218 FOB OFF...

I completed the most boring upgrade to the car today by replacing the cover on my key with a new one. I know, I know, but content is content, as all those insufferable influencers would say. In my defence, the old case was cracked and had been manhandled by god knows who with their unknown hygiene regime - Kim and Aggie would have a field day, I would suggest.

I also wanted to change the buttons themselves as they were well-fingered and were shinier than Duncan Goodhew's head (kids, ask your parents). A quick look online suggested that not only was this a cheap fix, but it was also an easy one, too, which made it a bit of a no-brainer, really.

As I was changing the case, it gave me a chance to change the colour too. How about a nice white key fob to match the car and the Rally colour scheme? Turns out I had little choice as the cases came in packs of two, one black and one white. Sometimes the universe helps along the way...

The site I bought the case from also listed an official Fiat replacement button part with the functions printed in white, which makes them much easier to see, although, as everyone does, I just press the correct button using muscle memory.

It was straightforward to break the key down, a little bit trickier to remove the button matrix and disgusting to clean the years of pocket fluff.

With everything in pieces, I also decided to change the battery, so I was 'Rally Ready'. I thumbed in the new button rubber, clipped the new back part of the fob in place, had an all-in wrestling machine with the top part, and finally fitted a new CR-2032.

I then sat for a minute and admired my work before snapping back to reality and double-checking the fob actually worked with the car! Thankfully, it did. I showed Lisa my handiwork, and she was a bit freaked out as she was used to it being black. If I change my mind, I can swap it for a black case later.

Note: Thank you for getting this far into the post. I've just read this update back, and I can only apologise for how dull it is. It makes dishwater look like a Pride March. Sorry.