Ok, I know between the weirdo's on this board there have been some strange cars owned and I was wondering what kind of out-of-the-ordinary keys are out there? I once worked on a car (can't remember make or model) that had a 4-sided ignition key, I bet it coulda doubled as a phillips screwdriver. I know a guy with a 2nd gen GTR that has a normal looking key, but it's titanium! Anything else out there?
Dodge neons came with a glow in the dark key.
Not really a quirky key so much as a crappy car, but my brothers friend had a pontiac grand prix, about a 1990?ish. The doors wouldn't lock, and the car could literally be started with a pocket knife. No, I'm not kidding. After lunch at HS, that thing would usually be about 10 miles away.
Had a professor at school who was supposed to be taking care of a coworkers red Nissan something while they were away on sabbatical. Coworker gave them the key.
My professor got into the apartment complex, saw a red car that they figured was it, unlocked it and drove away, went to a soccer game, fueled it up, and did some other stuff. Then noticed that the odometer was way off from what it should have been.
Stopped to actually look at the car. Turned out to be a Ford (Taurus, I think) and did not belong at all to the friend who's Nissan key worked just fine in it.
the part of my fiat key that actually goes into the lock is about an inch in length.. all together I think the key is less than two inches long.
That four sided key must have been a Merkur scorpio
Early 6 cylinder BMWs (2500, 2800, 3.0S, CS, etc) had unique keys-think of a Ford key with no cuts but different size holes drilled up and down the flanks.
Another Land Rover owner (old Land Rover, back when they all had names and about 35 hp at the wheels) found that he could start his car with the key from a filing cabinet.
Most old british cars had the tiny keys about the size of a filing-cabinet key. Later MGs used the same lock cylinder as Volvo.
My S40 has a weird key... it's just a plastic rectangle thing on the end of a normal-ish key handle part (where the door buttons are). Very weird, and bulky, too.
My old BMW Bavaria (73 or 74 I think) had a key that had holes drilled up and down its length. My new VW's have keys that have a groove cut along their length. My old Saab could be started with a screwdriver, I went to test drive another Saab and the dealer couldn't find they key so he just took a key from a different Saab and it worked just fine.
The key to the Mercury Tracer I had in high school worked in all of the golf carts at the course where I worked. Luckily the reverse was not true, or I probably would have found the car at the bottom of a water hazard one day.
My son's GTi has a key that opens like a switchblade.
My dad and I keep buying cars who's keys interchange. My B2200 key in his 626 My 83 Dodge p'up in his 76 My Malibu key in his Monza. Its worked out pretty good for him, because each time, it was discovered because he'd left/lost his own keys somewhere.
914Driver wrote: My son's GTi has a key that opens like a switchblade.
I know that Volvo, MB, Audi, and VW all have that. Maybe more, but those are the ones that I have seen that do it.
Not only does my Jaguar X-type key open like a switchblade, but it is a very odd shape as well. It is hard to describe, it is sort of a rod with a flattened and flaired out end. The cross section at the functional end would be more rectangular than round though. It reminds me of the key that the alien uses to open the wall at the beggining of The Fifth Element (Bruce Willis movie).
My budy has a mid-seventies BMW 3.0S with one of those wierd keys with the holes. Same general shape a "normal" key, but with scattered pits drilled in it rather than teeth. I always wonder how it works...
All Samurais have a key with sort of a "tool" at the tip - it's a very simple key that will open the gas cap on any Samurai. Also the key has "sections." The glove box opens using the "tip" tool and the nearest "section" of the key.
A 1968 Ford Galixie 500 XL , double sided ignition key will start almost any 1970's Massey Fergeson tractor.
Just in case it ever comes up again in this century!
SoloSonett wrote: A 1968 Ford Galixie 500 XL , double sided ignition key will start almost any 1970's Massey Fergeson tractor. Just in case it ever comes up again in this century!
Thank goodness! I wanted to start my 70s Massey Fergeson tractor and I happened to have a '68 Galaxie key lying around! Thanks, that was a life saver! 
Gearhead_42 wrote:
Is that one of those new keys in you pocket? Or are you just HAPPY to see me?
"You'll find out ... if you 'get friendly' and the doors open! "
The key for my Autolock (think The Club for your clutch or brake pedal) is weird-looking. Instead of teeth, there are circular indents on both the broad and narrow parts of the key.
914Driver wrote: My son's GTi has a key that opens like a switchblade.
Look out! He's got a key!
My dad's got a BMW 745. The key for this car (and all new BMWs I guess) is just a little fob that you jam into a hole.
. . .
That's what she said.
So, why do they even have keys for cars anymore?
Ya, sure you need something to open the car when the battery is dead, but if you have a dead battery in a new car, you are completely screwed already.
I've heard that the VW 'switchblade' keys are upwards of 60 or 70 bucks to replace from the dealer.. Speaking of switchblades, the key for my Metro was the size of one. Other than that, just boring ole' normal size keys..
My '62 Chrysler has aluminum keys. I use steel replacements now. I didn't like the idea of 45+ year old aluminum breaking off in the ignition.
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