Car starter for Toyota Prius?

Question

Can you install a car starter for a 2007 Toyota Prius? With the cold weather coming up, I'd like to get one, but wasn't sure if it would be a problem with the battery.

Answer 1

Hi,

actually, it's not necessary and will be expensive for a couple reasons.

The first question is if you have a Smart Key for your Prius or the regular key unit you have to insert in the dash to start.

To install a remote starter in a vehicle with a security / proximity key, you must give one of those keys to be mounted inside the starter unit. This allows the vehicle's proximity sensors to allow the vehicle to start because it believes you are in and want it to start.

The smart key systems for the Prius (and any vehicle with a smart key system) are not an inexpensive unit. Expect to pay about $250.00 for an additional Smart Key just to have it hidden in your Prius inside the starter unit.

If you have the regular key, than you will still need to give one up. So you will probably need to have a third key made anyway, and that will run about $125 or so.

So, figure in a decent remote starter for $250 - 300, a second key for $125 - 250 and you will be at about $375 - 550 down.

Now, because of the way this must be wired in, assume you will be voiding your warranty. You may not alter the power delivery system of the Prius without voiding the warranty, and an electric starter would alter the electric drive. Read your owner's manual carefully and call Toyota direct if you have any questions on that regard. Ignore whatever a remote starter installer has to say, they won't pay for your Toyota warranty if something goes wrong.

The other big issue is who does the work? There are no remote starter installers that have been trained and certified by Toyota to work on the Prius. There is actually a specialized training that Toyota mechanics have to go through to work on Prius and they become certified to do so. Call your local dealership and ask them how much is involved for these guys to get there. The local dealership in the next town has spent over $70,000 this year alone to have, keep, or improve the certifications of their team of techs.

Besides that, as other people have pointed out, you have an insulated thermos container under the driver's side headlamp that will keep the coolant hot for up to three days. That, plus the automatic temp that doesn't blow air on you until it has warmed up, are two of the ways you will have a faster warm up in the AM.

Finally, your Prius starts using the electric system, not the gas engine. It is much easier for an electric drive to start up than for a gas engine to turn over. Toyota tests all their vehicles from Mexico through Alaska to insure they will start in all conditions. That's why you have a button to switch from English to French or Spanish and from miles to kilometers easily. They want it to be as simple as possible for people in Canada or Mexico to operate their Prius.

My advice is don't do it. It's not neccessary and you'll save a lot of money.

Answer 2

As far as I can determine, Toyota does not offer remote start for the Prius, even though our region (don't know if it is nation-wide) does offer it for Camry HV. I would not recommend any aftermarket system for use in a Prius. There are WAY too many things involved with starting one, especially if you have a SmarKey system. And as has been pointed out, you have to defeat the Immobilizer system which nullifies having it on the car.

The thermos is designed to hold coolant at 180'F for 3 days. It is an emission device, but does help to raise the temp quickly. The interior will get warm sitting still, because with the heater set to high, the engine will run to warm up the coolant. But in addition, I know some Prius are equipped with PTC heaters in the heater core and duct work, so it starts to blow warm immediately. I am not clear whether that is for all packages or not, and toyota.com doesn't shed any light on that aspect. Blocking the grills will not help the car warm any faster, because (1) that would onlly restrict air flow across the radiator, and if it is sitting still with the radiator fan off, there is no air to restrict, and (2) the themostat in the engine keeps the coolant from circulating through the radiator until the engine reaches a set temperature, about 180'F. In cars, if blocking the radiator grill succeeds in raising heater temp, then there is a problem with the thermostat or coolant system.

So...warming it up will help with the temp, but I would recommend you do it manually, not remotely.

Good Luck and God Bless!

Answer 3

Toyota Automatic Car Starter

Answer 4

One of the things that a Prius has is a thermal tank to store the warm water from the cooling system when you shut the car off. That little buzzing sound you hear just after you shut off the car is a pump moving the coolant into to the thermal tank. Not say it will stay hot over night, but the car will warm up fairly quickly.

PS - two reasons to buy a Prius, you either want the gas mileage or you want to be "green". In either case warming the car up is counter those goals. Also, the Prius uses a proximity key, I'm not sure it will start without the key inside the vehicle?

Answer 5

If you live in cold climates and want to "winterize" your Prius for better Internal Combustion Engine mileage, you can:

1) block the grilles so the engine will warm up faster.

2) install an aftermarket electric block heater (EBH).

These are non-permanent mods covered in great depth at Prius forums such as http://www.priuschat.com .

A remote starter won't help the Prius warm up, because our Prii are not designed to have the ICE running when you turn on the car, unless it needs to charge the HV battery.

Hope this helps.

Answer 6

You can have one installed. I prefer not to have anything aftermarket added to a vehicle though. (I have many years experience with Field Engineering for Manufactureres).
Only cause you are cutting, modifying the vehicle electronics and surely will void your warranty on anything they cut into.
I also found most times, panels end up loose, or broken tabs, etc from taking things apart.

Answer 7

Interesting discussion!