I never really felt that turning a key in the ignition to start a car was anything that needed changing. From a mechanical perspective it makes total sense–one mechanism to start the motor AND unlock the steering column. Having a remote button to release the door locks certainly makes life easier than actually having to insert the key in the door, especially for soccer moms carrying groceries and moving kids around. But over the last couple of years auto manufacturers have come up with yet another way to pad out option sheets–the keyless start.

On one level it makes some sense. You’ve got a plipper that stays in your pocket. It has some kind of radio signature that your car recognizes and unlocks doors when it senses proximity and then allows you to start the car, usually with the push of a highly stylized Start button that becomes a point of design too. Now if it was that easy, and all of the various OEM solutions worked the same way then great, but my recent experiences in a bunch of different cars have proven this is not so.

First up there’s actually getting in the car. On the Infiniti EX35 and G35, the driver’s door would intermittently decide whether to be unlocked by the time I reached for the door handle. I quickly figured that to guarantee entry I should push that little black button that spoils the door handle. If I had a passenger I either had to pull the tear drop shaped plipper from my pocket and hit the unlock button, or find the unlock button in the car. The rear door wouldn’t open for me unless I physically unlocked with the remote, yet the trunk would pop when I reached under the handle–sometimes! The starter worked just fine once in the car–just push the button with your foot on the brake. Switching off–a problem with most systems required a couple of pushes of the start button. On the Nissan Versa’s system, and why anyone needs this $1200 option on a $13,000 car I don’t know, the keyless system shutdown procedure was so unintuitive that the battery got drained when the car was left on in accessory mode over night.

Infiniti’s crosstown rival, Lexus, does it better. On the sublime LS600hL, and the IS-F also, it would sense which door you had approached and without fail be ready and unlocked. Only problem with switching the LS600hL on is that when the gas motor is warmed up, it doesn’t actually start–the hybrid system’s electric motor poises itself for action silently. I spent five frantic minutes trying to “start” the car on an airport run that we were very late for. Perhaps an Enterprise-esque vocal warning would be appropriate–”Warp drive engaged!” Definitely not a problem though when the IS-F is burbling away.

Audi usually gets high tech right, but their keyless system is also slightly flawed. First off, its not actually keyless-at least on some models. You still have their switchblade style key and alarm fob. And there’s still a keyhole in the dash, or a receptacle for the fob. But there’s also a start button. If the key or the fob is in the ignition, then you have to turn it or push it to start and stop the motor, the start button won’t work. If you choose to leave the key/fob in your pocket the doors do unlock on approach, and poking the start button kicks off the engine. Confusing!

Then there’s the issue of what to do with the remote when you are actually driving. The contraption for the LS600hL, though wrapped in what looks like “eco-friendly” calf-skin, is the size of a small cell phone. Wearing tight jeans you don’t want it in your pocket so you’ve got to pick which cup holder or ash tray cubby gets it. Oh, and don’t forget to leave the car with it–or forget to leave it in the car when you are valet parking. How far will the car go without the key in it? Well Mazdas go pretty far. I swapped out of the driver’s seat in a top-of-line CX-9 with my brother a few weeks back and walked into my house. About 5 minutes later my brother was knocking on the door. He’d driven about a block when all hell broke loose with warning chimes, flashing lights and the car then shutting down. I laughed pretty hard and then handed over the annoyingly sized credit card remote thing.

So who gets it right? So far I have to hand the keyless entry award to BMW. The fob is small and light–about half the size of a Zippo. You’re not going to lose it but it is comfortable in your pocket. On a 1 and 3 series I had no issues with opening doors. And it will only start if the fob is actually inside the car. The big plus is that there is the receptacle in the dash next to the steering wheel that you can actually leave it in too. So if its out of your pocket its not floating around the car.

However, in all reality, while some keyless systems are a plus, having to push a button to unlock a door and then insert a key into the ignition is perfectly fine for me.

What do you think?