machines because they were scared of technology. This thread reminds me of that lmao
 
#26 · (Edited)
Guys, I NEVER said I was against today's tech advances in cars. It is just, in my opinion, a valid concern about the long term (10-12+ years) reliability of a PUSH button start when Honda is still relatively new at this
feature.
In other words, will Honda's PUSH button start be just as reliable as a keyed ignition over a 10-12 year period?

And personally, I think the selling point that PUSH button and Smart key entry is such a huge "convenience" is downright laughable. I mean really, come on guys.....sticking your hand in your pocket, pulling out your
key and sticking it in the ignition is REALLY that exhausting and a "hassle" for you guys?? Are you 90 year olds or what?? Really, are you kidding me?? Is drinking a glass of water real exhausting
too, lifting the glass to your mouth? You see just how silly the "huge convenience" and "hassle" selling point is?
 
#28 ·
We have been using buttons to turn things on and off for longer than most of us have been alive. I wouldn't worry about it in a car.
 
#29 ·
Didn't the S2000's all come with push button technology? and that was a 2003 car when first released if I'm not wrong...regardless of what year it came out, it was in the early 2000's...so Honda isn't exactly new to the push button game.
 
#33 ·
Didn't the S2000's all come with push button technology? and that was a 2003 car when first released if I'm not wrong...regardless of what year it came out, it was in the early 2000's...so Honda isn't exactly new to the push button game.
You are correct, the year 2000, was first year for the S2000.
Except the push start in the S2000 only added a switch.
There was a key.
The key had to be inserted into the ignition/steering lock and turned to the "Run" position.
Then the operator would have to push the start button on the dashboard, left side of the steering wheel, to start the engine.

The S2000 was made/sold for 10 years, 2000~2009, though it was purported as a limited run model... like the NSX, HA!
All had the push button starter switch, which was nothing more or less than, a simple mechanical contact switch.
 
#32 ·
I know it's here to stay! That is not my point! But please dont sell it to me as this "huge convenience" and "hassle" argument! I an not an invilid!
 
#37 ·
Is there a way to "push start/kick start" a manual tranny car that relies on the push start button to start the car?
If the ignition and immobilizer circuits were active (all other electrical system were functional), I don't know why one could not be bump started.
 
#38 ·
Totally off topic...but back in the day...I'm talking about mid to late 90's...I was one of those annoying teenagers who would come on to import forums and be like...American muscle pwnz you n00b5!! Haha...I was such an idiot. And then I'd start a flame war with everyone because I was strictly a Ford guy. Oh man...what a jerk I was lol. Now I see some early 90's civic hatchbacks and think....man...that thing would be a beast with a sweet engine swap and some suspension upgrades...I would love to try a fully modded track hatchback civic at the autocross...wonder how fast they are.
 
#41 · (Edited)
13Civic, "keys dangling bother my leg". You are joking, right?? However, the PUSH button surely is easier to see and find at night, I would suspect, than a key hole, so I will give you that point!
I never thought of that, sorry.
 
#44 ·
Nope.. not joking. I have some minor OCD tendencies and it really does bother me when something keeps bumping my leg while I drive. In fact, while the key is in the ignition the only thing attached to the key is a single key ring. No other keys or clasps of any kind. The key and key ring are easily attached to my carabiner when not in use. The only other things on my carabiner are a separate key ring for my house key, and a chunk of flat metal with my name that the wife bought me and got upset when I initially wouldn't put it on my keychain. My keychain is very minimalist.

Although I do like the Smart Key System, I dislike power windows. If my wife opens the door before I put the windows up I have to put my key back in and turn it to put the windows back up. I believe the Accord has a function on the key fob to raise or lower the windows but they did not program the Civic that way. I wouldn't mind the power windows if the Civic had that feature. Without that feature I'd rather the crank. Anyone know how well power windows work if you put your car in a lake?
 
#42 ·
Oh boy. This thread reminds me of conversations with my grandpa.

This feature has been in numerous luxury cars since late 1990's, and has been proven to be very reliable by all accounts. If that's not a proven technology . . . .

If it fails, gulp, you get it fixed just like anything else. Is it possible that it would fail at 3 a.m. in the middle of rural Alabama where there is no Honda dealership for hundreds of miles, and your wife is about to give birth in Knoxville? I guess anything is possible, but I don't worry about bumping into Big Foot or my airplane going down either.

Just because you don't find this feature convenient or useful, you shouldn't denigrate it or those people who don't share your views. The clear solution is to just buy an LX (I was going to say buy a Kia or Hyundai, but what do you know, they have the push button start!!).

Mick
 
#49 ·
I guess I'm not sold on my car's start button. Don't get me wrong, I love never taking my keys out of my purse to unlock or start it (yes it's a wonderful car for us women as someone so delicately put it lol). But 2 or 3 times my car started really weird. It would only try to start for a sec or two and just quit trying. The first time I go stranded, it took like 15 really short attempts since the starter would just stop after a sec or two. But my ex figured out I could hold the start button down and itll keep trying until I let go of it. But it still took me like 3 or 4 attempts just holding down the button for 8 or 10secs, it's so ridic! It just sounds pitiful when I have to try a bunch of times to get my relatively new car just to start

My ex actually recorded the last time this happened and someone recommended changing the fob battery. No more prob with short wimpy cranks and I haven't had to hol the button down since so I think the button is OK now. But every so often it is still really hard to start. Like I said, the button works, I just have to press start a few times before it actually starts. Frickin embarrassing, I hate it so much when it happens, but fortunately it's still very rare