2011 Buick Regal 2.4L lost key

[92saturnsl2]

Vehicle in question has a standard physical GM laser cut key (center cut) with normal flip out key-FOB common for that era GM vehicle.

Friend of mine bought the car which only had a single key. His wife proceeded to place the key on the wheel well and forget about it. Long story short, they drove off and now have no key.

Am I correct in assuming the dealer needs to order / cut a new key for this vehicle? I assume the dealer will want proof of ownership, but he can't transfer the title from previous owner which lives in Indiana to Kentucky until it passes a rudimentary safety / VIN inspection at a sheriff's office. Hard to do that without a key.

As it pertains to the FOB / transponder, I can do the programming on that for him. As far as the physical key goes, I'm drawing a blank. Any chance a locksmith could re-key? Sounds far fetched.

 

[TheLawnRanger]

It has to be possible. What are the odds this has never happened before? Now how much would it cost?

 

[atikovi]

I bought a 2012 Cruze at a salvage auction without any keys. Dealer had the remote in stock and cut the blade right there. I was able to sync it to the car without any programming by doing three 10 minute ignition on, sessions. As long as you have a title properly assigned to the buyer, that should satisfy the dealer.

 

[Timmastertech]

Lock can be decoded with a lishi tool by a skilled locksmith and a key cut. A locksmith/service provider with vehicle security professional credentials can purchase the key code from GM and cut the mechanical key but in order to complete the D1 form ownership must be verified just like the dealer is going to require

 

[92saturnsl2]

No luck getting any local getting dealer to release key code with an open/assigned title that hasn't been transferred.

Had to trailer the car to a county clerk that had a sheriff present for the out-of-state vehicle inspection in order to complete the title transfer. Evidently the dealer will accept copy of current registration combined with title transfer receipt as proof of ownership, since he won't have a title for a couple weeks.