Relatively new Prius owner, 2005, love it. Last night I parked downtown, came back 2 hours later, and no start, no power, security light on and another never seen icon next to it. After a minute I got out, locked the doors with the outside button, called my wife, went back to the car, it unlocked and the interior light went on and she started as usual. I am Assuming the immobilized was activated, but how? What did I do? I may not have locked it initially but the security system automatically turns on when I fail to lock and when I return I have to start it right away or it starts beeping a very loud horn! I just want to avoid this happening again inadvertently, thanks, the Prius runs great, no codes, batteries all good.
"batteries all good" doesn't mean much to me. I need data from testing. Measure the voltage of the key fob battery and report same (or just replace it on general principle). Open the hood after the car has been sitting for a few hours or overnight. Measure the voltage at the jump start lug in the under hood fusebox (+) and one of the studs for the strut mount behind there. Report that. Many parts stores (or repair shops) will test your 12V battery. If all that tests good then you can look for other possibilities. Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
So you don’t think I inadvertently put it in immobilized mode? The reason I ask is because that seems to be what happened but I don’t know why. Upon exiting and then re-entering the vehicle was fine started right up.
I believe I’ve solved it, btw my 12 volt battery measures 13.9, what was happening is my Key Fob battery, while seemingly good, able to lock and unlock the doors from several feet away, was not being recognized while I was starting the car in SKS mode. The icon was the key with an exclamation point through it. On that state the Prius was dead. However taking the key out of my pocket allowed the system to work. im changing the 2032 battery and look forward to no more issues.
experience. new fully charged agm batteries are around 13 volts. yo will almost never get that reading after installed because the car doesn't keep it fully charged. high 12's is the norm for a good battery. when you power up the car with a volt meter on the battery, you will see the voltage jump up to around 14. the inverter regulates the charge based on the battery state of charge. the lower the battery, the higher you will see the charge when the car is on.
I don't have a Prius with smart keys, but our Mazda is set up with that system. If the coin battery in the key runs low, the car may fail to recognize the key, triggering the "key not detected" warning lamp like you saw. Even with a fully dead battery in the key, the car will still ping for the transponder chip contained within your key as a backup to allow starts. That transponder setup is a lower energy system; shorter range. The closer you put the key to the start button, the more likely it is to work. It sounds like just getting it out of your pocket was enough to make the difference for your situation. Good luck with the cell swap!
I just ran the Prius diagnostic in ready mode only and the battery registered 11.9 volts with no accessories on. Ideas?
Yep. Just get a good "bite" on the jump start lug in the fuse block for (+), and I usually grab a suspension strut mounting stud behind the fuseblock for (-). Otherwise I have to search around for clean metal somewhere on the engine for a solid ground to connect to. Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
