Do I need an "old" functioning key fob for the chicken dance to work?

Chicken dance only works with fobs that are brand new and not connected to an existing vehicle. There used to be a guy on Ebay who could wipe used fobs to make them work like new. Not sure where they went, but I think Ebay kicked him out for selling that type of service because it wasn't a product?

Alternatively it's possible that too many fobs have been registered into the system and the service in Toyota Techstream that prepares the vehicle for a new owner will wipe those away so there's room for a new FOB.

 

So you have no fobs that make your car run? OR do you have one Fob? I'm confused because the manual key only opens the door, it doesn't start the car? Are you able to start the car with that Fob?

 

Ok, got it... And you've tried it with this valet key button in both positions:


Also how many previous owners of the vehicle?

As in is there any way of knowing how many fobs have been added to the car in the past?

 

To add a new SKS Key fob to your Prius you would need a working SKS Key fob programed and working to your Prius. That means opening and closing the door remotely. Open's door without using the key and just by proximity function for SKS special keys. If you open the door with a key and slide the keyfob into the fob slot that means only the magnetic key tag is programmed and none of the smart key functions are programmed. Therefore you can not chicken dance a new blank SKS Key fob. Unfortunately you will need someone to programmed the new sks key fob.

SM-A526U ?

 

certainly, the battery voltage is important. a new battery should measure 3.3v without load.

beyond that, it's hard to determine why a signal is weak. it may be interference in your area, but trying it somewhere far off would be a good test if you ever take a trip.

or maybe voltage to the ecu is weak.

 

unfortunately, that is outside of his area of expertise, even a dealer probably couldn't figure it out if there aren't any codes.
another possibility is a weak 12v battery

 

congrats!