1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Learn something new everyday.. SKS

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by Jabber, Jun 16, 2009.

  1. Jabber

    Jabber Chicagoland Prius Guy

    Joined:
    Apr 23, 2009
    703
    213
    2
    Location:
    Chicago
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I went to my official training meeting yesterday for the Prius. Didn't learn a whole lot of new things as most of it is already known by the PC posters here.. kudos to you.

    But, I did learn something about the SKS system, whether it is a 1 door or 3 door system. If you press and hold the lock and unlock buttons together for 4-5 seconds, the car will beep twice, two times (beep beep.....beep beep). Everytime you touch the driver's door now, all the doors and the rear hatch will unlock. Thought that was kind of cool and a way around the 1 door SKS problem of having to use the remote to pop the hatch.

    They also mentioned that on the gen 2 Prius, if you hold down the lock and panic buttons, it will do the same thing, but I haven't confirmed that.
     
    dumardus, ewxlt66, tophermd and 11 others like this.
  2. firepa63

    firepa63 Former Prius Owner

    Joined:
    Jul 23, 2005
    1,761
    208
    0
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    It's in the Owner's Manual...
     
    Bob Hahn likes this.
  3. Jabber

    Jabber Chicagoland Prius Guy

    Joined:
    Apr 23, 2009
    703
    213
    2
    Location:
    Chicago
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Ok. Sorry for bringing it up. I just thought that there might be someone who hasn't read the owners manual.
     
    1 person likes this.
  4. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2004
    15,140
    611
    0
    Location:
    South Puget Sound, WA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Nissan LEAF
    Model:
    Persona
    thanks for bringing it up.

    at 100+ pages, i'm sure several things are in the owner's manual. its great to be reminded of some of the programming options available since most people would only look thru the manual to look up something they needed help with. in this case, they would only know about the option if they stumbled upon it.

    posting this will probably encourage more people to look at it. hopefully, they will also post what they found to be cool about the new Pri's
     
  5. a priori

    a priori Canonus Curiosus

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2007
    3,083
    407
    23
    Location:
    Chicagoland (West)
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    Jeff,

    It is part of just about every answer to a PriusChat question. Somewhere in the manual the issue is covered. Many times, however, the manual either isn't clear or the particular "answer" isn't something easily discovered in a review of the index. This is definitely the situation with the SKS system.

    If you've read some of the other, related threads lately, you'll find I embarassed myself rather dramatically by making an assumption about the SKS. In a thread about setting the TPMS, I advised folks they could find the TPMS "Set" button by feeling under the driver's side dash. All they had to do, I said, was find the ridge with a button to the left and a button to the right. The left button is the TPMS. The right button, or so I said, was the SKS button. Wrong!

    In the Gen2, that is the case. With the Gen3, though, the SKS was changed, to the benefit of most of us. Too many people had left their cars parked for weeks without disabling the SKS. The manual advised it, and the button was there, but people didn't read the manual and/or didn't get a good briefing from their sales people. In the end, the little 12V battery would be drained by the SKS's constant searching for the key fob.

    This issue has been handled by an auto shut down of the SKS. I forget the "delay" time (it's in the manual:eek:), but I think it is about one week. If you don't bring the key fob to the car for the period of that "delay" the SKS automatically disables. I believe the SKS will restart as soon as you open the car using either the key or by pressing the unlock button on the key fob. It may scare some of us who had the Gen2 (and haven't read the manual), but I think most people would reach for the key fob as soon as they find the car doesn't open using the SKS.

    The other button under the dash? The one to the right? That only exists in the Prius V, apparently. It is the "Off" switch for the Pre-Collision system (sometimes referred to as the Pre Crash system). If people are completely confused by the "buttons under the driver's dash" concept, here is a photo of the Prius V under dash:

    DSCF6918_1.jpg
     
    4 people like this.
  6. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

    Joined:
    Feb 26, 2007
    7,512
    1,185
    0
    Location:
    Carmichael, CA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
  7. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2004
    15,140
    611
    0
    Location:
    South Puget Sound, WA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Nissan LEAF
    Model:
    Persona
    man oh man!! every thread i go, you are talking about this!!... i have a tinge of regret every single time!!

    now, i have to go out and play with my sunroof to get rid of that feeling!! so stop it already!!
     
  8. Blind Guy

    Blind Guy New Member

    Joined:
    May 17, 2009
    352
    194
    0
    Location:
    Springfield Missouri
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
  9. Blind Guy

    Blind Guy New Member

    Joined:
    May 17, 2009
    352
    194
    0
    Location:
    Springfield Missouri
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    Great Post!

    David (aka Blind Guy)
     
  10. Jabber

    Jabber Chicagoland Prius Guy

    Joined:
    Apr 23, 2009
    703
    213
    2
    Location:
    Chicago
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I still find that as much as I supposedly know about the car, there are little things that I didn't know. It was almost a full year before I found the little drawer under the center console :redface:

    I'm sure it is in the owners manual also, but I wasn't aware of the 15 second time limit on the lane keep assist either. I'll have to read through the owners manual eventually...

    And the distance for the radar cruise is 160 feet, 130 feet, and 100 feet...

    I'm an absolute sucker for information that 1 out of 2,000 people will ask me I guess.
     
  11. Blind Guy

    Blind Guy New Member

    Joined:
    May 17, 2009
    352
    194
    0
    Location:
    Springfield Missouri
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    DaveinOlyWa;

    You are ABSOLUTELY correct, there ARE over 100 pages in the 2010 Prius Owners Manual...matter of fact, there are 607!!! And, 330 in the Navigation Owners Manual...I know because I had to scan EACH page by hand so they could be read to me.

    David (aka Blind Guy)
     
  12. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

    Joined:
    Apr 13, 2004
    15,140
    611
    0
    Location:
    South Puget Sound, WA
    Vehicle:
    2013 Nissan LEAF
    Model:
    Persona
    wow that many?? was guessing on size since i actually never read manuals
     
  13. a priori

    a priori Canonus Curiosus

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2007
    3,083
    407
    23
    Location:
    Chicagoland (West)
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    lol! What regret? You always wanted that moonroof with the great solar panels!

    I'm going to have to remember THAT post!!:D
     
  14. DeadPhish

    DeadPhish Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2005
    2,010
    353
    0
    Location:
    Outer Banks of NC.. Retired to play golf and poker
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Yes I've had my Gen2 Prius programmed this way for 3 yrs.

    But here's somethings I did learn about the SKS last year after the vehicle had been on the market for 5 years and I had owned it for 3-1/2 yrs.

    1. I knew that the SKS normally can't be locked inside the vehicle by itself. I use this as part of the product demo and tell the prospective buyer that the SKS system should be renamed 'Brilliant' Key System. I throw the SKS fob on the front seat and then lock the doors and close them. The vehicle unlocks itself. :eek: Me: 'The fob knows that it doesn't belong inside the vehicle by itself ;).' Buyer: 'Cool'
    2. But very smart and astute female buyers often ask, 'Well, what if I'm sitting in the front passenger seat and the driver gets out to get coffee or go to the bathroom and leaves the fob inside? Does that mean that the doors won't lock?'. Me: 'Actually No. Amazingly there is a weight sensor in both of the front seats! If anyone is sitting in either front seat then the doors can be locked for security whether the engine is running or not and whether the fob is present or not.' Buyer 'Really Cool.'
    3. Me: 'But the SKS is even smarter than that!! If you have a pet that rides with you often and it's 100 deg outside you can leave the pet in the vehicle while you go inside to eat or to shop. You can leave the vehicle ON with the A/C set to 72 deg and lock the vehicle with the pet comfortable inside ( just leave a note in the window for the ASPCA that you aren't cooking your dog for dinner ) ;)'. Buyer, confused: 'But I thought that if you locked the doors and took the key fob away that the doors unlocked themselves?' Me: 'Magic hidden key, voila.'. Buyer: 'Really, Really Cool.'
    Just think about how much thought and brain power went into this one feature of the Gen 2 Prius ( Adding value ). There must have been a whole team of engineers and consumer specialists thinking up ways to use the SKS and ways to screw it up.

    Brilliance in action!!
     
  15. DeadPhish

    DeadPhish Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2005
    2,010
    353
    0
    Location:
    Outer Banks of NC.. Retired to play golf and poker
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    True. The initial iteration of SKS in the Gen 2 Prius had the 'KEY' button to shutdown the 5 proximity sensors in order to avoid draining the 12v battery. When the Gen 1 TCH arrived then the rest of upscale vehicles which also use SKS Toyota had revised the design to incorporate the auto shutdown function.
     
  16. PriusWolf

    PriusWolf Junior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 19, 2012
    7
    0
    0
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    Two


    Does this only work for silver emblem keys or can it also work for Black emblem keys for the Gen 2?
     
  17. David Beale

    David Beale Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 24, 2006
    5,963
    1,979
    0
    Location:
    Edmonton Alberta
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    I knew that! But forgot! Thanks for the reminder. ;)
     
  18. mad-dog-one

    mad-dog-one Prius Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Dec 31, 2009
    1,181
    420
    0
    Location:
    Whereabouts Unknown
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    ----USA----
    We've had two Prii for two years and still learn new things about our cars on PriusChat. Thank you PriusChat community, for improving our ownership experience.
     
  19. El Cuajinais

    El Cuajinais Junior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 3, 2012
    31
    10
    0
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Two
    Could you re-explain this 3rd point please? I did not understand neither the "problem" nor the clever solution. What do you mean by "magic hidden key"?
     
  20. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2011
    3,159
    988
    0
    Location:
    Tucson, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Silver emblem keys only.