Panic Button

[fleubis]

Having just taken delivery of my new '06 Prius and am comparing it to my old '03 Classic Prius. Now this may sound lame, but I used the Panic Button to find my Prius in some of the very large parking lots we have around here in South Florida. Now my '03 had a range of over 100', however my new '06 seems to have only about a 20' range. Anybody else notice this decreased range of the Panic Button?

[Wynder]

Originally posted by fleubis@Dec 29 2005, 10:27 AM
Having just taken delivery of my new '06 Prius and am comparing it to my old '03 Classic Prius.  Now this may sound lame, but I used the Panic Button to find my Prius in some of the very large parking lots we have around here in South Florida.  Now my '03 had a range of over 100', however my new '06 seems to have only about a 20' range.  Anybody else notice this decreased range of the Panic Button?

[snapback]180585[/snapback]

When I was testing at the dealer, I found about 20-30 feet or so, yes.

[Astrotoy7]

lolz... I didnt know about this feature....(I dont have smart entry)

is that range helpful.... ?? if you cant spot the car from within 20 feet, then theres perhaps a greater problem at hand(like eyesight!!)

[Kestrel]

Try pressing the fob against your upper neck/chin/jaw when you press the button. It sounds crazy, I know, but it dramatically increased the range on my old Camry and on the other cars I've tried it on. I haven't tried it with my Prius fob yet.

I found explanations for it in a couple of other car forums, some claiming the body acts as an antenna and others claiming just that holding it higher than usual is what makes it work--nothing definitive or truly credible sounding, though.

[Wynder]

Originally posted by Kestrel@Dec 30 2005, 02:38 PM
Try pressing the fob against your upper neck/chin/jaw when you press the button. It sounds crazy, I know, but it dramatically increased the range on my old Camry and on the other cars I've tried it on. I haven't tried it with my Prius fob yet.

I found explanations for it in a couple of other car forums, some claiming the body acts as an antenna and others claiming just that holding it higher than usual is what makes it work--nothing definitive or truly credible sounding, though.

[snapback]181502[/snapback]

This does work -- however, you are technically breaking FCC law by modifying a signal in a manner in which it was not inteded to be transmitted. Doubt you'd ever get busted though!

[Paradox]

Yup, holding it to your chin does for some reason work wonders. I've done that for years on cars I have had with the remote start.

[Mom-Bo]

My Prius is on order, but I drive an '04 Beetle Convertilbe now. I noticed the same thing. My fob for my '02 Highlander (pre-Beetle) would work from really far away and my Beetle only works right up close. A guy at work drives a Porsche Cayenne (he's a consultant, no we don't pay that much!) and he says he was told it's a newer "laser" technolgy rather than the radio technology which the older, longer distance ones were. He said the laser ones are more secure.

I don't know if it's true, but it seems to make sense.

M

[KTPhil]

I doubt it is laser--laser is extremely directional and strictly line-of-sight, so unless you aim it right at the car (and the right part of the car at that), a laser will fail.

[DaveinOlyWA]

mine works at ranges of at least 100 feet