Lexus stuff

You’d think a supposedly classy company like Lexus could make a sturdy ignition key, wouldn’t you?

I’ve gone through two key shells since I got this car in December, 2011. The problem is that the shell, which houses a remote control that locks and unlocks the doors, lowers the windows, and raises and lowers the tailgate isn’t strong enough to handle the torque forces involved in starting and stopping the engine.

My key shell started disassembling itself last night when I drove to Firehouse Subs to get dinner for myself and Maria.

And it came completely apart this evening when I prepared to drive up to the Paragould Papa John’s Pizza to collect the free pizza I earned.

The key shaft broke out of the shell when I tried to turn the key clockwise to start the car, leaving the shaft in the ignition. Fortunately, I had a set of channel locks handy, so I was able to start the car and later stop it and extract the key shaft.

This is, of course, an unacceptable state of affairs, so I’ll drive to Lexus of Memphis tomorrow to have a new key assembled. (It’s an exotic key that can’t be replicated at the corner hardware store or the local Toyota dealer – Lexus being a Toyota product.)

The one bright spot was the discovery that Siri, the artificial concierge who lives in my iPhone is smart enough to know what to do when I tell her, “Call Lexus of Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee” when I didn’t have Lexus of Memphis in my Contacts list. She went out and found the number and placed the call.

How cool is that?