Key Fob Sleep Mode - You're going to LOVE this!

[userdude]

Lately, if you want a 'steal-proof' vehicle, I've heard that a Manual Transmission defeats more than half the criminals - lol. Google "Manual Transmission defeats car thief" - too funny

Funny, I had a Ford F-250 farm truck in high school, with the granny gears and four on the floor. Even knowing how to drive that (really, it was a) beast, I couldn't drive my friends 95 Ford Ranger. The clutch was too soft. I spent a sweaty (it was Houston) 30m trying to move it once. Uhh!

I guess we can all go back to PITA car alarms and steering wheel immobilizers, but I prefer the "dog in the backseat" mentioned earlier, if it weren't y'know impractical.

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[Tex]

Ooh, where do I pick those bad boys up?!? My speakers are wankers.

But for real, you're right. The real trick is getting/keeping it all working long term; most criminals will want to move on, or (maybe) an insider threat leads to some scheme that the car companies want to cover up for liability reasons.

Music reproduction is terrible but they'll certainly help you pick locks LOL

I've found that the best security is often secrecy. A well hidden switch that disables a vehicle will stall a thief long enough that they'll give up, but you can't flip that switch within eyesight of anyone. Same could go for home security. A deadbolt that's locked and unlocked by pushing a hidden button somewhere will stop the best lockpick out there, so your door is more or less secure from all but destructive entry.

 

[userdude]

Music reproduction is terrible but they'll certainly help you pick locks LOL

I've found that the best security is often secrecy. A well hidden switch that disables a vehicle will stall a thief long enough that they'll give up, but you can't flip that switch within eyesight of anyone. Same could go for home security. A deadbolt that's locked and unlocked by pushing a hidden button somewhere will stop the best lockpick out there, so your door is more or less secure from all but destructive entry.

Great point, I'd forgotten about those. Put three of those bad boys together and stuff 'em under the seat and you might have something.

 

[Tex]

If you have an extra space on your hero switches, you could get an assembly with an extra switch and use that. Nobody would think to push the swaybar disco to get the fuel pump running. Nobody except me and everyone that just read this

 

[Bugkillah]

Oh crap, new Aux switch idea!

 

[Desert_Brush]

Admit, my perspective is jaded. Have had one of my trucks stolen and I am now always on point.
Perhaps it would it be Ideal if Ford or someone designed a fob that the battery would only be engaged by the owner only as it is needed. Simply further limiting the risk of the fob transmitting (and being hacked), when the owner is moving/carrying it. Likely preventing scum from potentially entering your truck, and even extending battery life?

What you could do is hardwire in a hidden killswitch to the car or even the fob itself. You can also just take the battery out of the fob to prevent it from being used at all. I keep the battery out of mine when I go paddleboarding and lock the key in the car in a hidden location...or under the car...or under a rock...you'll never find out.

 

[zombie]

Joke is on them, I don't have proximity unlock on my low package

 

[tock13]

OTA stuff aside (you can disable that), I prefer having all of that complicated security crap on my Bronco because the chances of it being stolen via security weaknesses are beyond the ability of most defcon speakers and beyond the ability of virtually anyone that wants to steal it. Older Toyotas are fantastic vehicles to practice locksport on though, because picking is all you need to gain complete access. The tolerances and bitting are good for a beginner to learn how to pick with both traditional picks as well as a Lishi tool, and I actually have a Lishi that'll fit your truck. It would take me about 5min to drive off without damaging anything or leaving any trace that it was picked. Plus, once I get an open, I now have your bitting, and I could find a quiet spot to cut myself a spare key with my nipping pliers in another 5min, giving me persistent access any time I want it. I'd go up to the door, unlock it without opening the door, copy the bitting, lock it back again, and leave. Later on when conditions were good I'd come back with a freshly made key and drive away. It's so ridiculously easy to steal a non-electronic vehicle that it's surprising any are left.

Another good example of relying on purely physical security is the Kia Boys exploit, where it was found that all you need to start and drive an embarrassingly huge number of Kia models is a USB drive to replicate an unlocked ignition (not electronically, just the physical size of the USB-A plug is a perfect match). They pop a panel underneath the steering column, pushed a button to pop the ignition core out, and then inserted the USB dongle into the rectangular cutout like a key.

It's a real give and take relationship...the more secure your vehicle is, the more likely it's going to integrate some sort of electronics as an added layer of protection. The more electronics, the more stuff that can go wrong, the more potential exploits it has that the average person can't protect against. If an exploit were to be found in the Bronco, giving someone else the ability to unlock my vehicle electronically, I'd be out of my element and incapable of addressing it. Aside from installing some relays or switches that I could covertly activate to power the fuel pump or some other critical component, my only hope would be that Ford steps up and fixes the problem before it gets stolen. An unused aux switch would be decent for that purpose.

My truck has 320k miles on it and looks like its been sitting in Wa State rain for its entire life so if someone wants it that bad have at it.

I will say though, security aside and just speaking the current modern tech dependent vehicles, I have never wondered for a second if my almost 30 yr old Toyota was going to leave me stranded 50 miles up some deserted logging road because of some weird 404esque warning on an LCD screen.. so it has that going for it.

 

[Tex]

My truck has 320k miles on it and looks like its been sitting in Wa State rain for its entire life so if someone wants it that bad have at it.

I will say though, security aside and just speaking the current modern tech dependent vehicles, I have never wondered for a second if my almost 30 yr old Toyota was going to leave me stranded 50 miles up some deserted logging road because of some weird 404esque warning on an LCD screen.. so it has that going for it.

True, and there's a lot of crap riding just on that screen working too. I'm not particularly pleased about it being the only user interface for a lot of things. Even though I'm not worried about that with analog vehicles, those usually have me wondering about other things instead, like what I'm going to have to MacGyver together to make it back into civilization this time around. Those vehicles, more than anything, taught me how to troubleshoot and problem solve on the fly.

 

[saban]

Thoughts on hiding your VIN from view when standing outside the Bronco? I know with a VIN someone can have a key cut by Ford to match the original in case you lose all keys. Probably can have the fob cloned as well.

 

[Tex]

Thoughts on hiding your VIN from view when standing outside the Bronco? I know with a VIN someone can have a key cut by Ford to match the original in case you lose all keys. Probably can have the fob cloned as well.

While the likelihood of that ever happening is really low, I get it.
Just do it in a way that looks unintentional, like a piece of mail or something.
Laws are vague about whether obscuring the VIN constitutes criminal intent, some say it's definitely illegal, others say only actual alteration or removal is, but paper and business cards have a way of finding their way down there unintentionally regardless.
It's happened to me and I didn't realize it (who the hell monitors their VIN visibility?), DPS asked me to move the paper so they could see the VIN, no big deal.

 

[bcool2525]

Funny, I had a Ford F-250 farm truck in high school, with the granny gears and four on the floor. Even knowing how to drive that (really, it was a) beast, I couldn't drive my friends 95 Ford Ranger. The clutch was too soft. I spent a sweaty (it was Houston) 30m trying to move it once. Uhh!

I guess we can all go back to PITA car alarms and steering wheel immobilizers, but I prefer the "dog in the backseat" mentioned earlier, if it weren't y'know impractical.

I have a 87 F250 with the 4 speed granny gear transmission, love that truck!

 

[Mjtermini]

I just ran across this Article from a few years ago that claims that by 2021 all Ford models will include this feature.

Our handy-dandy Key Fobs are constantly transmitting a signal so that your Bronco can sense when you're close enough to unlock the door and start it up.

Apparently there's a concern that hackers can 'read' your Fob from far away (as much as 300 ft - like in your house on your table) and duplicate it to drive your car away. This guy from Canada says that's how his Tacoma was stolen from his driveway.

In the video he advocates the use of a Faraday pouch to store your key in to prevent that from happening. However, in the Driving article (first link), they claim that if you leave your (Ford) key stationary for more than a minute, it will automatically go into 'sleep mode' and will no longer 'transmit' a signal. A quick search in the owners manual shows this (page 69 - Remote Control Limitations)

I'm wondering if people are having issues starting their Bronco because they leave the key in the vehicle somewhere and the act of getting in is not enough motion to have it come out of 'sleep mode'.

I've tried leaving my key stationary for a minute and viola! it won't allow the door to unlock. I will have to try to see if it similarly affects the ability to start the Bronco as well.

Has anyone else seen or heard this? Can I save on not buying Faraday pouches to store my extra keys in? I might still get one to carry my key in to prevent it from being read while I'm out and about (and moving around). I'm surprised that I'd not seen or heard this before.

That's great to know. Thanks for your research and for sharing with us.

 

[userdude]

I have a 87 F250 with the 4 speed granny gear transmission, love that truck!

Not to hijack the thread, but gotta explain that truck. 82 Ford F-250 with 81 Ford Ranger cab, straight six Mustang racing engine, homemade "cattle killer" bumpers and six inch lift. It got 60-100 miles per TANK and the master cylinder leaked. It got going maybe to 60mph going downhill with a tailwind, but it wasn't enjoyable. (It would also randomly die and I narrowly missed several mailboxes when the power breaks stopped going around a corner.) The windshield wipers once went out on an overpass in Houston at night during a gullywasher (seriously, we almost died). The head blew and the starter (like 50lbs) went out, both of which I replaced myself. I also had to learn to bleed the breaks and the gas gauge never worked.

I wish I still had a picture. It was gold with a roll bar and big ass tires I couldn't afford to replace. It must've been a big joke my dad played on me, since he only got it for me when he tired of taking me to work half a mile away. I was a menace in it, for sure.

I do have fond memories of that truck, but it was something else.

 

[springer]

This works for me. Forget those Faraday bags.

Wrap your keys in tin foil and make sure you pinch all the edges tight. I use two plastic bags. An inner bag with tin foil taped to the bag where the key fob is inserted and an outer bag to help protect the inner bag from any tears.

Now, with your vehicle locked, walk up to your door with the key wrapped in tin foil and try to unlock the vehicle by placing your hand inside the door handle. The vehicle will remain locked. The keypad will still function if you have a keypad, but the key fob remains inoperable. Make sure that the inner bag opening has been folded over a couple times to make sure it is sealed properly. When done, place it in the outer bag and press the seal tight on the outer bag.

You are welcome forum members.

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