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Door lock system

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Technical Discussion' started by alanrw, Jul 9, 2019.

  1. alanrw

    alanrw Junior Member

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    So there are many threads on the driver door touch lock-unlock not working but no definitive answers other than make sure the fob battery is fresh and keep the fob away from your cell phone.

    But there is no diagnostic tree anywhere. Is it the door handle itself (touch sensor not working), the wiring from the door handle to the door lock ecu (is there a separate door lock ecu and where is it? If there is a separate door lock ecu and you replace it, do you need to also replace the 2 key fobs?)

    In my case, I have a 2011 gen3 prius (no key system button under the steering wheel). My symptoms are doors will lock when touching the door handle (no chirp) will NOT unlock when touching the handle. Doors will lock and unlock using the key fob buttons and will unlock and lock with the metal key. Fresh battery in the key fob (x2 just in case the replacement battery was bad).

    The mechanical actuators seem to work with key fob as mentioned above and to the best of what I can see, there are no electronics in the actuator itself that have to do with touch lock/unlock (by all means correct me if I am wrong on that assumption).

    Or do I merely surrender and take it into the dealer? Someone has had to have been down this road with a deeper solution than merely changing the key fob batteries.

    thanks for the assist herel
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    no troubleshooting in the service manual?

    is the 12v healthy?

    do you have two fobs?
     
  3. alanrw

    alanrw Junior Member

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    The car was purchased used from a dealer several years ago. Only came with the main manual which does not appear to have much on the SKS system. I have been scouring the web for a good answer to this without luck.

    I do have 2 fobs, both react the same with fresh batteries. I did see the mention of the 12V being healthy and it appears to be so as all other systems are fully operational and the car starts just fine, no headlight dimming.
     
  4. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Where on the handle are you touching when you want to unlock?
     
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  5. alanrw

    alanrw Junior Member

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    I grasp the handle staying in between the keyhole for the metal key and the pivot which is towards the front of the handle.

    The thing is, this appears to be a common issue and yet no definitive solution such as "replace the door handle which has the integral sensor" or "the SKS module is bad or needs to be re-programmed" or my assumption that if the mechanical actuator is functioning correctly with the buttons on the key fob then the door lock actuator is fine.

    I don't mind fixing it but I do not want to throw parts at it not knowing where the most likely failure point is.
     
  6. alanrw

    alanrw Junior Member

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    For clarification, does anyone know if the electronic connections to the actuator merely control the lock and unlocking of the door or does the actuator have anything to do with the keyless entry I am trying to diagnose? I am assuming there is a control module that reacts when the door handle is touched sending an electrical pulse to the actuator which will cause the actuator to lock or unlock depending on what signal is sent to the actuator. But there are no electronic components in the actuator itself that sends any sort of signal to the door lock control module when the handle is touched.
     
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    first you have onboard antennae to sense the fob.

    then, i think when you touch the handle, it sends a signal to an ecu which sends power to the lock actuator.
     
  8. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    Isn't there a sensor in the passenger door handle also ? Does it work ??

    If I understand it correctly that you bought this car used several years ago AND it still has the original 12 V battery.......getting a new one would be a good thing to do. Even if it doesn't impact your door lock problem; it will likely impact something soon.

    Listen closely to the door itself while locking/unlocking. You should be able to hear the actuator solenoid click or thump when it tries to move. If you hear the thump but the lock itself does NOT move......then you have an actuator problem.
    When my first one failed, it did strange illogical things at the beginning.
     
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    probably not on the 2011 package two.
     
  10. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    That's your problem, I suspect.
     
  11. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    where should you grasp it?
     
  12. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    That sounds to me like the right place to grasp it. Just slip your hand behind the handle, right? I believe the sensor for unlocking is on that side, facing inward.
     
  13. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    You are correct. I misconstrued the original post. Sorry!
     
  14. alanrw

    alanrw Junior Member

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    To reiterate:
    1. doors lock and unlock with keyfob buttons no problem (no chirps).
    2. doors will only lock when touching forward part of handle where 3 lines are. No unlock when grasping around door handle. No single or double chirps when attempting to use touch feature with door handle.

    any ideas?
     
  15. AzWxGuy

    AzWxGuy Weather Guy

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    I just looked at my drivers side door handle. Not sure how the unlock sensor works, but the surface you have to touch is on the inside of the handle where you would normally grasp it to pull the handle. My Prius is a Model 3 and only has the SKS touch lock/unlock function on the drivers door. The lock touch sensor is the two indented lines on the top left of the handle and there is an additional touch sensor opposite that position on the bottom of the handle to be used in conjunction with the top sensor if touching the top sensor alone doesn't work. I believe your fob is being sensed if the lock function works, but just to make sure approach the drivers door and the interior lights should illuminate. If you can confirm that your fob is being sensed in this manner, then the unlock sensor is suspect.
     
  16. CR94

    CR94 Senior Member

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    Chirping or not chirping is one of the "Customizable features," but default setting is to chirp. Do the parking lights blink as they should when you lock and unlock?
     
  17. Robert Holt

    Robert Holt Senior Member

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    On our 2012 Gen III, trim level 3, you can turn off the SKS system by setting a menu choice in the “Vehicle” menu. May check that the SKS system in your Prius is set to “ON”?
     
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  18. AzWxGuy

    AzWxGuy Weather Guy

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    The only items in my 2011 Vehicle menu are a set of maintenance logs.
     
  19. StephenFromCT

    StephenFromCT Junior Member

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    Hello,

    Can someone please share a link, tell me which manual page (and which manual, since there are several), or explain to me how to access the vehicle menu?

    I have a 2011 (Gen 3) Prius Model 3
     
  20. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Info collected for PriusChat members (thanks Elektroingenieur!) about the several manuals and what you'll find in each one, and various ways of getting access, is here.