SmartKey not unlocking rear door or hatch

Ok qbee, I've updated my profile. But why can't I ask questions about Prius even if I am driving 'other non-hybrid'?

 

My wife and I are very annoyed that our new Prius is not as "smart" as our 2004. We do value being able to open the passenger door or the rear door with a touch -- when carrying packages, bringing our elderly family members to the car etc. I guess we forgot "buyer beware" and should have read all the fine print, but we were stupid enough to believe that Toyota would not "dumb down" their smart key function when they claimed they were improving the Prius. The earlier Prius defined the smart key function. Now Toyota redefined it without warning the buying public and it's hard to tell from their brochure that the full smart key flexibility is not available in the II or III -- however there is a tiny superscript and teeny tinny footnote. I personally think it's purposeful cheating on the part of Toyota and wonder what we can do about it. If nothing else the public at large should be warned that this is a dumber smart key. I don't particularly like the opening all the doors option. After an hour at the dealer they figured out how to do it (I guess the little joy I got out of these was knowing the answer all along from this discussion but even the dealer didn't know). (Even though we bought the car already the deale offered to buy it back and sell us a IV for a few more thousand -- not what we wanted and had we known in advance that the smart key was no longer smart we would have looked at other manufacturers) There aught to be a law...

 

Does anyone know how to contact Bob Carter to see if he is willing to respond to me on this issue and "explain" why they dumbed down the smart key (or, perhaps we are the dumb ones?)

[email protected]

 

This trend is defintely a negative, but it is not just limited to Toyota. I've had it happen with repeat models from other manufacturers. It's known as "content reduction".

It's also common in other industies. The SKS issue is the reason that if I ever buy a G3 (doubtful), I'd have to get the IV.

Best wishes,

 

I have both Prius III & IV.
And I didn't see any where that said on Prius III that it only has 1 door SKS. After having 3 SKS, having the 1 SKS sucks big time.
Especially when trying to go an open the trunk~
Boo to Toyota for not giving me option to pay extra on Prius III to get it.

 

There is quite a bit of information on the Toyota website that lists the four models with standard features along with options. The single door SKS is plainly listed in the II and III models. If you did not take the time to do the research or understand what you were buying, whose fault is that.

 

From general comparison of the Trim III vs Trim IV on Toyota.com's car Configurator and also Comparison details on Carsdirect.com I didn't see any mention of 1 SKS vs 3 SKS.
Its fine, I will leave with it.

 

I didn't know about this issue until after owning this car. The car saleswoman didn't even tell me about it. I agree with others that Toyota is should have made opening of any of the doors including the trunk standard.

 

Maybe THAT'S why they did it....given the price difference between a II and a IV...

I never get into the driver's side first. This is a company ride, so I'm always loading test equipment, parts, etc...before I drive away.
Still and all---having to depress the unlock button twice instead of just touching the door is no great burden for me, especially since my last compamy vehicle had manual locks.
The SKS issues in this vehicle are troublesome to me for other reasons...but it's probably not going to be a deal buster if I ever decide to purchase a Prius for my own personal use.
You have to take the bad with the good.

 

It can be programmed to have all doors unlocked at once with single press on remote so I suggest you do that. That's what I do whenever I have passengers.

Isn't the base price of the Gen 3 less than the Gen 2? If so, that's your answer as to the lack of 3-door SKS and that should come as no surprise to anyone. To be fair, 3-door SKS should be included with the III as not everyone wants leather, etc. But I don't think people who buy bottom of the line anything (namely II owners) should be complaining as manufacturers drop features all the time when cutting prices.

 

I appreciate the tip, but pressing the button twice really does not bother me much. It's a II, and a company provided vehicle, so my right to fuss and cuss about it is somewhat diminished as you pointed out.
Also...
I thought I read where the fob has to be reprogrammed to unlock all 3 doors with one click of the unlock button. Like...at the dealer.
I also think I read where you can depress both buttons on the fob, while inside the car for something like 5 seconds and this will allow the "Smart Key" [sic] feature to unlock all of the doors when you touch the drivers door.

Is that right?
If I can reprogram the fob myself to unlock all 3 doors with 1 click, I might do so, but unlocking all 3 doors by touching the driver's side door, then walking to the other side or back of the car to load test equipment/pieces-parts, etc... isn't useful for me.

Somebody needs to publish a Prius for Dummies book. The owner's manual makes a SAMS Windows-7 seem like 'light reading'.

Happy New Year!

 

I have to say I agree with some of you. My prius IV is annoying that it only opens the driver door. Minor nuisance to hit the unlock button for passengers. But now that i found out I can change the feature, I might do so. I have to admit having the IV is nice since my fiancee can open the passenger side herself.