I have had my 2020 Prime for 3 months now. I have now experienced the Charger Port Door jamming in its closed position where I am unable to press to release the latch and open the door two times so far. Has anyone else experienced this? Is this a design flaw that I will periodically have to deal with or is this a problem that can be fixed?
If the car's locked, it won't open. If it's not locked, it should still be under warranty. This is not normal.
I’ve had it jam when I forgot to move the protective cap from the stow position back to the charging port and then tried to close the door. It jams semi closed and is difficult to get unjammed.
Which model 2020 Prime do you have? I have the 17 Prime Plus without the chargeport door lock. maybe someone with the locking door can post a shot or two if your model has the lock
How long did it stay jammed the two times? How did you finally get it open after it jammed? What difference(s), if any did you notice the two times this happened?
Thanks for all of the helpful info. I will have to see if it happens again when the doors are unlocked. I was unaware of that. To get it to open I had to constantly try and open and finally it opened (both times).
Well, if the car doors are locked, the charge port door won't open no matter how many times you try. If it opens after multiple attempts, then something must be out of adjustment. Look around the edges of the door when it's closed to see if it's rubbing on the car body. Or there could be something wrong with the "latch button." It's just a push to latch, push to pop out thing like some stereo cabinet doors. You can leave the door open and push that button to see how it works. All it does is extend and push out the door enough for you to get your fingers behind it.
Unless you have the SKS fob with you. It's possible he might be standing just outside of range and reaching into open the flap which can result in a flap opened ajar. You'll have to close it and then push it to open again.
If the car doors are locked and you have the key in your pocket, pressing the charge door will cause the car to unlock. Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
This is probably a dumb suggestion, but are you pressing in the center of the charging port door? I only ask because I struggled the first few days opening mine and it suddenly hit me you have to press it in the center. If you try pressing it on the edge it won’t open very easily.
That's really interesting. There must be differences in how various ones fit and work. Mine does best if I press right where the "push the door open" button is.
@schja01: What did you do to unjam it? We just had the same thing happen on our 2022 Prime. I've got a slender steel strip (from a street cleaning bristle) that I could use if I knew where I needed to press...
@r.p., I'm not sure what he did, but what jams it is that the locking pin has side pressure on it from the charge cap pushing the door outward. What I would try is pushing in on the door to relieve that pressure while locking and unlocking the car with the fob. If you get the pressure off the pin it should be able to retract.
I can only speak to the 2017 Prime, but the owners' manual provides the following information: Check your owners' manual to see if this procedure is still applicable to your model year. In any event, this should not happen unless you try to force the door shut when the protective connector cover is not properly in place or when some other debris is caught in the door. Otherwise, if this is a recurring problem, you should seek help from your Toyota dealer.
