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can used key fob be reprogrammed by the car?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by derekderek, Oct 17, 2014.

  1. derekderek

    derekderek Junior Member

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    title pretty much sums it up. just bought this car and came with only 1 key.
    just got this guy and he came with only 1 key. can owner reprogram a key doing the chicken dance?
     
  2. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    Yes Prius doesn’t know if key is new or used. But if its key that may have exact replicas of it then those replicas will work also.
     
  3. M in KC

    M in KC Active Member

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    aaa, I don't think a FOB that has already been placed into service can be reprogramed to be used on another Prius via the chicken dance. A new unregistered key 100% can be programed via the chicken dance. Additionally, the ECU that permits a FOB to function in a particular Prius can only store a limited number of FOBs in its registry before a dealer has to start deleting FOBs that have gone MIA.
     
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  4. derekderek

    derekderek Junior Member

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    So what happens? Does car program itself to accept another key or does it program key to the car?
     
  5. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    A used key cannot be programmed by the car. You need special locksmith credentials and a special program for used keys.

    New keys can be self programed
     
  6. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    The car programs it's self to accept the new fob.
    Fobs can also be programmed with the Mini VCI and Techstream "$25 from Ebay" with a laptop. This is about 1/4 of the price the dealer will charge just for programming the car to the fob. It can also remove any missing fobs from the cars memory, an obvious security risk if you have lost a fob or just bought a car with only one fob.

    John (Britprius)
     
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    whatever you do, don't lose the one key!:eek:
     
  8. 3prongpaul

    3prongpaul Hybrid Shop Owner, worked on 100's of Prius's

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    The only way to make a used smartkey work 100% "smart" on a Gen2 Prius is the "reseed" the smartkey system. This requires locksmith credentials and/or special software / knowledge. I can do it if you are close to Boulder, CO....but I need the car and all existing FOBS.

    If you have Techstream/MiniVCI you can make a used fob work without smart features, i.e. you can insert it in the dash and the car will start.
     
    #8 3prongpaul, Oct 27, 2014
    Last edited: Oct 29, 2014
  9. doctorman

    doctorman Member

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    Does anyone here have access to the TIS passcode? I need 2 codes for 2 cars

    would appreciate a PM if you can.
     
  10. 3prongpaul

    3prongpaul Hybrid Shop Owner, worked on 100's of Prius's

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    You can purchase passcodes from Sigmabit.eu for 20 Euros each.
     
  11. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    Does your car have SKS? If YES, you really should buy a NEW SKS key fob, not used. Otherwise to get used sks fob functioning (sks part that is), dealer needs to reset sks ECU so it will relearn old and used sks fob. SKS car can learn a used sks fob, but sks functionality of used sks fob wil not work due to ECU needing to be reset.

    Post #6 explains it all.
    key replacement questions | PriusChat
     
  12. Johnatan

    Johnatan New Member

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    If you have an programming issue with old key Fob in Denver area, I can program it for $75. It takes me 20 minutes to program it.
     
  13. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    I've just run into this myself with a gen 2 where the seller provided me two fobs, and I neglected to verify they both worked, silly me.

    It turns out there are two different bits of technology tucked away inside the fob. In this picture, one is the green typical circuit-board looking thing, and the other is the little separate black chip (shown circled):

    [​IMG]

    Likewise, you can find two different sets of utilities within Techstream for registering the fob to the car. One is found under the "Immobilizer" ECU, and the other under the "Smart Key" ECU.

    The "immobilizer" registration only cares about the little black transponder chip, and it only affects whether the fob will work for starting the car when inserted in the dash slot. That little chip just has a fixed ID number and never changes, and nothing cares if it has been registered to another car or not. You can always use the immobilizer utilities to at least register that chip ID, and the fob will be usable to start the car, when inserted in the dash. Registration just remembers the chip ID in the ECU in the car. Nothing changes in the chip.

    The "smart key" registration deals with the other part of the fob, the remote radio transponder electronics, and that's the part you need before the fob will open the doors (either by proximity, or by pressing the buttons), or before you can use it to start the car just by proximity (not inserted in the dash). The "smart key" registration process does a two-way radio handshake with the fob. After registration, the ECU memory in the car has stored information about the fob, and a memory in the fob has stored a vehicle ID for the car. After that, the fob will not respond to any future registration attempt from a different car. So if you get a used fob that has some other car's vehicle ID in its memory, you won't be able to complete smart key registration with it. You'll see the fob LED blink at the crucial step, but Techstream will act like no response ever came.

    The solution is to buy used fobs that have been "re-virginized" (had any previous vehicle ID cleared out of their memory). You can find sellers on eBay, etc., that offer them that way.

    Or, if you are stuck with a used fob that wasn't re-virginized already, you can find services that will just do that, so you'll be able to register the fob you have. I haven't used any of these services yet, but obviously, I am now in the market. The ones that pop up on eBay seem to charge $15 to $19 or so, and this site seems to be about half that. (Caveat: I haven't contacted any of these sites yet to see if the Gen 2 Prius fob is one they can actually do.)

    I think that lower-priced site really operates on the model that you send your fob, they clear it and send it back. Some of the others look like they might just send you an already-cleared one and expect you to return your uncleared one as a core. The difference could matter if you're in a hurry.

    Just clearing the used fobs seems like a lower-impact solution than wholesale reseeding the car's ECU, which would seem to me more like a last resort.

    -Chap
     
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  14. kutcht1

    kutcht1 Member

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    So I am in the same sort of situation. 2007 Prius with only 1 smart key. Just need another key just in case and it DOES NOT HAVE TO HAVE SMART FUNCTIONS (sort of stupid to me anyway). So if I have this right, I can purchase a NEW key on ebay for $64.95 and program it myself by chicken dance so it will at least give me the ability to open doors and start key if it is needed. True or not?
    TomK
     
  15. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    I think if you can find a NEW fob at that price, you should definitely buy it.

    If not, you should certainly be able to find a used fob around that price point, and as long as you make sure it is a re-virginized one, it will do what you want.

    A used, non-revirginized one would let you register it to start and drive the car by inserting it in the dash slot, but you would also need to be sure to cut the mechanical key to give you a way to unlock the door, because you would not be able to register the fob for unlocking the door.

    -Chap
     
  16. Figster10

    Figster10 Member

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    Is it possible for you to show me in a private message what you are using to program these used sks keys?
    I have a version of TIS but I can't figure out why I can't access the smart code access part of the installation. Thanks
     
  17. tlc1896

    tlc1896 Junior Member

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    Any advice would be most appreciated.
    I have an 04 Prius with SKS smart key fobs. One original went missing about 5 years ago. So I bought another from Toyota and had them program a new one, using the other original.
    I have tried to use the original fob that was lost to no avail, even after installing a new battery. Since it was an original fob, can I use the chicken dance to program it with both the start and sks features?
     
  18. 3prongpaul

    3prongpaul Hybrid Shop Owner, worked on 100's of Prius's

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    If you have a NEW full smartkey fob FCC ID MOZB31EG (Usually silver logo) you can add it to your car yourself via chicken dance. If it's used you'll need a special locksmith tool or Techstream and way to calculate the passcode in order to use it. If the FOB FCC ID is MOZB21TG (usually black logo) it is not a full smartkey fob. You can only program it to start the car only when inserted into the slot.
     
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  19. 3prongpaul

    3prongpaul Hybrid Shop Owner, worked on 100's of Prius's

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    I should also mention if your car is not full smart key car (no black buttons on outside front door handles) FOBs IDs MOZB21TG (usually black logo) can be ADDED to the car using a chicken dance, no software or seed codes required unless you LOST ALL FOBS.
     
  20. Kaptainkid1

    Kaptainkid1 Active Member

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    I just lost my SKS key fob for my 2nd Gen Prius 2009. I bought a used SKS Key fob and wanted to know if the ebay Key Fob programmers will work on programming the used key?

    I see SBB pro tools and wanted to know if you have any experience with these type of tool to programming keys.

    Look at this on eBay
    Latest SBB PRO2 Car Key Programmer Tool V33.02 No Token Limitated Programming | eBay