by Gabrielle DeSantis

If you’ve ever lost your keys, you’re probably aware of how expensive it is to replace a key fob. Replacements often start at over $100, and can easily and quickly go upwards of several hundred dollars. This may seem exorbitant; why so much for what amounts to a small accessory with a remote control? Let’s look at what’s behind those costs. 

Key fobs aren’t as easy to replace as traditional keys

It’s one thing if you lose a key; generally you can get a new one cut from a locksmith (provided you have a spare to copy from). You can also get a new one from your car dealership, though as with everything else that comes from a dealership, it will cost you. 

Let’s say that you lose your key fob, though. Because your key fob amounts to a small computer that communicates with your car, it’s more costly to replace. Edmunds estimates the cost of replacing a key fob at $50 to $100. That’s without the cost of programming it. Although some car dealerships will program your key fob for free, others will charge to program it, and this can cost $100 or more. 

Can you reprogram a key fob yourself?

With it being so expensive to replace a key fob, you may be wondering if you can just reprogram the key fob yourself. This may be possible, depending on your key fob. 

You have a couple of options for replacing your key fob. You may choose to order one from your car manufacturer, or you might buy one online, from a website like ebay or Amazon. Of course you need to be careful if you go this route; some key fobs are not as easy to program as others. Also, some key fobs may be advertised as being compatible with your car, but they may not be in reality. It’s important to buy from a reputable dealer to make sure you get what you are paying for. 

To reprogram a key fob, you can generally follow the instructions in your owner’s manual. It isn’t too difficult, if you can get the correct instructions and follow them. 

Some key fobs will be more expensive than others

It isn’t cheap to replace a key fob, but it’s even more expensive to replace a key fob that can do more than lock, unlock, and open the trunk. If you have a ‘smart key’ that can open your car without having to push any buttons, or even start your car, it will cost you even more to replace it. Edmunds estimates that the price of replacing and reprogramming a key fob to start at $220 and cost up to $500. 

Of course, if you’re looking to really spend some cash, there are always ways to spend more money on your key fob. If you buy a very high-end car, your key fob is likely to cost upwards of $1,000. And if you look at your key fob as a statement piece and not just something to open your car, you may want to choose a luxury key fob that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. 

Of course the best way to prevent having to spend too much on replacing your key fob is to not lose or break your key fob in the first place. Obviously that isn’t always an option. The easiest thing to do is to just buy a new key fob from your dealer and have them reprogram it. If you’d like to save some money, look into buying one from somewhere else and reprogramming it yourself. 

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by Gabrielle DeSantis

Part of the objectives of every vehicle manufacturer when introducing a new car brand is to make money with car sales. Otherwise, there is no point in being in business if one is not making money because there are bills to pay and a life to live that requires currency on various occasions. Furthermore, as much as that is the case, there is no guarantee that one will make money after venturing into business.

This is especially true for car manufacturers who produce a particular brand only to discontinue it after some time. There are various reasons why an automaker may stop making a specific car brand, and a loss in profit is one of the causes. When that happens, the idea is to prioritize investment in more profitable car brands while strategizing for the future.

How car brands die

A car brand may fail for one reason or another every once in a while. Additionally, you may discover that a particular vehicle brand may be at the height of popularity and production this year, and the next, it may be in a downward spiral. So, what is the cause of the failure of specific car brands?

Indeed, there may be multiple reasons why a car brand may fail. However, most vehicle brands fail because they are not profitable. An automaker has no reason to continue producing a car brand that is making losses and proving hard to salvage. For that reason, they will withdraw such a brand from the market and direct such resources to other profitable brands.

That is one way car brands die since automakers cannot afford to overlook the earnings or losses a particular brand is raking in at the end of the day.

Saturn’s woes

Launched in 1985 as a “different kind of car company,” the Saturn car brand was supposed to compete with Toyota and Honda, among others. The idea was to monetize the small, economical vehicles that had always been losers for General Motors (GM), Investopedia reports. That was hardly the case because Saturn was never profitable. 

Saturn, the agile little start-up that GM developed to reinvent the way it produced and sold vehicles, was set to become a bitter reminder of the depth of the automaker’s woes. It is also worth mentioning that Saturn was created to do almost everything that many Congress members, General Motors, and industry experts say a modern car firm has to do to survive in today’s market. That is to produce a limited range of small, fuel-efficient cars, then sell them for a profit through a small network of dealers.

The only problem was that the Saturn brand never made a profit. Saturn made simple, unfussy autos to appeal to penny-wise drivers at its Spring Hill, Tennessee plant. However, the price point on some models was far too low to cover production and marketing expenses. In response to this, Saturn raised prices significantly after stocking the lineup with larger, fancier vehicles like the hulking Outlook SUV. Unfortunately, that did not stop Saturn sales from dropping by a considerable percentage toward the end of 2008.

Saturn’s history

The unstoppable advance of cheap, higher-quality vehicles from Japan prompted General Motors to find a way to counteract that push. So, the company decided to develop a new line of small cars, and that is how GM management started planning the Saturn car brand as early as 1982. The name Saturn originated from the rocket that carried astronauts to the moon.

In 1984, a prototype Saturn vehicle was introduced, but a production model wasn’t available until 1990. In the subsequent years, GM formally established the Saturn Car Corporation and started working out a labor agreement with the UAW to gain concessions that would make Saturn possible. GM and the UAW began meeting in 1983, and by 1985 they had reached a labor accord for the Saturn operation.

After Saturn’s incorporation in 1985, General Motors purchased land in Spring Hill, Tennessee, to build a manufacturing plant. Production at the plant began in July 1990 with a sedan and coupe version of the 1991 S-Series. Two model years later, a station wagon was available, which gave the model line three-body choices that carried Saturn through its first decade of existence. According to MotorTrend, the Saturn brand was officially discontinued on October 31, 2010.

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