Drivers side lock problems - 2014 Prius 4

Hello!

For the last year or so, the driver's side door of my 2014 Prius 4 (89k miles) has not locked or unlocked properly when using the fob. I've scoured the forums here and found many with a similar problem and suggestions of a bad actuator or bad 12v battery.

So, I replaced the actuator (with a refurbished one on Ebay). I also replaced my 12v battery (which was running low anyway, so needed replacement). The problem has not gone away. I would appreciate any help you can give!

Here are the facts:

• When I hit 'unlock' on my key fob, the drivers door rarely unlocks (90% of the time I have to reach through the back door to unlock it). Sometimes the turn signals flash in unison three times when I'm trying to unlock.
• When I hit 'lock' on my key fob, the drivers door does NOT lock (although the other doors do), and the car emits a long beep.
• The same problems can be replicated with the 'smart key' features on the door handle (touching the lock/unlock portions of the handle while the key fob is nearby)
• The passenger side door seems unaffected and works normally with both the fob and the 'smart key' features.
• The driver's side door CAN be manually locked and unlocked with both a physical key and the toggle switch inside.

Any theories on what might be happening? Is it possible both the actuator in the car AND the replacement were both faulty? Could there be some kind of wiring issue? I'm stumped.

Thanks in advance for any insight you can give!

 

I wasn't aware there was an electric switch on the armrest! Where can I find that? Is that on the door panel that I remove? Or inside the door body?

It's definitely possible the actuator I got was faulty, but both actuators made the same clunking noises occasionally, when trying to unlock. I looked for binding in all the moving parts I could reach, but everything seemed to be moving fine.

 

Oh, duh. I just realized you mean the lock/unlock switch on the armrest. Yeah, it works fine and does the same things when I click it as when I click the key fob.