Replaced key battery; still won't start

It sounds as though you picked up the correct battery for the Gen II. Hopefully, you installed it correctly, but it is possible you didn't, because it sounds like the car still isn't recognizing the key. You could try to re-install or try another battery (in case you bought them in pairs, try the other battery).

Another option is to hold the key fob right up against the start button for a short time. I forget how long, but it should provide enough inductive charge to allow the car to be started.

 

You can insert the fob directly into the dash also if the fob battery is dead. The slot for it is to the right of the steering wheel just little below it. Its a square hole with led lights around it. Once its in the hole you just push the fob to release it when your done driving.

The key signal on the dash lights while your in the car with the key means it is not recognizing the key code. On the fob when you push a button does the little red light lite up on the fob?

Also new drivers tend to not push the brake hard enough. Hold it down harder.

 

Thanks for the reminder about the non-Smart key!

It sounds to me as though you're just sequencing the Start button and not getting it timed correctly. Perhaps I'm completely off-base on this, but that is my quick reaction.

If you get in the car and there are no lights on and nothing operates, then you press the Start button once (with your foot NOT on the brake), what happens? If you press it a second time (again, no foot on any pedals), then what changes? The third press should take you back to a dark car. (The second press should give you full power to the 12V system -- radio, etc.)

Once you are at the "dark" car point, then you should be able to start the car by depressing the brake pedal and fully pressing the Start button while the brake pedal remains depressed. (It also should work while in the other positions, also, but I don't want to confuse things for the present!)

 

Perfect! Did you also push the Start button then but have the same non-event result?

 

Are you using the same fob that your husband used when he successfully drove the car? If not, can you find and use the same fob?

It sounds like the Prius is not recognizing the fob that you are using, so that is why it refuses to do anything when you have inserted the fob into the slot and press the POWER button.

 

Glad to hear that your husband helped you to figure out the fob.

Note that the "wrong" end of the fob has the mechanical key which you can remove if you need to manually open the driver's door by using the key slot (for example, if the fob does not operate because the fob battery is dead.) Also note that the mechanical key has a hole through which you can put a key chain. If you had other keys attached to the fob, then you would be forced to insert the fob the "correct" way.

In any event, enjoy driving your new Prius!

 

By the way, you can insert the fob with either the lock signs on top or Toyota emblem on top and it should start. I have never tried inserting it from the keyed end but it looks like that doesn't work. As Patrick said, you may want to have a keyring in the slot on that side so as to never confuse which end to insert.

 

Whew!! Glad everything is working. Thanks for letting us know and not leaving us hanging.

 

Timely2000, You might have your Prius starting but haven't solved everything. Here is a few tips for others:
NH20 model:
If you press the lock/unlock buttons on the fob, near the car, and it doesn't lock/unlock then the battery in the fob is most likely flat.
Change the battery in the fob, it is a CR2032 and you access this by sliding the lever on the end and sliding the side off the fob, the battery is under the cover held down by 4 very small Phillips screws, buy a very small instrument screwdriver if you don't have one.

If the fob battery is flat, and you need to get home, you can get entry to the vehicle by sliding out the conventional key from the fob and opening up the door manually, it is not easy but it works. You can also start the car, just insert he fob into the slot near the start button, fob buttons first.

If the car does lock/unlock by the buttons but does not unlock when you pull the door handle or lock when you press the button on the door then the smart entry / smart start has been disabled ( you should be able to lock/unlock/start the car with the keyfob in your pocket) There is a button under the steering column labelled 'key' that you press to enable or disable this feature. Why Toyota put this feature in is beyond me.

If you try to lock the car with external door button or remote and the car beeps at you then a fob is inside the car or the doors not shut.

The whirring sound when you press the brake pedal is the vacuum pump for the brake power booster - this is normal, you just don't hear it when you are driving.

If you have replace the fob battery etc and the car still won't start, even with the fob in the slot, then 12v battery is probably flat. I found this out by leaving the interior light on. The battery wasn't quite flat, I pressed the start button and there faint click and all went dead.
Get someone who knows what they are doing if you are unsure about anything here:
If you have flattened the battery by doing something obvious, like leaving the lights on or not driving the car for 3 months, then you can charge it up again. To get to the 12volt battery, fold down the rear seat, remove the floor panel in the luggage compartment, remove the panel on the drivers side ( Australian RHD vehicle here) and there is a battery about the normal size of a car battery in there. DO NOT USE JUMPER LEADS! The service tech at the Toyota dealer said if you make a spark, and you will if the battery is flat, you will blow the crapola out of the car electronics, the repair bill for this mistake is $6,500, plenty of people have found out the hard way. Get a 12v battery charger, make sure it is not plugged into the mains, connect the alligator clips Red to + terminal and Black to - terminal on the battery and then plug in the charger to the mains. Depending on the charger a couple of hours should see you up and going, turn the charger off at the mains before removing the alligator clips from the battery. Take the car for a good run to charge this battery up fully.

The engine is started by a larger 200Volt battery, this is about a metre long and bolted into it its own case and is just about impossible to get to. If something has gone wrong with your engine, bad fuel etc, do not drive home on the electrics alone and flatten this battery. I am told that Toyota cannot charge the 200 volt battery up, they can only replace it. It is particularly dangerous to try and charge this battery and is something that should be left to the specialists.

 

I would add my experience which is different in several aspect. My fob with a new battery would not open the doors or bring on any lights periodically except for the yellow key light. Yesterday, I was in a remote city area and darkness was only minutes away when after 30 minutes of trying, it started normally. This is an ongoing problem and it is getting worse. Today I noted that even when the start process is functioning that fob will not start the car when inserted in the slot (battery removed) though the backup fob will. Neither fob will illuminate the yellow light on the start button when held up against it for 10 seconds There is some component that still is not functioning but apparently. Would anyone care to conjecture on this? Could it be the start button that is causing both the intermittent reception of the signal and proximity starting fault?
Thanks!