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Lost Keys for 2006 Prius

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by CS1989, Oct 8, 2012.

  1. CS1989

    CS1989 New Member

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    Hi everyone! I'm a new Prius owner with a bit of a dilemma. When I bought my used 2006 Prius two months ago, the dealer only had one key fob from the old owner to give me. This weekend, I unfortunately lost that key. I am looking to get a new key for the Prius, but I'm not sure what my options are. I saw on another thread that I could buy a smartkey from the internet and just pay the dealer to program and cut the key - saving me some money. Has anyone had to do this before? I would appreciate any help you can provide me with, because I am a recent college graduate and really can't afford $400+ in programming and buying a new key at a dealership. I guess I would like to know what my options are! Thank you so much!
     
    #1 CS1989, Oct 8, 2012
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    maybe the dealer you bought it from will cut you a break because they only gave you one key to begin with.
     
    #2 bisco, Oct 8, 2012
  3. CS1989

    CS1989 New Member

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    That's a possibility I did not think about - I will have to follow up with them on that. Thanks for the idea!
     
    #3 CS1989, Oct 8, 2012
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    all the best! unfortunately, this is a very confusing issue and there have been many threads about lost keys and potential solutions. hopefully someone will have another idea for you.
     
    #4 bisco, Oct 8, 2012
  5. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    I do not wish to worry you but this situation can get very expensive. The car will have to be towed to the dealer for them to connect it to the Toyota techsream system to enable a the car to be programmed to accept the new fob. Extra expense I know but get two, because if you loose one another can be made to be accepted by the car by yourself. If you have a working fob.

    On the Prius the fobs are not programmed it is the car that is programmed to accept the fob.
     
    #5 Britprius, Oct 8, 2012
  6. CS1989

    CS1989 New Member

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    Great- thanks for all the info. I have AAA so towing the car to a dealer shouldn't be a big deal.

    Okay - so if I bought a fob from the internet (if that was cheaper than getting one from my dealer), then I would just pay to have the car programmed, correct?
     
    #6 CS1989, Oct 8, 2012
  7. CS1989

    CS1989 New Member

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    (and since the fob itself doesn't have to be programmed, it would be okay for me to purchase one online, correct?)
     
    #7 CS1989, Oct 8, 2012
  8. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    If the fob is new you are ok if second hand I believe not, and this also depends on your dealer.
     
    #8 Britprius, Oct 8, 2012
  9. CS1989

    CS1989 New Member

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    Awesome. Thank you!
     
    #9 CS1989, Oct 8, 2012
  10. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Sorry I can not be of more help. Because of the security implications only a Toyota or Lexus dealer can do this along with a very few specialist locksmiths. The seed code from the ECU in the car has to be accest to enable the old fobs to be deleted and the new one to be accepted. This has to be done on line with access to the central database only available to registered personal.
     
    #10 Britprius, Oct 8, 2012
  11. CS1989

    CS1989 New Member

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    Ok - that helps a lot, actually. I can save money by ordering a new fob online (since the car itself is what has to be programmed), and just paying for the programming at the dealership.
     
    #11 CS1989, Oct 8, 2012
  12. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Check with your dealer first as some will not work with third party parts as they claim to have no control of there reliability. As Bisco said in an early post your dealer may help you out as you were only supplied one fob.
     
    #12 Britprius, Oct 8, 2012
  13. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    Main thing is to only send it to a dealer that has membership/subscription to the security portion of techstream. The ones that don't have access to that part of Techstream will likely, out of ignorance, tell you that they have to replace the whole computer that the security system runs on, which is not true.

    Note: If you're in a big city and can find a locksmith who does electronic locks and subscribes to the Toyota techstream security section that is almost always going to be cheaper than a stealership...
     
    #13 PriusCamper, Oct 8, 2012
  14. CS1989

    CS1989 New Member

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    Okay, thanks so much for the information! Actually, I am in Chicago - how would I go about finding a locksmith that could do this for me?
     
    #14 CS1989, Oct 8, 2012
  15. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    I'd ask AAA to recommend a reputable locksmith who re-key cars that have electronic keys... Then get on the phone and call the other most obvious options and see who you can get people to recommend and go with the one recommended most often.

    The internet won't help much when it comes to locksmiths... Locksmith spam is out of control...

    You can get used SKS fobs on ebay for $30 - $50... Ebay's generous return policy makes it a reliable way to deal with your situation. But figure out who you're gonna get to do the work first and get their opinion / their price for a fob before you buy your own...
     
    #15 PriusCamper, Oct 9, 2012
  16. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    #16 PriusCamper, Oct 9, 2012
  17. Jose Hernandez

    Jose Hernandez New Member

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    ----USA----
    Contact your Local Car Locksmith @ 773.277-5625
     
    #17 Jose Hernandez, Oct 9, 2012
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