by Gaspare Lioni1947 » 4 Sep 2026 20:53
I have re-keyed, Duplicated keys, programmed keys and FOB's for GM, Ford, Chrysler, RAM, Toyota, Kia, Honda and a few others, but!, I had occasion to "attempt" to program a new key for a 2004 Mitsubishi Endeavor.
I cut the new keys with no problem but when programming the keys, no joy! I tried my ArtiDiag800, my Launch X431 w/key programmer, Autel MaxiLM IM508S, Lonsdor K518 PRO and TopDon/TopScan w/key programmer, all of which I have used on many different vehicles with no problem. One thing I noticed was that the "Auto VIN" function would not read the VIN and was not accepted when entered manually. (Hmmm?) After many frustrated tries, I called a friend who is a "Professional" locksmith who was very eager to come to my aid and show me how easy it was to program a key by a "Professional". Well, after 3 different brands of scanners and 2 different cloner's and a call to his boss who owns the business where he works, he decided that the keys could not be programmed! Huh!
I even called the local Mitsubishi dealer and talked with one of their Tech Guru's. he told me that I would probably have to replace the ECU which costs about $300.00 to $500.00 or maybe a used one on ebay cheaper but all would still have to be programmed. He also said that the fact that none of the scanners would read the VIN or accept it entered manually, was a good indicator that the ECU was at fault.
Anybody work with automotive keys and FOBS that might have any insight as to what I might do to resolve this problem? I just hate it when I can't fix something
