I got a copy of my key made about a month and a half ago. It was done at the dealer. Now, I see rust starting to form where the key was ground down to my specific VIN shape. Haven't had any contact with water that I'm aware of. Heck, I'm in central california, it hasn't even rained here in 4 months. Anyone ever had this problem before? Do I need to worry about it or should I just ignore it?

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Eric Zacharias

'88 300 SEL
'64 Ford Falcon
'99 Infiniti QX4

I would try to clean the surface rust with a good cleaner and cloth. Do not use sandpaper. I am just thinking about how it could affect the tumbler and door locks in the long run.

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2006 BMW M5 "Heidi" @ 109,000 miles
2005 MBZ C55 AMG "Lorelai" @ 165,000 miles
1991 MBZ 300E "Benzachino II" @ 165,000 miles
1990 MBZ 500SL "Shoshanna" @ 118,000 miles

(On the hunt for a good used M103 engine as of 6/10/23, PM me if you have one to sell!)

Dealer keys are steel. Not brass like the after market ones. The advantage of the steel key is the steel will not come off and clog up the tumbler. But, The steel can rust. Use some navel jelly on it and keep it clean. Also try some WD40 in the tumbler. Or graphite.

Dave

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1970 220D, owned 1980-1990
1980 240D, owned 1990-1992
1982 300TD, owned 1992-1993
1986 300SDL, owned 1993-2004
1999 E300, owned 1999-2003
1982 300TD, 213,880mi, owned since Nov 18, 1991- Aug 4, 2010 SOLD
1988 560SL, 100,000mi, owned since 1995
1965 Mustang Fastback Mileage Unknown(My sons)
1983 240D, 176,000mi (My daughers) owned since 2004
2007 Honda Accord EX-L I4 auto, the new daily driver
1985 300D 264,000mi Son's new daily driver.(sold)
2008 Hyundai Tiberon. Daughters new car