We keep our Prius in the garage. With our previous cars, my wife would leave the keys in the car overnight, If it was in the garage. I'm wondering with the smart key if having it in the car overnight, but not in the slot, would cause a problem.
I believe the smart key in the car causes extra communications between the car and the key which causes some extra drain on the 12v battery. Not major but wouldn't recommend it for weeks at a time.
Leaving the fob in the car (or even nearby) will cause the fob battery to drain quickly as it continues to respond to the car. Press the "key" button under the steering wheel to turn off the SKS so this does not happen.
Battery drain was what I was concerned about. However, if here purse (and the key) isn't inside the car int he garage, it'd likely be in the office which is only 10-12 feet away in the house. My keys are typically left in a similar location. Seems like the problem would be the same either way. Do folks have to make sure their keys aren't left near the garage to avoid draining the fob battery?
Hmm. According to the manual (page 33) (emphasis mine): So, it would imply that leaving the key inside the vehicle isnt' bad, nor is it bad to leave it in the house, outside the 1m / 3 ft range of operation. If I'm reading that right, then it makes no difference if I leave itinside or if I leave it on the desk just outside the garage. Of course, page 25 says: In our modest 2 story home, that would mean only the far side of the kitchen or the second floor master bedroom as the garage is adjacent or under all all other rooms of the house. I'm not going to worry about it too much, if I start going through fob batteries like candy, then I'll change our behavior.
Or, place the fob inside a metal box, like an Altoids tin or something. That will shield it from interaction with the car.
