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2012 Prius C fob intermittent fob issue

Discussion in 'Prius c Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by tjoe, Mar 20, 2023.

  1. tjoe

    tjoe New Member

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    Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere, I did not see the problem I am experiencing. For the last few months, my Prius C will not consistently unlock with either of the fobs that came with it, despite both having new batteries. I have tried to determine if there is a common reason as to why the fobs do not work (e.g., cold mornings), but I don't think that is the issue. I read in a different thread that what I am experiencing may be an indicator of failing actuators, but when the fobs *do* work the actuators sound strong. It could be the problem is slowly getting worse -- seems as if there are longer periods of time when I cannot unlock the car -- but not sure. Any help or clues appreciated, thank you.
     
  2. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    Lock actuators and 12v battery would be high on the list of things to check.

    Some hardware stores have a simple radio field strength tester at the key desk, they can show a very rough indication of whether your fob is actually sending a useful signal. Bring all of them to see if they behave differently from each other.

    Regarding fob batteries- there's a lot of junk ones on the market. Physical supermarkets and drugstores are often good sources for quality coin cells. Conversely it is difficult to find real ones on Amazon/eBay these days, they're just full of counterfeits.
     
  3. tjoe

    tjoe New Member

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    Thank you for this information! I will check the RF strength for both fobs. Today, I had t unlock the car the old-fashioned way -- physically using the key in the car door -- because neither fob seemed to do the trick. However, once I unlocked the door and tested the lock mechanism inside, the actuators were functional in locking and unlocking all doors. So, perhaps it is the 12v battery.
     
  4. tjoe

    tjoe New Member

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    Well, still searching for a solution. Purchased a new 12v battery, thinking that would definitively solve my problem. It did not. There are still instances where both fobs do nothing to open the car doors. Today, out of frustration, I decided to unlock the door by manually inserting the key again, figuring that the car alarm might sound. It did not. The car started up just fine and I drove around for about 15 minutes. I parked the car and locked it using the fob - no problem there, either. Also was able to unlock the car with the same fob. So, I am back to square one. Perhaps this might still mean the actuators are faulty, but the behavior observed makes me think this is not the core issue.