fob key unlock safety

I wouldn't be so sure about that - locking by pressing the door contact will only work if the FOB is within range, so there must be some contact between the car and the FOB - whether a code is transmitted, I'm uncertain.

Where's a TOYOTA computer programmer when you want one?

 

what if you use the mech key?

 

Somehow that bypasses the FOB use - has to be unlocked again with the Mechanical key. Not sure about the involvement of security system or immobiliser at that point?

 

Not in the US. Can lock with the "mechanical" key and later unlock with SKS or pressing the fob's unlock button. In fact, the "mechanical" key is merely activating a switch for the electric door locks in most cases.

Unless your 12v battery is dead. Then, to really, truly unlock the door *mechanically* you have to pull the door handle half way out to engage the physical override mechanism before turning the key.

Not everyone seems to be aware of the physical key in the fob in case the fob battery dies. Fewer seem to know about the handle-half-way procedure if the car has the dead battery.

 

That's odd that they do it different ways - if I lock with the mechanical key, I need the mechanical key to unlock again.

With the dead 12V battery "trick" I couldn't find reference to it in my book (or the EURO one online), so it may just be a USA special.

One other difference with USA and EURO - USA says:

BUT EURO says:

 

If the o/p is concerned about the fob, why not turn off SKS?
It is inconvenient security for the paranoid.

 

Well, anyone who wishes to steal your FOB codes would have to be quite close. Just a few metres from the FOB/car. The signal is quite weak. If you don't notice them when you are locking the car maybe the problem is you aren't "situationally aware".

If they have that device I would consider them "professional thieves", and you can't protect yourself from those. They will always find a way to get what they want. You drive a Prius. They are after much more expensive stuff. If they still want your car, let them take it. Better than getting a lead injection in the process.

 

If concerned about over the air vulnerability, turning off SKS is the solution, though. They cannot hijack it over the air if the car is not "listening".

 

I think it's important that you put these sorts of risks into context.

As others have pointed out here, professional thieves can probably defeat most car security systems. They are very unlikely to want our Priuses and are much more likely to steal expensive cars to order - e.g., high end Porsche, BMW M3.

The vast majority of modern cars are stolen because the thief manages to steal the key from
within your house, office etc., due to modern cars being impossible to 'hot wire' (except perhaps for the abovementioned pro thieves). You are better off hiding your keys in a safe place than worrying about some device that supposedly defeats car security systems. Same goes with people intercepting signals -- modern cars encrypt the codes and use 'rolling codes' which mean that even if a thief intercepts your code, it's useless because it's only used once.

There is some credence to the idea that a thief can use a signal amplifying device to remotely unlock your car from a very far distance. Even if they managed this, in the Prius (and other cars with keyless entry / start) the physical key still needs to be inside the car to start, so it's unlikely that they can drive off with your car.

My local police car theft stats show that people still do silly things like forgetting to lock their cars, leaving valuables in clear sight and leaving windows open. (Speaking of open windows, I notice that after I switch the ignition off, my Gen 4 displays a message "Window open" if I open the driver side door if a window is ajar. Very clever!)

If all else fails, that's why you have insurance....

 

Can you explain the handle-half-way procedure? Is that something you do intuitively without thinking bout it?

I didn't see anything in the manual.

 

never heard of the 'handle half way' procedure, is it gen 4 only?

 

I'll take it back until I can find an official reference or replicate again. I promise I didn't make it up, but the information may not be accurate. I have anecdotal experience from two occasions. First, my 2005 was totaled and when I went to the storage lot to retrieve personal property, the 12v battery had died because of the rear hatch light (rear-ended). Second, I drove my 2016 from Denver to Houston and was stranded on the way after stopping for dinner; the car had been a showroom vehicle and when they re-connected the 12v they didn't tighten the nut and it had worked loose during the first half of the trip. I'd driven a Prius for 11 years by then, so I knew about the physical key in the fob but it didn't open the door (so that I could pop the hood). After about 15 seconds of panic, I recalled something about the handle itself and tried holding the door handle about a 1/2-inch out while turning the key and it worked that time. Maybe it was a fluke and not necessary? But it let me get in, pop the hood, and discover the loose battery cable.

I remembered reading about it back when I had a Gen2, so (if true) it's not new to Gen4. I couldn't find it in the online PDF manuals, but here's a 2007 PC thread where someone else mentions it:

How to open doors or just the hood when 12 volt battery is dead | PriusChat

There's disagreement there as to whether you actually need to pull the handle part way first, or if it's more of a matter of turning the key far enough ("completely horizontal"). To be honest, as this point I can't remember how far I turned the key in my past experiences.

 

some people have a hard time turning the key, maybe pulling on the handle helps.

 

Yes, touch the door handle twice to double lock.
Another (UK only ?) thing, if you unlock the door with the mechanical key the alarm will go off within seconds if you don't start the car or use the sks key to disarm.

 

I think they meant to unlock all doors. That was the default on my en 4. Since quite often put things in the back seat and only have one door SKS, I changed it to automatically unlock all doors with one placement of fingers behind the handle.

EDIT: Oops I was thinking unlocking, not locking.

 

Disables the interior door handles and locks so that if a thief breaks a window they can't open the door, they have to climb through the window to actually get into the car.