Nonstarter

Hi everybody,
Problem with my Prius C 12. Remote won't start the car. Press starter button, no ignition, some weak sound, on occasion the check engine light comes on, I turn the car off, try again, same thing two or three more times. Try bringing the fob closer to starter button, worked once to start but not again. Tried locking the doors today when it happened and couldn't lock or unlock. Battery in fob is new and reads 3 volts. Then on the fifth or sixth try the thing works and the car starts! This has been going on for almost two weeks. Once it starts it will usually start again later in the day. But when I brought it to nearby Toyota dealer it started up right away and their codes showed no problems. And it started the next day as well, they said. I don't know enough about the startup sequence to guess at the problem - but my hunch is that the receiving element is working only intermittently? Anybody with same or similar issues?

 

Thanks much! I think the 12 volt is original and I'll check the fob battery again; didn't realize target was 3.3.

 

Checked the battery today at an auto parts store and sure enough the thing is on its last legs. The store didn't have a replacement in its inventory, so Monday we'll change out the battery and see if that does the trick.

 

Thanks but I tried that and no luck. It's the 12 volt battery that's the problem we now think.

 

Well the problem is solved with the new 12 volt battery! The whole deal cost a pretty penny since the dealer charged $150 for diagnostic work that didn't find the cause of the problem. I reported what you guys said was the problem and then they tested the battery with load and saw the failure. Charged $75 to replace the battery ($240 for the battery). Could have been worse if I hadn't gotten such good advice here!