Hey guys, So sometimes when I get out the Prius, I hit the black button on the door and probably about 70% of the time it locks fine, but then every once in a while it won't work. I hit it 2 or 3 times and nothing. Then I hit the key lock button on my key fob and it locks the doors. But just to complain a bit about the fob itself- the range is terrible. I had a RAV4 before this car and the range was substantially better- I could be much further from the car and get it to lock the doors. Anyway, anyone else having this issue... Am I missing something or doing something wrong? thanks jared
I have the same problem after ~1 year of ownership - it won't unlock sometimes either. I think the battery in my fob is wearing out.
Is the thermos filling when you are unsuccessfully trying to lock the car? On mine I sometimes need to wait for the pump to finish before it will let me lock the car, I suspect my 12v battery is on its way out.
Fob batteries shold be good for about 4 years. There are 2 of them. number 2032, about $3 to $4 each. Same battery that is found in desktop computer motherboards.
Make sure you keep your fingers away from the unlock section of the door handle. Many people accidentally grab this area while attempting to lock, which prevents the car from locking. Tom
I've had this problem two or three times now, spaced over about 18 months. Each time I found the FOB was turned around in my pocket and buttons were being pressed by other things in there. I try to keep the FOB with the buttons facing my leg as there is less chance of buttons being pressed that way. Did you know there is an LED on the FOB (SKS)? Once you lock the car, the LED flashes when the FOB responds to the SKS system (you have to be within 2 metres or about 6' of the door handle). This may be a good way to determine if the batteries are good. Watch to see if the FOB responds to a locked cars' queries.
Press any button on the fob for a second. It does not have to be near the car. If the red LED does not light then the fob battery is dying. Otherwise, masses of metal such as coins or other keys or electronics such as a cell phone near the fob can interfere with it.
It's probably interference from some local radio source. The proximity function requires clear communications on 134.5 kHz, while the buttons use 311 mHz. So it's entirely possible for the proximity function to be jammed by a local noise source, even though the buttons work fine. A number of people have discovered that their cell phones interfere with SKS when they are in the same pocket as the keyfob. Inside the car, you're relatively isolated from noise sources from outside the car, so the proximity function that allows you to just have the keyfob on you usually works there. I occasionally have to press the lock button on the keyfob when the door handle button doesn't work. It's just life in the real world. Proximity is great when it works, the buttons are the first backup, and the mechanical key is there for when all else fails. As for the range of the Gen2 keyfob, yeah, it really sucks. The range on 2010 keyfobs is about 90 feet, at least 3 times what I get with my 2006. That 90 feet is still far less than most aftermarket alarm systems.
