2009 Silver Key Fob Chicken Dance Programming FOB

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by IEsorry, Dec 18, 2025 at 12:24 PM.

  1. IEsorry

    IEsorry Junior Member

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    Bought new key with chip from Amazon. Silver logo is my original key and I bought the silver key version on amazon. Trying to program the smart key functionality to work when inserted.

    I was able to successfully program the key for lock/unlock, which also made the new key work for wirelessly starting the car (not inserted).

    Trying to do the chicken dance now 8+ times for smart key functionality. Involves inserting old key 5 times, opening door 6 times. I successfully get to "program mode" where the light stays solid. When I get to the step of inserting the new key to be programmed, I get the 3-blink (2-blink, 1-blink, PAUSE, repeat) that continues for a minute, then it single blinks on forever. Ive seen several threads on this but they all frustratingly go off-topic and I see zero resolution.

    Anybody have a resolution or insight into this?

    Thanks.
     
    #1 IEsorry, Dec 18, 2025 at 12:24 PM
  2. Prius_Gnome

    Prius_Gnome Member

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    1. Can you provide the link to the Amazon listing where you bought the key (so we can confirm compatibility)?
    2. Can you confirm that SKS fully works with your original key fob?
    3. You mention that you're inserting old key 5 times and opening door 6 times. That sounds like Procedure A. Did you do Procedure B? See this Priuschat thread: How to Program a New Key Fob for Full SKS Functionality | PriusChat
     
    #2 Prius_Gnome, Dec 18, 2025 at 4:13 PM
  3. IEsorry

    IEsorry Junior Member

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    1. https://a.co/d/ap1vHUN
    2. Yes SKS works fully with old key fob
    3. Yes correct. Procedure A not working. Procedure B successful
    New energizer batteries in both FOBs. I also confirmed I see the trapezoidal RFID chip inside the new amazon FOB.
     
    #3 IEsorry, Dec 18, 2025 at 6:08 PM
    Last edited: Dec 18, 2025 at 6:27 PM
  4. Prius_Gnome

    Prius_Gnome Member

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    OK, so we've confirmed that your old key fob is SKS and the new key fob is SKS.
    But if Procedure B was successful, you should already have SKS functionality. Procedure A has to do with starting the engine with the key fob inserted into the key slot. So I'm confused as to what exactly isn't working.

    I assume your old key fob can do all of these below functions. But which ones can your new key fob do? If it's not obvious, when testing, keep the old key fob far away from the Prius.
    • Start/Stop with key fob inserted into key slot
    • Start/Stop with key fob in your pocket
    • Lock/Unlock doors by pressing buttons on key fob
    • Unlock doors by placing hand through door handle (with key fob in your pocket)
    I would personally have done Procedure A first (to start/stop the engine while key fob is inserted into key slot) before proceeding to Procedure B (lock/unlock doors remotely + SMART KEY functionality). But it seems you're saying you went ahead and finished Procedure B and now want to do Procedure A. I don't know if order matters (i.e., Procedure A must be successfully done before proceeding to either B or C), but maybe others can chime in on that. Also, I don't know if it's even possible to perform Procedure B without having done Procedure A first (i.e., are you sure Procedure A wasn't already successfully performed such that your current frustration has to do with the Prius not allowing you to perform Procedure A a second time?).

    Just to throw it out there, your issue might have to do with too many keys associated with your Prius. When that limit is reached, the Prius will not allow more key fobs to be programmed to it. In that case, you'd need Techstream software to erase the extra keys.
     
    #4 Prius_Gnome, Dec 18, 2025 at 7:46 PM
  5. IEsorry

    IEsorry Junior Member

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    Thank you for the reply -

    “Procedure B” was done first because it was the only instruction that came with the key fob in the box. It was successful in that it allowed me to lock/unlock the car via button press, as well as start the car with the fob in my pocket.

    When I tried to start the car by inserting the FOB, it did not work - vehicle only starts with it in my pocket. It WILL, however, unlock the car when its in my pocket (keyless entry).

    I researched afterwards and only then found the “Procedure A” process that is meant for allowing the car to start with new fob when inserted.

    Does anybody know what the blinking sequence I am seeing may mean? It is a 2 - blink, 1-blink, pause sequence. In many videos the “blinking” at step 4a (after you first insert the new fob into the slot once entering “programming mode”) is a single blink, not three in a sequence. Ive seen a couple other posts about it but zero response on what that might map to in a manual.

    In summary:

    -New key fob works to:
    1. unlock/lock doors with button press
    2. unlock doors without button press (walking up to locked vehicle, keyless entry, open handle)
    3. start car without being inserted (keyless start)
    -New key fob does NOT work to:
    1. start car when inserted
    -What does the 3-blinking LED on step 4a mean? In researching, if I had reached the 5-FOB limit, I would not be able to program it to unlock doors, only to start the car when inserted - which is the opposite of what I've been able to successfully do (my car locks/unlocks fine, both keyless and via button press, but will NOT start the car when inserted).
     
    #5 IEsorry, Dec 19, 2025 at 2:28 AM
    Last edited: Dec 19, 2025 at 12:50 PM
  6. Prius_Gnome

    Prius_Gnome Member

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    First, I should have previously positively confirmed you purchased a SKS key fob that has all the necessary components. Your buttons work so it obviously has the circuit board. Can you confirm the new key fob has the trapezoidal black chip (see attached photo)?

    Assuming it's possible to still perform Procedure A after Procedure B (since I don't have much experience doing that), it's possible the issue is with your batteries. You said they're brand new, but maybe they self-discharged while sitting on the shelf. The programming procedure can be finicky and it's advised that you use brand new batteries.
    Can you remove the CR2032 batteries from both key fobs and test their voltage using a multimeter? For brand new batteries, the open-circuit/no-load voltage should be way above 3.0 V (probably about 3.2 V).

    I remember having issues with key fob programming years ago. I don't exactly remember if my issue was the same as your blinking issue, but if I remember correctly, using Techstream to delete all old key fobs worked for me. You said you don't think you reached the 5-fob limit because you were able to perform Procedure B, but (I'm just speculating here) is it possible that the 5-fob limit applies independently in regards to Procedures A/B/C (i.e., maybe 5-fob limit has been reached for Procedure A, but there's only 4-fobs currently programmed for Procedure B). Perhaps others who know can chime in.
     

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    #6 Prius_Gnome, Dec 19, 2025 at 2:19 PM
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