I have a 2003 Toyota Corolla. The remote key had been getting less responsive for a couple of weeks and then today it just stopped working. I have put a new battery in, which obviously works fine as the wee light on the key works, however its not unlocking the doors at all. So the problem must not be the key but the sensor on the car. Is this likely to be something easy and not too expensive to fix or should I just get used to living back in the 80's and having to unlock the car the old fashioned way?
gsimpson,
Jul 30, 5:10pm
You may have to go to dealer or auto electrician to pair the car with the key. Replacing battery sooner may have avoided that but not always. I have had to do that with my car but I have the cable and software to do it myself.
datoofairy,
Jul 30, 5:14pm
Thank you, I will go out to the Toyota place tomorrow. That doesnt sound like too big/expensive a job (hopefully). Fingers crossed thats all it is :o)
Thank you, that doesnt look too daunting, I'll give it a crack. I'm always happy to give things a go before paying someone else. The only bit I'm not sure about is which mode I would do. Would I be adding the remote, rewriting it or confirming it?
tony9,
Jul 30, 6:15pm
Read further down, probably confirming it.
datoofairy,
Jul 30, 6:21pm
Thanks, I did read it all through but was still unsure which one I should do. I'll let you know how I get on :o)
kazbanz,
Jul 31, 7:45am
as long as the remote is actually working. Nice bright red light on I have NEVER had an issue fitting a new battery.
grangies,
Jul 31, 8:23am
My Dad had the same problem with his Corolla 02 model. He went to the Toyota franchise and ten minutes later was driving away with a brand new key for it. $70.
intrade,
Jul 31, 10:32am
going to be tricky , older systems are usually not as advanced and just a low battery in the fob might be the problem. other things are relearning procedure by pressing things like opening doors and turning ignition on and there like for old systems ford do loads of stuff like this. For toyota i had my scantool on a 2000 corolla with old 80s-90s 4a-fe and it had no signs of diagnostic for door locks or for anti theft. i also did not see a antitheft light on the dash. So either these old toyota are going to be extreem difficult or the procedure is pushing a few buttons or opening the door and shutting it 5 times in 5 secounds or something like this as relearn procedure as there was nothing in my scantool. However it is not factory tis-techstream only factory level capable also the car was not obd2 plug it has not got a obd2 port . so that would be what to check if you got a obd2 port or only the oem- toyota dlc under the bonnet.
intrade,
Jul 31, 10:45am
open the bonnet and look for this dlc this is the factory toyota plug obd-1 inside the car look for obd2 dlc some have just theis some have both and some only have obd2 plug in car
i got a video on the 2000 corolla with only old obd1 and the factory capable scantool with toyota software on old 80s 90s toyota engine.
Thanks everyone for your replies. I followed the instructions given in post #7 in Tony9's link above. I used the instructions for the 2003 Corolla. I went through all 4 steps, and the car did lock and unlock by itself as it says it should in step 5. However I got stuck at step 6, as my key does not have separate lock and unlock buttons, it only has one button on the side. I tried just holding it down for the required time twice but that didnt work. Intrade, I did read your posts but I'm sorry I didnt understand any of it, and theres no way I'm going to poke around under the bonnet. I'm just a broke clueless female who likes to have a go at things before paying others but I will concede defeat when its obviously beyond my limited abilities. I do appreciate your input all the same, thank you. I have to go out near the Toyota place this afternoon so will call in and see what they say. I certainly wont be paying $70 for a new key. I'll just have to get used to unlocking the doors the retro way :o)
tony9,
Jul 31, 11:52am
Does the remote have a Toyota Symbol on it? It may not be a Toyota one, someone may have fitted another remote locking system.
datoofairy,
Jul 31, 12:03pm
Yes it does have the symbol, and its the same as the key for my sisters 2004 Toyota Corolla, so I guess its original. I'm heading out now so I'll let you know later what Toyota have to say :o)
datoofairy,
Jul 31, 3:25pm
So, I went to Toyota. The guy I spoke to said my key is buggered and it'll cost $180 for a new one. I explained that I had followed all the steps and the car locked and unlocked by itself once, which confirmed one key was registered. I told him how I wasnt sure about the next step as my key only has one button, not 2 and he said it didnt matter, that just pressing the one button two times would work the same way. I had tried that but got no response from the car, although I did find that step a bit confusing so I dont know if I was doing it correctly. I said I didnt understand how my key could be dead when the first part had all worked and the light on the key works but he said thats just the way it is. He said the part I did would work no matter if the remote part of the key was dead or not. When the car automatically locked and unlocked once it was telling me one key was paired. I've had another couple of goes at it this afternoon and now it does the lock/unlock cycle twice, so it now must think 2 keys are paired. I think. Are you confused yet? I am. So, I'm really not sure if its actually dead or if I'm just being told that so I'll pay out for a new key. I'm trying not to be too cynical about it. The guy didnt actually try to pair it or even look at the key or the car. If the key is dead, then surely the car wouldnt have accepted having the key paired again, would it? I will have to have a think about it and maybe have another go tomorrow. If I cant get it to work I will look online and see if its possible to get another key cheaper from somewhere.
Thanks duggin, thats the link that Tony9 gave me and I have been using :o)
kazbanz,
Jul 31, 4:27pm
Datoofairy. follow the following instructions. park the car safely at home. Disconnect the negative lead from the cars battery. Leave the car overnight. Open up the key and remove the battery. Check that the battery contacts for the key are all clean. Check that the contacts for the button are clean. leave the key apart overnight. Put the key back together and when you push the button make sure the light is a nice bright red not dull .Even though you changed the battery. Reconnect the battery to the car. Before mucking around with pairing the key etc. Check to ensure the car thinks all the doors are closed --ie no door light on in the dash. Try locking the car from inside with the CL button in the door (or wherever it is) if the CL doesn't work you might have blown a fuse. Either of those will prevent the key locking the car. If its none of those things THEN try the key again and see if it works. To be Honest I have NEVER had to pair a key up to a car just because the battery went flat.
2sheddies,
Jul 31, 4:29pm
I'd just be opening it the old fashioned way from now on if it were me. The main thing is you can unlock the doors. whether you do it by remote or manually isn't important, and you save the best part of $200 just for the novelty of pressing a button and seeing the lights flash.
And intrade mate!. You are a fountain of knowledge and experience, and your posts are fantastically detailed and helpful. Perhaps though, just need to try and distinguish between those posters who might hope to understand such brilliant technical analysis, and others who are just laymen vehicle owners/enthusiasts who require any advice/information on the inner workings of modern vehicle systems to be put forth in much simpler, easier to comprehend terms. No disrespect to OP intended whatsoever. Heck I do too. I only understand old, pre electronic gadget cars lol! Just poking a bit of fun! :-P
Aha! Right on cue, there's some layman instructions from kaz!
datoofairy,
Jul 31, 4:49pm
Thanks heaps, I will try this over the weekend. If the key is dead and I have to forget about having a remote, so be it. But I just want to be sure I have tried everything I can first.
Thanks again to you all for your input, and also for not laughing at me for being ignorant. I've had a lot of great help and advise from you guys here in Motoring many times and I really appreciate it :o)
datoofairy,
Aug 6, 6:54pm
An update. I had a busy weekend and didnt have time to try Kazbanz's suggestion but this afternoon I decided to try going through the instructions for pairing it one more time. I went through it all again and when I got to the bit where it said to press the lock button and then the unlock button, I just pressed my one button twice. It didnt work the first time, but being the stubborn old bitch I am, I tried it again. I dont think I did anything any differently the second time but maybe I did, because it finally worked! My key now works exactly as it should. I'm so freaking happy! I'm so pleased I didnt listen to the Toyota guy or just fork out $180 for a new key. Yay for me. Thanks again to everyone who helped me, especially Tony9 for giving me the link that I used to fix it :o)
tony9,
Aug 6, 7:23pm
Good to hear it is fixed.
A couple of points.
I have had to have several goes sometimes to sync, and like you, don't think I changed anything between goes.
Most of these work with a rolling pseudo (sort of) random code. The receiver in the car knows a bunch of code sets and expects the code to change to another value after each key press. The receiver syncs to the remote's code set when you go through the proper process and will only react to a code that is the same or a few in advance of the current one for that remote.
The remotes will normally store the current code for a wee while if the battery is out to be changed. But if you take it out and leave it out, or accidentally short the input terminals (usually by putting the battery in upside down) then it will lose it and will need re-synching. The other thing that can go wrong is if someone (usually kids) press remote buttons too many time when it is out of range of the receiver. Then the remote code is too far away from the current code expected in the receiver.
kazbanz,
Aug 7, 3:43pm
Tony--Im curious.--Have you ever tried "my" method. Just kill both car and remote electrics and start over ?
tony9,
Aug 7, 4:35pm
Yes. But for a reasonably modern car it won't work. Still needs to be synched with a physical key, special code, or manufacturer's electronic device, depending on age and vendor. Increasingly you need vendor's electronic tools and they are not generally available. Also very bloody hard to reverse engineer.
duggin,
Aug 8, 7:14am
My wife recently bought a BB with only one key, and the key for those is $382.00 with a 3-week delay from Japan. Even more Grrrrrrr! :) :)
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