I called this locksmith because they said they would save me money over the dealership. They ended up costing my 4-5 times the cost the dealership told me. A1A Locksmith sent out this guy Chris to cut and program keys to a 2001 Ford Explorer. He came with his wife/girlfriend and began to cut the key. I told him the dealership said they need to program two keys at once, that you can't just add a key to the system.
He did not listen to me, instead he was making phone calls to his friends to try to figure out exactly what to do. He didn't know what program to run for the keys, he did not know that the keys need a working key to add keys to the system. He simply hooked his machine up to the car and supposedly added the key (which cannot be done, I asked several mater mechanics from Ford and they all agreed that you need to erase the keys and then program 2 more. He charged my $110 for the first key that did not work! I called them back to have it done right. I was not told that I would have to pay if the keys didn't work the second time, but he took advantage of the female owner of the car and demanded 250$ for 2 keys that do not work.
I have since taken it to a mechanic who told me the security module was fried. This was done by Chris when he tried to program the key into the system when he had no clue how to do it. I called and asked for my money back but they refuse! The guy made me miss work, fried the system, and charged me $250 dollars to do so.
Save yourself time and money and NEVER call A! A Locksmith, even if they are the last people open, it will cost you if you do. As a side note, this is a 2001 Ford Explorer, how many are there on the road? It is one of the most common vehicle and this guy had no clue how to make a key for it. The locks that he tested the keys in also are much harder to turn. Thanks for nothing A1A and Chris in particular!
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