What’s the Coolest Car Key You’ve Ever Seen?

It's an often-overlooked item, but when done right, a cool key can make a car even more memorable.
47point9

An elegant key or fob is one of my favorite car details to be impressed by. I mean I’m not saying an ugly key is a dealbreaker. But when a key is exceptionally interesting, I always think of a car just a little more fondly. What’s the best you’ve seen?

If we’re talking old-school, classic keys (that physically slide into rollers) I think my personal favorite is the rounded one you’d find on a Z32 chassis Nissan 300ZX. It’s a great shape—I had a key made in this style, from titanium, for my older Z31 when I had that thing and it was totally worth it. I loved the look and feel of that thing so much. Early NSXs also have really nice-looking Ti keys.

For more modern stuff, I like Porsche’s Porsche-shaped keys (cute) though I don’t know if they count as “coolest I’ve seen.” I like the Kia Stinger’s fob too, which looks like some kind of bomb detonator. I’ll have to mull a little longer to decide what my actual all-time favorite is.

I know there are some really neat aftermarket options for air-cooled Porsches and some intense decorative wireless key fobs for current-gen luxury cars. But I’m more interested to hear about what you’ve encountered in your travels. So what’s the coolest car key you’ve ever seen?

Andrew P. Collins Avatar

Andrew P. Collins

Executive Editor

Automotive journalist since 2013, Andrew primarily coordinates features, sponsored content, and multi-departmental initiatives at The Drive.