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Strange Bluetooth Issue

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by Nos402, Sep 25, 2019.

  1. Nos402

    Nos402 Junior Member

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    Recently, my 2013 Prius started having bluetooth issues connecting to my iPhone (both my XS and my new 11 Pro as well as my iPad so I definitely think it's the car and not the devices as they still connect to everything else just fine).

    It used to be that I would start my car, after a bit (10-20 seconds maybe) it would find my phone and start playing whatever I was last listening to.

    Now I start the car:
    It searches for bluetooth (since that was the mode it was in when I turned it off),
    Eventually times out and goes to "audio off"
    I turn audio back on and now it's on radio
    I select bluetooth as the source
    Usually nothing will ever happen after that.

    The one way I've found that seems to always work to fix this is:
    After it has "timed out" and turned the audio off, turn it back on and go into Bluetooth setup
    Turn the Bluetooth off and then back on
    From my phone, tell it to connect to the Prius Bluetooth
    Select bluetooth as the audio source on the Prius.

    This now seems to be happening 95% of the time I turn the car off and back on. Needless to say it's a huge pain and if I want audio from my phone I now have to spend several minutes messing around before Is tart driving.

    Any ideas if it's possible to fix this? I couldn't find any updates for my head unit at securedp.toyota.com.
    I tried a trick I read elsewhere about turning it on, holding setup, turning the headlights on/off 3x, which brings up a diagnostic menu, pressing "INIT," then holding setup to exit the menu and turning the car off and back on. No luck there.

    All I do is listen to podcasts and other audio from my phone so this is a pretty big deal to me. Any insight is appreciated!
     
  2. PosauneGuy

    PosauneGuy Member

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    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Did you upgrade to the latest iOS (13)? Maybe it's an issue with the latest iOS?

    If not, I would try deleting your phone from the Prius system and deleting the Prius bluetooth setting on your iPhone. Then set up the iPhone as if it were a new device.

    It seems strange that this would happen all of a sudden, which makes me think that something happened in the latest iOS (and since all your devices are running iOS). But if you haven't upgraded the OS on any of your devices, then the question I always ask my kids: "When was the last time you restarted your phone?"
     
  3. Nos402

    Nos402 Junior Member

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    I’ve deleted and re-paired many times. I did wonder if it was iOS 13 related but I've had no other issues connecting to any other device and also had the same issues with the Prius using my iPad which wasn't on 13 yet.

    For now I just ordered a Bluetooth receiver that plugs into the aux port and the USB port for power. Frustrating.

     
  4. Nos402

    Nos402 Junior Member

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    iOS 13.2 update tonight "Fixed an issue with Bluetooth disconnecting in some vehicles." Preliminary testing seems like that was it. I didn't think it was iOS because it was only my car and no other devices, and what's even weirder is I had also tried my iPad which was not yet running 13, but hopefully this is the end of the issue!

     
  5. Nos402

    Nos402 Junior Member

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    Well damn. Issue persists. I thought the update had fixed it but no luck.
     
  6. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
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    Two
    You could just restore your iPhone to the previous iOS, since you didn't have any problems.
    I HATE updates! They always seems to disable something I like and use.
     
  7. PosauneGuy

    PosauneGuy Member

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    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
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    Two
    New iOS 13 update released (13.1.2)...hopefully that fixes it again!
     
  8. darwindmg

    darwindmg Junior Member

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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I'm having a weird issue with my iPhone 11 Pro and 2011 Prius that *may* be related. I can connect the phone via BT and make calls, play music, etc. but I can't hear Siri comments. Trying to get her to read texts aloud or dial calls is impossible as there's no vocal response. I think this may be an iOS 13 issue (especially with all the bugs they've been chasing) and my iPhone 8 that was running iOS 12 did not have this issue.
     
  9. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Vehicle:
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    I learned a decade ago do NOT update when one comes out. Wait a while for all the bugs
    to come out and give them a chance to fix them.
     
  10. Attila Fekete

    Attila Fekete Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    II
    And come up with new bugs.... :)
     
  11. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Yep, Wait at least a month, sometimes longer. Sometimes, never!