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Remote Start Adaptable From 2006 Avalon

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by naterprius, May 10, 2005.

  1. naterprius

    naterprius Senior Member

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    So, I've looked over the wiring diagram and troubleshooting manual for the 2006 Avalon. It appears that the Genuine Toyota Remote Engine Start Accessory is easily adapted to the SKS Prius. The only wire that I have trouble with is the wire that makes certain the car is in Park, however, this could easily be relayed into the parking brake, and the car is ALWAYS in Park when it is off, so that is not a safety problem.

    There are only seven wires that go into the system.

    How can this be? How can it be so simple? The key to the system is that there is a smart key transceiver buried in the Avalon Remote Start module! This does mean that after the installation is done, it would REQUIRE a trip to the dealer to "add" a virtual SKS key. This has the added benefit of being able to disable remote start by disabling SKS under the dash.

    The bad news: I live in Colorado. It's very warm here, and hardly ever snows, and my car is kept in the garage at home, so I personally have very little interest in remote start. So those of you hoping to duplicate my work are out of luck. Unless, of course, you buy me the module. ;-)

    It's part number 08586-07860.

    I'm willing to identify the potential hookup wires for anyone who wants to try this mod.

    Oh, also, I think you have to carry yet another remote for the remote start if you have SKS. (Oddly enough, if you have an Avalon WITHOUT SKS, you can use your old remote).

    Nate
     
    #1 naterprius, May 10, 2005
  2. skew

    skew Junior Member

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    For the park wire you can tap onto the light wire on the back of the park button. Do you have a diagram for the remote start online? If it has a activate wire them we would be able to use a channel expander on the lock wire so you could hit lock on your SKS fob 3 times to activate it. This way there is no need for a 2nd fob
     
    #2 skew, May 11, 2005
  3. MashedPotato

    MashedPotato New Member

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    I'm sorry to take this on a tangent, but your comment triggers something that I have been wondering...

    I just moved into an apartment that has a garage with only the one big door you drive in and out of. The Homelink in the Prius works fine, but when you leave the apartment, how do you get into the garage? You still need to have a garage door opener with you.

    I've gotten spoiled with SKS. I now have to carry a small GDO, which I want to eliminate. I'd like to experiment with what you just described, where the "channel expander" would trip a relay tied to a cannibalized GDO in the car. That way, I can open the garage door by using the fob. Does that make sense, [you]?

    I can handle the relay and GDO, but I don't know how to tie into the fob. From your post above, it sounds like you might have the key to an excellent solution. If you don't mind, can you teach us what you know about a channel expander?
     
    #3 MashedPotato, May 12, 2005
  4. naterprius

    naterprius Senior Member

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    MashedPotato, it sounds like you need one of those "key code" remote boxes that screws to the outside of the garage. They are completely wireless. Depending upon the brand of opener and the height of it, you may able to program one to work with the opener, then screw it to the outside of the building.

    Cheap, easy, secure, weatherproof, etc.

    If you can't reach the opener, is there a wall button that has wires you can tap into? You can mount the Sears universal receiver kit near there and splice into the wires.

    Then, add then Sears lighted keypad remote to the outside of the garage and you are set!

    As far as channel expanders goes, I know almost nothing. My adaptation of the Avalon kit is based upon potential compatibilities between SKS and the existing system...

    Nate
     
    #4 naterprius, May 12, 2005
  5. skew

    skew Junior Member

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    You can use a directed electronics 450t channel expander. Tied to the lock circut and be able to program upto 6 more functions. like hit lock 3 times to trigger remote start and hit lock 4 times to raise garage door etc. they are not very much around $35-50 and can be programed for latched output or pulsed to drive a relay to activate your GDO. It can be done fairly easy if your handy with a soldering iron and wires. If not then the wireless GDO work great too I happen to have one on my house.

    I have a JP1 remote hacked apart in my other car so that after you start the car 5sec later it sends the enter command to press the "I Agree" on my Kenwood navigation it works perfect.

    You have really neat use for the channel expander. Because if you have a remote door lock on your entry door. You could use 1 fob to lock& unlock your car,start it,open the garage door and lock and unlock your house. Then tie it in with some x10 lights......wait Im starting to make my house sound geeky like my prius LOL :)
     
    #5 skew, May 12, 2005
  6. Bill Merchant

    Bill Merchant absit invidia

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    What makes sense to me is to "teach" your HomeLink mirror the code for the garage door. The details are in the manual, but basically, you hold the GDO up to the mirror and press one of the homelink buttons. It can even learn rolling cyphers. Look in the manual.

    The cool part of the HomeLink is that it can "learn" other RF remote's sequences.
     
    #6 Bill Merchant, May 13, 2005
  7. DanMan32

    DanMan32 Senior Member

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    If the GDO is rolling code, then what you are doing when training the homelink is setting the frequency and setting it to rolling code mode. Then you have to train the garage door opener (not the remote) to accept the homelink as an additional opener.
    If the GDO is not rolling code, as mine isn't, then once the homelink is trained, it will also know the static code.

    As for remote start, I think the remote starter is making use of the slot, not the SKS. SKS I believe would be too complex for it, as it would have to listen for the SKS oscillator, and transmit its rolling code at the appropriate time.

    As for adding the remote start to be accepted by the Prius, I wonder how the dealer would perform the necessary step with the remote start to enter the code as he would with a fob. For SKS, he presses both lock and unlock button. For immobilizer, he puts in the new fob into the slot. Is there a mode on the remote start to respond to RFID requests for the car to learn?

    As for the remote start to know that the car is in park, the LED is a good idea, but the light is only lit in certain power modes.
    The transmission control ECU (which is really the parking pawl ECU) does have a parking position line, I believe it is an output. Seems to be a white wire on pin 8. Would have to research this a bit.

    Did more research, it is a communications line using pulses. Drat!
     
    #7 DanMan32, May 13, 2005
  8. naterprius

    naterprius Senior Member

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    Dan, the techician must select "Remote Engine Starter" in the Avalon menu to get the SKS "RES" working. I guess it's possible that doing this to the Prius may not yield success.

    Thus far, it seems this is the best hope of remote start that I can see. Another possiblity would be to adapt an existing aftermarket system to power up a fob that is hidden in the car (solder up to the battery leads), close the brake light switch, then close the "Power" switch leads, then release, then release the brake switch.

    This would work, but the extra fob is $150 discounted, and it's a lot of extra work if the OEM system works...

    Nate
     
    #8 naterprius, May 13, 2005
  9. MashedPotato

    MashedPotato New Member

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    #9 MashedPotato, May 14, 2005
  10. Eug

    Eug Swollen Member

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    Anyone have the updated link?
     
    #10 Eug, Jan 20, 2008
  11. mrbigh

    mrbigh Prius Absolutum Dominium

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    This is a 2 year old thread................... lost in the darkness of time
     
    #11 mrbigh, Jan 21, 2008
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