Your Heavy Key Chain Could Be Damaging Your Car

A key chain is a great way to keep track of important items you need at all times, and there are plenty of ways to personalize your keys. Lanyards, charms, carabiners… the list goes on. But while it’s nice to have all your keys in one place and fun to personalize that chain with trinkets, every additional item adds weight. This may not be a huge inconvenience for your house keys, but does it matter for your car keys? We spoke with the vice president of Procurement and Automotive Technology for Christian Brothers Automotive Corporation, Kye Grisham, to find out if it’s a problem to have a heavy car key chain.

Can a Heavy Key Chain Damage the Ignition?

Grisham says that limiting the weight of your key chain is very important. Any unnecessary weight can put “undue stress on the ignition lock cylinder and cause premature wear.” This wear on the key and the ignition will eventually cause problems starting your vehicle. And as far as automotive problems go, a failing starter is a huge inconvenience.

While it’s true that car parts all eventually need to be replaced, you don’t want to contribute to the artificially fast aging of these components. They’re frustrating to replace, and some repairs can be quite expensive. So as tempting as it may be to personalize your keys with unique trinkets and charms, leave them off your car key chain. Or, at the very least, make sure you can easily detach your car keys from your heavy key chain while driving. You can put them back on once you’ve removed them from the ignition.

What About Push-Button Ignitions?

Heavy key chains may damage traditional ignitions, but what if you drive a vehicle that has a keyless- or push-button- ignition? According to Grisham, you still need to consider what you put on your key chain— but for different reasons. While the weight of the key chain isn’t a factor when there’s no ignition cylinder for it to hang on, Grisham says it’s still important to “limit any large metallic objects” on your key chain. Why? Because there’s a chance that they could interfere with the radio frequency and prevent your car from starting.

So, no matter how your car turns on, keep your decorative key chains relegated to your home, office, and other building keys. Your car keys should stay separate so they can remain as light and unobstructed as possible.

About the Expert

Kye Grisham is the Vice President of Procurement and Automotive Technology for Christian Brothers Automotive Corporation.

The post Your Heavy Key Chain Could Be Damaging Your Car appeared first on Family Handyman.

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