Ford Focus Key Replacement in San Diego

A Focus flip key for 2012 to 2018 cars is $169 programmed at your car, and 2000 to 2011 chip keys are $129. Ford dealers usually bill around $310 and $240 for those two.

Ford sold the Focus here from the 2000 to the 2018 model year, in three generations with three different key setups. The dividing lines are 2008 and 2012, and from 2012 the trim matters as well.

We cut and program each Focus key where the car is parked, near a campus in San Marcos or on a street in North Park, and back it for a year. The chip matches what Ford fitted and the programming follows the dealer procedure, without the service-desk labor line. Other Ford models are on the Ford key page.

Ford Focus keys by model year

Find your year, and the row shows the key it takes, what the dealer charges and what we charge at the car.

Prices as of 2026-09-30. Every price includes the drive to you anywhere in San Diego County. There is no trip fee and no after-hours rate inside our open hours. All keys lost adds $60.
Model yearsTypical dealerValue Car KeysYou keep
2000 to 2007: Transponder chip keyThe first US Focus uses a chip key with no buttons in the head. The blade and chip changed partway through the run, so we pick the blank from your VIN instead of from how the old key looks. $240 $129 $111
2008 to 2011: Transponder chip keyNorth America's own Focus kept an edge-cut blade, now with a 40-bit chip. Many cars came with remote buttons molded into the key, which costs $169 as a remote head key. The 2010 Focus was the first Ford with MyKey. $240 $129 $111
2012 to 2018: Remote head key (SE mostly turns a flip key; some S cars have a plain HU101 key at $149; Titanium and Focus Electric cars generally use the $239 fob)The global Focus brought the milled HU101 blade to the car. The flip key folds that blade into a head carrying the remote buttons. $310 $169 $141
The new key next to the original.

Lost every Focus key?

Losing every Focus key is still a one-visit job at the car. Your VIN leads to the key code; our onboard machine cuts the blade, milled HU101 for 2012 and newer; the immobilizer then accepts the new key through the dash connector.

On pre-2012 cars the tool may sit through a timed security step, and some will not run again until a second key is stored, which you would hear about on the phone.

For a Titanium or Electric with push-button start, the fob and its hidden blade are both set up on the visit. The total is your key price with $60 on top. Bring a license whose name appears on the registration or title, and expect the missing keys to be erased from the car at no charge.

Ford Focus key questions

What key does each 2012 to 2018 Focus trim use?

Titanium models and the Focus Electric usually start with the $239 push-button fob. SE cars mostly carry the $169 flip key on the milled HU101 blade. Some S sedans came with a plain HU101 chip key and no remote, which is $149. If you turn a key and it has no buttons, that plain key is the one to replace.

Is a new key worth buying for a Focus this old?

If you plan to keep driving it, yes. A chip key for a 2000 to 2011 Focus is $129 at the car, drive included. The same key typically runs about $240 at a Ford dealer, and a Focus with every key gone reaches the dealer on a tow truck, usually $125 to $200. A spare made now also keeps you clear of the all-keys-lost charge, which is $60 more.

Two keys work on my 2010 Focus. Will they let me add a third?

On most key-ignition Focus models, yes, using the steps the owner's manual lists. The new key has to be cut first and carry the matching chip. Cycle key one through On and Off, do the same with key two within seconds, then put the new key in and turn it to On. A single remaining key is not enough to run it.

My Focus starts for a second and then stalls. Could the key be the problem?

It can be. On older Fords, an immobilizer that does not recognize the chip often lets the engine fire and then cuts it within a couple of seconds, and the theft light on the dash flashes. When the spare starts and keeps running, the first key's chip has failed, and a replacement for 2000 to 2011 cars is $129. If both keys stall, the fault may lie elsewhere, and you will hear that before we book the visit.

My 2016 Focus SE is down to one key. Should I add another now?

Add a second key before you need it. With one working key, the owner's routine cannot add another, so the spare needs a programming tool, which we bring: $169 for the flip key or $149 for the buttonless HU101 version. Letting it get to zero keys costs $60 more with us, and a tow on top of the key if you go to a dealer.

Text us your Ford Focus year and trim

Call or text (619) 340-1518 with the car's year, make and model. If a dealer already quoted you, send that quote over for our answer on the same key.

Call (619) 340-1518Text us your car
Call me back

Every day, 7:00 AM to 9:00 PM.

Call (619) 340-1518Text us