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Keyfobs standard across generation?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by isucompositeur, Jan 17, 2011.

  1. isucompositeur

    isucompositeur Junior Member

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    Hello folks,

    I'm now the proud owner of a new-to-me 2008 Prius. The vehicle came used with only one keyfob. I've discovered through reading the forums that keyfobs can be procured and self-programmed for far less than the $345 my local Toyota dealer quoted me.

    What I would like to know is... are the keys the same across the entire generation? Doing an eBay search I'm finding that if I search specifically for 2008 the least expensive new keyfob I can find is $99, but if I widen the search to 2004-2009 I get a few cheaper ones to appear that say 2004-2006. Did the keys change for 2007, or should I be able to use the same keyfob that a 2004-2006 Prius uses in my 2008?

    Thanks in advance.

    //edit: In case it matters, mine is the base model without SKS.
     
    #1 isucompositeur, Jan 17, 2011
  2. firepa63

    firepa63 Former Prius Owner

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    If you have the SKS system, stay away from eBay fobs and bite the bullet and get one from the dealer. The fob is not programmed. The car is programmed to accept a NEW fob. A used fob will not be accepted by the car unless the dealer gets a reseed code from Toyota to erase the ECU and then the car can accept a used fob. All of this will cost you bucks.

    Sorry, I just saw your edit. Yes you can buy an eBay fob and program the car to accept the non SKS fob. However, I don't think the lock/unlock buttons will work (not sure), but it can be used to start the car.
     
    #2 firepa63, Jan 17, 2011
  3. isucompositeur

    isucompositeur Junior Member

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    Right... what I'm trying to figure out, though, is if the keyfobs are completely unchanged through Gen2, so that a keyfob advertised as being for a 2004-2006 will work with a 2008.

    Thanks.
     
    #3 isucompositeur, Jan 18, 2011
  4. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    The keyfobs were unchanged through all of the Gen IIs, but not all Gen II keyfobs are SKS.

    Tom
     
    #4 qbee42, Jan 18, 2011
  5. RobH

    RobH Senior Member

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    Well, actually there were those 2004 SKS keyfobs that supposedly only work on a 2004. They were replaced with a newer design SKS keyfob that works on 2004-2009. There's no way to physically identify the early version. So if your eBay SKS keyfob can't be paired with a 2005-2009 Prius (even with the expensive smart key reset), then it may be a 2004-only version.
     
    #5 RobH, Jan 18, 2011
  6. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    Good point. Thanks for the correction.

    Tom
     
    #6 qbee42, Jan 18, 2011
  7. isucompositeur

    isucompositeur Junior Member

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    Thankfully not an issue for me, since I have the non-SKS key :) Just ordered a new fob for $75.

    12 days, 900 miles, 44mpg average. Loving it.

    Thanks!
     
    #7 isucompositeur, Jan 20, 2011
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