Gen 2 Reprogrammed Key Fob 2026 - Button Functionality?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by Chicago David, Jul 10, 2026 at 7:59 PM.

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  1. Chicago David

    Chicago David Junior Member

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    Greetings All

    My wonderful son somehow ‘lost’ half of the our original key fob. It was the button portion which locked and unlocked the doors. We could still slide in the portion with the battery, start the car, and drive the car - but could no longer open and close the doors remotely.

    We bought an ‘unprogrammed fob’ off Amazon and successfully programmed it to start the car, but, we do not have the remote door opening and closing with the buttons.

    Please advise: Should the newly reprogrammed key fob be able to lock and unlock the doors with the buttons? I know it is not the “smart keyless entry” type, but I thought the locks would still be able to be operated with the buttons.

    I used the bulk of this thread: Buy new/used FOB for Prius 2 in 2022 | PriusChat to program the new key.

    Two key differences: 1) Instead of buying off eBay the ‘unprogrammed fbb’ was bought off Amazon:
    2) The original key fob was just the inside bit of the key fob which held the battery (but was enough to tell the car it was the key and start the car). The key fob did not have the door locking / unlocking button portion of the fob

    Here is a link to the Amazon key fob:


    Any feedback would be welcome!
     
    #1 Chicago David, Jul 10, 2026 at 7:59 PM
  2. Prius_Gnome

    Prius_Gnome Member

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    I get the feeling you didn't fully program your new key fob. Google "Prius chicken dance".
    Look at post #13 in this older Priuschat thread. I assume you only performed Procedure A. You'll also need to perform either Procedure B or Procedure C, depending on whether you have SKS or non-SKS Prius (i.e., when you had a fully functioning key fob, could you drive the Prius with the key fob in your pocket?).
     
    #2 Prius_Gnome, Jul 10, 2026 at 10:01 PM
  3. Chicago David

    Chicago David Junior Member

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    Thanks Prius_Gnome | PriusChat! I also realized that too!

    I re-did the Chicken Dance #1 just to be sure it was perfect. It worked and the new remote starts the car like a charm.

    I did the Chicken Dance #2 for the door locking and unlocking and have no success. I know I am entering the programming state correctly with the car doing the ‘lock / unlock’ response properly. I’ve tried the “one time”, “two time”, “three time”, and “five time” sequence and cannot get the car to respond to the fob programming (two seconds w/ lock and unlock, two seconds with just lock).

    I bought this key off Amazon:


    But I really think this key is not the right frequency or is defective. I read in the reviews that the Chicken dance DOES and also DOES NOT work with the key so I took my chances.

    Does anyone have a low-cost sure thing link for a 2005 gen2 non-SKS key? Or is there anything I’m missing?

    THX!!!
     
    #3 Chicago David, Jul 12, 2026 at 4:45 PM
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 12, 2026 at 6:54 PM
  4. Chicago David

    Chicago David Junior Member

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    Here’s the sequence and link for reference (with a small add in BOLD:

    https://northcoastkeyless.com/2005-toyota-prius-keyless-entry-remote-fob-programming-instructions/



    For the key entry:


    TOYOTA KEY FOB REMOTE STEP-BY-STEP HOW TO PROGRAMMING INSTRUCTIONS

    Minutes 5 minutes

    1. Prepare Vehicle for Programming
      With the key OUT of the Ignition, OPEN and UNLOCK the Driver’s door.
    2. Enter Programming Mode – Step 1
      Perform the following steps within 5 seconds:
      a. INSERT key into Ignition (Do NOT turn) and PULL the key OUT.
      b. INSERT key into Ignition (Do NOT turn) and PULL the key OUT.
    3. Enter Programming Mode – Step 2
      PERFORM the following steps WITHIN 40 seconds:
      a. CLOSE then OPEN Driver’s door.
      b. CLOSE then OPEN Driver’s door.
      c. INSERT key into Ignition (Do NOT turn) and PULL the key out.
    4. Enter Programming Mode – Step 3
      PERFORM the following steps WITHIN 40 seconds:
      a. CLOSE then OPEN Driver’s door.
      b. CLOSE then OPEN Driver’s door.
      c. INSERT the key into the Ignition and LEAVE it in the Ignition.
      d. CLOSE the Driver’s door.
    5. Enter Programming Mode – Step 4
      PRESS POWER button (TWICE) to switch ignition ON (amber LED illuminated) and (ONCE) to turn OFF (do NOT depress the brake pedal during procedure).
      DO this ONCE to retain existing remotes programmed and ADD NEW remote..
      DO this TWICE to ERASE all existing remotes programmed and ADD NEW remote.
      DO this THREE times to CHECK how many remotes are programmed to the vehicle.
      DO this FIVE times to ERASE all existing remotes programmed.
    6. Enter Programming Mode – Step 5
      REMOVE key from Ignition. The power door locks will respond by cycling the locks from LOCK/UNLOCK to signal successful entry into Programming Mode.
    7. Program Remote(s)
      Perform the following steps within 40 seconds:
      a. PRESS and HOLD the LOCK and UNLOCK buttons on the remote simultaneously for 2 seconds. RELEASE.
      b. PRESS and HOLD the LOCK button and hold for 2 seconds. RELEASE.
      The vehicle will respond by cycling the locks from LOCK to UNLOCK to indicate successful programming of the remote.
    8. Program Additional Remote(s)
      REPEAT Step 7 for any additional remotes to be programmed, including working ones.
    9. Exit Programming Mode
      OPEN Driver’s Door to EXIT Programming Mode.
    10. Test Remote(s)
      TEST all remotes. Programming is complete.
    11. Share
      If these programming instructions helped save you time and money, please consider sharing our website with friends and family so they can do the same.
    Supply:

    • Key Fob Remote(s) that you want to program to your vehicle.
    Tools:

    • None
    Programming Notes:

    • Verify the following prior to following these instructions:
      • Your vehicle is equipped with keyless entry, and
      • You have a key fob remote that is compatible with your vehicle.
    • Obtain ALL remote transmitters for this vehicle.
    • If you have a SILVER Toyota logo remote, this procedure WILL NOT work for your vehicle.
    • • If you have a BLACK Toyota logo remote, this procedure WILL work for your vehicle.
     
    #4 Chicago David, Jul 12, 2026 at 9:32 PM
  5. Prius_Gnome

    Prius_Gnome Member

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    Just FYI, in case you don't know, in your instruction's step 5, you only do ONE of the four options ('once' 'twice' 'three' 'five'). Specifically, for your specific use case, you want to do the 'once' one. DO NOT do it 'twice' 'three' or 'five' times.

    You said you are getting the ‘lock / unlock’ response (twice) so I assume you're referring to a successful completion of your instruction's step 6. So I assume you're stuck on step 7. Just to clarify, step 7 should be done on the NEW key fob. Also, referring to the other Priuschat thread, the instructions there say to simultaneously press both lock and unlock for 1.5 seconds; release; wait maybe only 1 second; then press just the lock button (I assume just a regular press without hold it down).

    The other thing to note is to make sure BOTH key fobs are using brand new batteries. I wouldn't trust whatever generic battery that came with the new key fob. Better yet, if you have a multimeter, a new coin battery should have a no-load voltage of like 3.3 V.

    Just a sidenote but are you the original owner of the Prius? I ask because there's a maximum number of key fobs that can be simultaneously programmed. I want to say the limit is about 5, but don't quote me. Once that limit is reached, you need to use Toyota TechStream software (or some other 3rd party tool) to remove all the old/extra key fobs if you want to add a new key fob. Your instruction's step 5 seems to suggest you can delete the old/extra key fobs by repeating that substep 'twice' but I don't know for sure.
     
    #5 Prius_Gnome, Jul 12, 2026 at 11:15 PM
  6. Dennis Brown

    Dennis Brown New Member

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    I bought a key fob with silver (only one that matched my Prius Gen 2 fob) and followed the company's instructions. It worked fine for door and for remote activation to start or when inserted. This will only work on that companies' fob. Got it on Amazon.

    I added that open door because I did it in the wrong order - oops. Their procedure is correct.
     

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    #6 Dennis Brown, Jul 13, 2026 at 7:08 AM
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