Aging and ignition.

Recently I was in Denver and had to rent a car.  I rented some sort of newer Toyota SUV.

For the second time in recent months, when I got in the car, I was baffled by how to start it.  Really a sign, I suppose, that I've aged to a point where some new technologies through me.  When I rented the car, they told me that the "keys are in the car."  Indeed, the "key" was in the ignition.  But it wasn't a key at all, it was really a fob that was inserted in a slot.  No key.  It didn't turn. And because it didn't turn, I had a moment where I couldn't figure out how to start the car.

I then noticed the on/off button depicted above, and pushed it.

Nothing happened.

It quickly became apparent, however, that what I needed to do was to push on the brake, and push on.  Once I did that, it started just fine.  I drove into Denver and found a spot in a parking lot. There was a moment of tension when I pushed off, but it turned off just fine.

This is all a little silly of course, but every car I've ever owned took a key.  They all started when you turned the ignition switch clock wise.  They didn't all work exactly the same way, however.

The 1954 Chevrolet Sedan I had actually didn't require a key to start it.  The key only unlocked the ignition.  Once the ignition switch was unlocked, you could remove the key.  I had no idea this was the case until my uncle showed me, and I was frankly stunned that was the case.

My old 1954 Chevrolet Deluxe.

At least one car I had actually had the keyed ignition added.  That was my first Jeep. As the Jeep had been an Army Jeep originally, I know that it originally had switch ignition, but not key.  All the purpose built military vehicles were that way, and I've driven quite a few of those. They varied in how they started, with floor starters being quite common.  Floor starters were common on pickup trucks at one time, although you still needed a key to turn the ignition on.

My 1958 M38A1.  It had a key ignition, but it was aftermarket.

I've never owned a vehicle with a floor starter.  All the vehicles I have owned had keyed ignition.  I'm not in any hurry to replace any of the vehicles I have, but based upon what I've recently been seeing, that's becoming a thing of the past.  Odd to think that something I've just taken as a given that way, is on the way out.  

Of course, even at that, keyed ignition was an innovation.  I don't really know how they started, but very early vehicles, like Model Ts, did not have keyed ignition.  So this change isn't unprecedented, but it is a surprise.