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Are car keys magnetic?
I accidentally dropped my car keys down the drain grate on the street in front of my house—I was thinking I could maybe tie a magnet to a bit of string and lower it down to lift it out. Will that work? Are car keys even magnetic?
Andrew Biro · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
Sorry to hear about your keys! Whether or not your car key is magnetic depends largely on the metals it’s made from—only keys with iron, steel, or nickel in them will react to magnets, and even steel keys aren’t always magnetic depending on how they’re manufactured.
Brass car keys, on the other hand, are never magnetic—the same goes for silver and silver alloys. Unfortunately, nickel is often mixed with silver, so depending on the ratio, your nickel key may hardly be magnetic either. It’s honestly about 50/50 whether your car key is magnetic or not, so it’s always best to test it before you actually need to know.
If it’s a remote key or key fob that you’ve lost, there is almost no chance that they are magnetic, so you’ll need to find another way to reach them. A bent paperclip formed into a hook-shape tied to a string may work, as you should be able to catch the O-ring that most key fobs have attached to them.
Hope this helps!
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