Key Not Detected / Phone as Key Comparison to iX

[Bonzy23]

Simple answer: I never carry a key fob and have used nothing but PaaK for two years. Every now and then I get “no key detected” and have to make sure the phone is “awake” or restart the Ford Pass App. PaaK has never left me stranded since they fixed the problem that requires continuous mobile signal to work.

However, I wouldn’t call Ford’s implementation of PaaK “phenomenal”.

I get the same message from time to time saying no key detected. Restart app and cars runs fine. More of an annoyance than an issue. I just gotten use to the weird things this car does from time to time.

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[AhardFSU]

Yes the app has to be open in the background or it won't work. Additionally you should look in her FordPass app and see if there's a message about optimizing PAAK:

If you see that, then tap on it and follow the steps to correct any deficiencies.

Does the BMW digital key use Bluetooth or some other kind of technology?

BMW uses NFC for their phone as a key. The appeal of NFC is that there’s none of the wackiness that you get with Bluetooth.

 

[generaltso]

BMW uses NFC for their phone as a key. The appeal of NFC is that there’s none of the wackiness that you get with Bluetooth.

But you have to take your phone out of your pocket and touch it to a specific spot for NFC. That's a deal-breaker for me. The future lies with UWB.

 

[AhardFSU]

My wife had a wedding shower today and switched purses and forgot she didn't have her key. She got in the car and hit the start button and got the key not detected message on the driver screen. She hit the start button 2 or 3 more times then the screen went black and it did not turn on again and didn't show the key not detected message. She still thought she had her key still and called me in panic saying her car was dead and wouldn't start. I tried the scenario again when shed got home and recreated the dead screen issue.

Any feedback if this is normal? Obviously, it's not a major problem as she almost always has her key. But I am taking her Mach-e in for service this week and want to have it fixed if it's really a problem.

On a side note, I picked up a BMW iX a few weeks ago for myself and the digital key functionality is phenomenal. BMW just upgraded the functionality digital key plus and the phone works exactly like you have the key fob in your possession. And you can also do many of the app functions off the Digital Key (which is in Samsung Wallet). I have been using it for 2 weeks now without a single issue. I don't have to open my phone or the BMW app for it to work. I wonder if Ford will eventually have this functionality.

I’ve used PAAK exclusively for the year and one month that I’ve had the car. As others have mention, make sure that she has PAAK setup and Bluetooth and location services are on.

Having said that, from time to time I get the No Key Connected message, but the car has started for me in each of those instances. i like to make sure that I keep my ford pass app running in the background. If for some odd reason it takes several button presses for me to get into the car, its usually been the case that the Bluetooth connection hasn’t happened. In that situation, I open ford pass, wait for the Bluetooth connected notice to appear in the app and I press the door button once and the door will open.

 

[AhardFSU]

But you have to take your phone out of your pocket and touch it to a specific spot for NFC. That's a deal-breaker for me. The future lies with UWB.

UWB is definitely the future, but I’ll take the reliability of NFC over Bluetooth any day for PAAK, even if it requires me taking the phone out of my pocket. Bluetooth is just to finicky. Don’t get me wrong, I like PAAK but the reliability of Bluetooth varies under so many different circumstances.

 

[generaltso]

UWB is definitely the future, but I’ll take the reliability of NFC over Bluetooth any day for PAAK, even if it requires me taking the phone out of my pocket. Bluetooth is just to finicky. Don’t get me wrong, I like PAAK but the reliability of Bluetooth varies under so many different circumstances.

In my opinion, for PaaK to be useful, it needs to be able to mimic the functionality of the fob. If I have to take my phone out of my pocket, I'll just leave a fob in my pocket instead.

 

[ChasingCoral]

I get the same message from time to time saying no key detected. Restart app and cars runs fine. More of an annoyance than an issue. I just gotten use to the weird things this car does from time to time.

Agreed. Far better than carrying two big clunky fobs (Mach E and Lightning).

 

[scoopman]

What op describes on his iX is using UWB not NFC. Of course since it's Android, only specific recent phones are compatible.

https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/usa/...-on-compatible-android-devices?language=en_US

 

[JryErok]

Mach E's PaaK worked great on my old OnePlus 6t but once I switched to Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, which is newer and much more powerful, it got much worse... Walk away lock works half of the times. When I approach the car it often takes a few seconds after I reach it for the app to connect. Also, I often get the Key not detected message for no reason.
The app is loaded into memory all the time, but it seems to take more time to connect and then keeps losing the connection.

 

[Mach-Lee]

What op describes on his iX is using UWB not NFC. Of course since it's Android, only specific recent phones are compatible.

https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/usa/...-on-compatible-android-devices?language=en_US

Cool, I hope Ford adopts UWB car key in the next Mach-E. Bluetooth car key has too many drawbacks. UWB requires special 6-9 GHz hardware.

 

[AhardFSU]

Cool, I hope Ford adopts UWB car key in the next Mach-E. Bluetooth car key has too many drawbacks. UWB requires special 6-9 GHz hardware.

Yes please. I'm sure whatever they decide to do, the lowest cost option will win out so that they can hit whatever margin number they're after.

 

[hprose]

I haven't really seen her use PaaK but she said it only works when she opens the app? Does yours work like you have the key fob, so as you approach the car the car opens and when you get it, it' simply starts (the BMW iX before the Plus upgrade required you to hold the phone to the door handle and put the phone in the charging tray for it to open/start). I am sure she would love it if it worked like mine so hoping it's just not setup correctly. She does have an old phone (iPhone XR) wondering if that is part of the issue. I just got her the 14 so it will be in the week. I am on Android so that's why my iX key is in Samsung Wallet.

If I have my phone in my pocket while working in or around my garage the door keep lighting up, the Mustang is On the ground, lights all around. Sometimes, after an iOS or Ford Pass update I have to reboot the phone. Otherwise it does all it’s supposed to do. Open the doors and start the car.

 

[fpasta]

@SignMD

This happened to me when I enter the passcode incorrectly. I think you get some tries at and then locks you out screens shut off.

This probably happens too, pressing the start button a few times. Without FOB or PAAK available. Or your wife could have press an incorrect passcode few times and didn't tell you or forgot she did that unknowingly.

 

[Jeffvisor]

I been using PAAK exclusively since I got my car July 2021 I am a Job 1 car. It was not very good in the beginning but to Fords credit they have drastically improved it over time. It's so much better now. I keep a Fob hidden in a Faraday bag and rarely used it. The one time I needed it the FOB battery was dead. I put it in a FOB holder in the center console and it was enough to start the car and drive it home. For some reason the car that day would not connect to the phone no matter what I tried. Now I keep an extra battery in the Faraday bag with the FOB just in case.

 

[kennethjk]

I been using PAAK exclusively since I got my car July 2021 I am a Job 1 car. It was not very good in the beginning but to Fords credit they have drastically improved it over time. It's so much better now. I keep a Fob hidden in a Faraday bag and rarely used it. The one time I needed it the FOB battery was dead. I put it in a FOB holder in the center console and it was enough to start the car and drive it home. For some reason the car that day would not connect to the phone no matter what I tried. Now I keep an extra battery in the Faraday bag with the FOB just in case.

Did the backup password not work that you needed the FOB?

I use your system and I check that the passcode is there every now and then since after one OTA it disappeared.

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