My key fob broke at the opening where the keychain goes through. It was cracked when I bought the H3. My wife likes carring it by the fob. Well I decided to fix it. I used expoxy and took the fob apart. Fixed it and it quit working... So I figure just go to the owners manual to reprogram it....nope. Well my wife ordered an extra fob case. It came and I decided to use it insted of the one I fixed. I put the internals in it and send the wife to the Chevrolet dealership to have it programmed. She calls and tells me the key fob started working without being programmed. Even the tech said 9 out of 10 have to be programmed if the remote comes apart.

 

If the key fob is opened you have to reprogram it 9 out of 10 times? So, if you change the battery and don't know this you are in for a trip to the dealership? That's stupid.

BTW, both my fobs broke the way you describe within a couple weeks of each other.

 

What happens to remotes? The case gets broke, the rubber pad/contacts wear out, the board gets dirty. Just take it apart, clean the board (I use cotton swabs and rubbing alcohol) let the board dry, then put the board into a new case. Remote cases are a few bucks on ebay. NO NEED TO PROGRAM, when you are using the same board. I've revived many inoperative remotes successfully, by performing the above procedures, with no programming involved..

 

I just changed the battery on mine last week, still works great. No trip needed... I've NEVER heard of reprogramming needed after changing the battery, NEVER...

 

That's what I always thought... Clearly the tech is (thankfully) wrong.

 

The case on mine broke like that not long after I got my truck. I ordered a replacement case on ebay for less than $10 and just put the guts of the old one in it... No reprogramming of anything required. Still using it to this day.

For anyone that needs a new case, there are several on eBay now. They come with the new rubber button piece... Here is just one example.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/GM-REMOTE-KE...5cab66&vxp=mtr

 

Yeah, I advise keeping a spare.. If you guys are like me, my keys go through hell. I normally abuse them the most when I go out to the shooting range..

 

Yes, Definitely make sure the pad is included (very common to wear out, where they touch the board causing failure).. You may see black marks on the board where the buttons touch it, thats where I clean with cotton swabs and rubbing alcohol, then install the new case & pad.

New Replacement Remote Keyless Entry Key Fob Clicker Shell Case Housing Pad Fix | eBay