ST1300 key replacement

bimota

bimota

Joined
Apr 14, 2012
Messages
52
Location
bridgend s wales uk
Bike
st1300
Hi Guys,
Wounder if you can help me with info about keys i have a st1300 2004 model, bike came with 2 honda ignition keys, the one i have been useing has a crack in it so it,s ready to break in half.

Now the black plastic bit at the top has a honda cover one side and it,s cover the other side is missing so key looks hollow now it works fine but i need to replace, i have just bought 2 blanks off ebay, when they come can i take them to a key cutter and get them cut will they work in the ignition.
the key i am using at the moment is the original and it doesn,t look like it is coded or anything, or is it and basically if i buy 2 blacks and get them cut will they not work.
your info would be greatfully appreciated.
Rob:):)
 
In the US market the keys are not chipped or coded. In the UK and possibly other markets they are.
 
Take the bike with you when you get them cut so you can test them right there. Not all key cutting places are equal
 
Are you sure there isn't a little transponder chip in the hollow section, smothered in a rubbery gunk?

That's what you have to carefully prise out and stick in the replacement key, and seal with the little metal plate.

hiss.jpg
 
If the blanks are chipped, the ECM has to be programmed to accept them as "valid" keys before they can be used to start the engine. There's some discussion about that here. If they're not chipped, they're not going to work. (You also have the option of keeping the bow of your old key around, which can be used with any non-chipped key to start the bike.)

Be aware that the ECM can only be programmed with a limited number of keys (which I think is four) and that once a slot has been programmed, it can't be changed. My advice would be to cut and program only one of your blanks and leave one slot in the ECM open.

--Mark
 
Hi Hound,

Yes there looks like in the right hand side the left side is empty, i live in bridgend s wales.

So when i get the blank and get it cut if i carefully get that little transponder out and glue it in the new blank it should work ok is this right.

thanks

rob
 
Hi,
readind threads here about this, looks like if the blank i have ordered, which is just a blank when it comes and i get it cut for the ignition is this also right if i put the blank in the igntion but have the broken hiss key held by the igntion the new cut key will work because the hiss transponter is close to the ignition.
if this is so i can get away with putting the new cut key in and putting the transponter close and starting the bike.

rob
 
That should work.
btw the key that looks like it's going to snap off will.

Your HISS system if you have one has a little blink light telling you it's present and on no?
I'd bet you have the system tho.
 
Hi,
yes bike has HISS on the ignition barrel.

When the 2 blanks come off ebay i,ll get them cut for the igntion then i,ll try them holding the broken HISS key close to the igntion according to what i,ve read so far the bike should start.
rob
 
wow. I have the exact same problem as bimota with my 2004 key; crack on both sides and I imagine it breaking off soon while in the ignition. Don't even want to think how the hey I'd get that broken piece out of the ignition slot. Anyway, all this chip-talk is freaky. I'm looking at mine but I don't have the this. The handle of my key is solid material, no chip. At least the key guy at ACE said there wasn't, after passing my key in and out of some fancy tube on the counter. They didn't have ANY blanks that would work so I have to leave empty handed. I have one perfect key that I am using at the moment but now I need to buy some blanks. Bimota said ebay (for key blanks?). ok. what is this chip business and why don't I have it? Is this required for newer models only. What's the purpose and why is it limited to only 4 dupes---I mean, its YOUR key to YOUR bike, you should be able to make as many as you need or desire but I digress.
 
BlueSTeed said:
ok. what is this chip business and why don't I have it? Is this required for newer models only. What's the purpose and why is it limited to only 4 dupes---I mean, its YOUR key to YOUR bike, you should be able to make as many as you need or desire but I digress.
Click to expand...

STs sold outside of North America are built with the Honda Ignition Security System (HISS), which prevents the ECM from starting the engine unless a key it's been programmed to know about is in (or near) the ignition switch. Each key is individually chipped, and any key you want to be able to start the bike has to be made known to the bike in the presence of one of the already-authorized keys. It's the same kind of system that a lot of cars have had for the last decade or so.

Bike theft is a big enough problem in Europe that the insurance companies there will either jack your premium way up or not cover you at all unless your bike has an immobilizer. So your choices are make as many copies of your key as you like or risk not having it be your bike for as long as you want. :)



--Mark
 
bimota said:
Hi Hound,

Yes there looks like in the right hand side the left side is empty, i live in bridgend s wales.

So when i get the blank and get it cut if i carefully get that little transponder out and glue it in the new blank it should work ok is this right.

thanks

rob
Click to expand...

Yep. Just do it very carefully with a jeweller's screwdriver or something. The replacement blank you're buying will just have an empty section in the plastic; you put the transponder in with a dab of silicon sealant, and then you hopefully use the old metal panel to cover the transponder up. As you say, it is in the right-hand side of the opening.

key094-2A.jpg


But if you don't feel up to the transplant, take John's advice and use your old key head/transponder as a keyring. Less elegant, but also less hassle!
 
Raj_Zin said:
Many have ordered blanks online and had them cut locallly. Here's one source. No chips necessary in the US.

-Steve
Click to expand...

Guys, thanks for the info. Raj_Zin - Looks like a decent source. Price is $1?! and they appear to be a company here in the US. Unfortunately for me, I went to the stealer last night and they had two keys left and I grabbed them. They cut them free but charged me a premium for the blanks. I paid a little more than I would had I ordered them from Thailand with 2-4 week wait for shipping. damn! Perhaps I should dollar-cost-average my investment, acquire a few more from YOUR source, and make some keyed pannier knobs or something or go into the key-blank business. damn
 
Ya do know that any locksmith that carries Ilco can cut you an ST key on an X265 blank, right?

--Mark
 
I like the silicone chip that it can be transfered.

We had a chipped key that was epoxied in... rather then try and program a new key, we just cut off the key shaft and put the top on a ring with a non-chipped key.

As many have found out, like John said, try not to use the OEm keys, but have ones cut and save them.. they seem to break to easy compared to the Ilco x265 blanks
 
Hello Blrfl,
Apparently you're stating the obvious.

Perhaps to you I acted stupidly but the "expert" key guy didn't offer an equivalent when asked and my Honda dealer was just up the road and frankly I needed to act. My short story: my key was no longer fitting smoothly even after using graphite dry lubricant. I then noticed my key was inexplicably bent ever so slightly in the middle and then noticed all the stress cracks on both sides, premature metal fatigue maybe but what a piece of crap!! Anyway, I had no desire to deal with the alternative; fishing-out a broken-off key section deep down in my ignition slot-no sir. I am done with this key right now and I had to do something. But hey, my new keys have HONDA stamped into the key head, I guess that's something ;) If I can still save face with you, I plan on using your ilco equivalent for my hard bag/glove compartment knob project. So thanks for the info--I think I got it now.
 
Mark,

No worries. You're only trying to help and that's what I got from it. Unfortunately, you're advice wasn't received until after I did other stuff. I'm disappointed in myself and a little peeved at the keymaker, who I expect to know more about keys than me--he didn't and I should have. We're cool bro.
 
I bought four key blanks from eBay with the intention of having two cut shorter than the others, for panniers, glove box and fuel tanks only. And keep the longer ones exclusively for ignition. To my mind, this would protect against the (to me) design fault of the long key in a short keyhole vulnerability.
However all my local hardware stores (Home Depot, Canadian Tire etc) only cut the keys that they supply - their cutter is expecting keys of only a certain profile. And the ST key blanks don't match this profile. So I am searching now for a backstreet locksmith who can do them as a special job for me. Anyone else thought that this would be helpful in preventing the snapped key in lock scenario?
 
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