locked out but I have the keys!! - Root cause discovered!

[Loyota]

Ok this is a strange one caused by multiple unlucky circumstances. My driver door actuator has been intermittent lately. I replaced it in 2018 but it appears to be failing again. To be honest I don't recall ever testing the mechanical key when I replaced actuator motor - I wish I did! Truck is 2013 LX.

I pulled the car in the garage today and left it running with hood up so I could check oil. I got out with the key in my pocket. When I walked back to the truck the driver door half opened but would not open all the way. Car would not lock or unlock with either FOB. I tried the mechanical key and it did nothing. I then pushed door fully closed. Truck is running now, doors locked and both fobs are with me. I disconnected battery and truck is still running fine I pulled an ignition fuse to at least kill the motor.

Truck is now electrically ON but not running. I cannot get inside. I've tried disconnecting battery, pulled all the smart fob fuses I can find and even disconnected the ECU. Apparently computer thinks a door is open and car is ON so the FOBs don't do anything. I was hoping to reset ECU so I could use FOBs but no luck.

Is my only choice to call a locksmith?

 

[PDoyle]

The key won't open the pass.side door? I think after 30 min. put it back together and try it again? How old is the battery?

 

[LBridges]

Usually people say disconnect the battery for at least 1/2-hour to get a reset of the ECU. Is that what you did - and it still thinks truck is running when you hook it back up?

 

[Loyota]

No keyhole on the passenger side door or the rear hatch that I can see. I have left the battery disconnected for at least 45 minutes and somehow it still thinks its on when I reconnect it. I even tried pulling various push to start fuses to have it forget its state and no luck.

I would think it would forget what state it was in, but apparently its "smart".

If it could forget that its on, I could then use the FOBs I think.

 

[LBridges]

Hopefully someone can help but I'm clueless. Please post back whatever ends up fixing this. I have a really hard time conceiving of a situation with a battery dis-reconnect that then lights up the dash like it was running again. That makes me think it's more tha just a door lock thing wrong. I'm going to start looking through manuals and see if I can find anything.

 

[Whiskerz]

nevermind

 

[PDoyle]

Just a thought... WD40 the driver door lock. Try the key after. Push the door in tight.

 

[LBridges]

dumb, probably - but can you unlock the back door and climb in over the seats?

 

[Loyota]

I just tried some lube in keyhole and used the key again - nothing. It turns easily but does not engage anything. not sure if its just an electrical contact or if its supposed to actually move the actuator directly. If its electrical and my actuator is dead, then maybe that is the issue.

And sadly I have tried all doors and rear hatch.

The truck still is stuck in the on mode. If you push the black buttons on the door handles, it beeps as if a door was left open. Essentially its stuck in a very odd situation.

All I can think to do now is get a locksmith to slim jim it and then I can push the start/stop button. I suspect that will reset everything.

 

[rick312]

Following, I have a 13 LX. I hope this works out for you.

 

[99Cruiser]

When you replaced the actuator did you line up the key to engage when you put the actuator back in? I replaced actuator on the GX470 recently and the key didn't work. I had to take door apart again and pop out the key portion of the door handle to line it up when putting back in the actuator. The actuators are easy to replace on the non-keyed doors. Most YouTube videos are for non-keyed doors and don't address lining up the key lock to engage the actuator. There is a screw that holds the lock in the door and I had to pop the plastic cover off the lock on the outside of the door to remove the lock then put the actuator back in and then slide the lock back in. I couldn't get the actuator to line up without removing the lock.

 

[99Cruiser]

On old Toyota's if you held the unlock down long enough on the fob all of the windows and sunroof would open. I don't know if they still so that.

 

[Loyota]

Sadly I think the system will not respond to any key fob because it thinks the doors are unlocked - I have tried holding down all the buttons.

99Cruiser - I think you are 100% correct. I recall it being a pain to get everything lined up. I actually just replaced the motor myself inside the OEM housing. I bet I never checked the manual key function! The actuator worked fine with the FOB the last couple of years but apparently I did not align the key lock correctly!

Lesson learned - always make sure the key works if you change an actuator!

I am a fan of the old fashioned key to unlock a car and start it! These fancy "smart" keys are more trouble than they are worth!

 

[bloc]

Is the door still half-opened? If so that could give precious room for pop-a-lock and the tool they use a lot called a big easy. If they do use this, be sure they try not to tear your weather stripping! We use these to unlock cars when kids are inside and if you aren't careful you can scratch the piss out of the paint and tear up the seals. Also Cruisers have very stout upper doors so it's hard to get the frame to flex out and make room for the tool. If your door is still ajar it will help a ton.

 

[Markuson]

Try this if you haven’t already...

Go to all 5 doors, and push each firmly—as though you thought they weren’t fully closed...even if they look fully closed already.

Try FOB/key again.

If that doesn’t work... Try FOB while leaning/pressing on each door as though pressing closed.

 

[40Man]

Can you hold down unlock on the FOB to get all the windows to roll down?

Edit:Saw someone already mentioned. Good luck, crazy situation.

 

[Loyota]

One of the first things I did was push the half open door closed as I thought it would then unlock with the FOB. This has happened before but ONLY when the car is OFF inside. Apparently when its on, the FOB does nothing.

I left battery disconnected all night but as soon as I reconnected it this morning, it goes right back to the ON state inside. Radio playing and everything. I guess the on board hard drive remembers everything and puts it back to the same state?

I just tried pushing on all doors and no luck. Calling a locksmith this morning and I have a new door actuator arriving on Monday!

 

[CSteppe82]

This is nuts

 

[PDoyle]

Are you sure the battery is good?

 

[Loyota]

Finally its fixed (or at least usable)! Locksmith used 2 small air bladders on passenger door then a fancy coat hanger to move mechanical door lock. It took about 30 seconds total. Once in the car, I can turn start/stop off and the FOBs work fine. The driver door lock actuator is still intermittent. I set smart access to unlock all doors for now so at least if the driver door fails, the other doors unlock.

BTW, all personalized data (startup image, radio pre sets, maintenance info, etc.) is all saved via the hard drive. Having battery disconnected all night did not matter.

The mechanical key still does not seem to be working. Not sure if its electrical or mechanical. When I replace actuator next week, I'll figure that out. Locksmith said BMWs use a key to activate the electric motor so if the battery is dead and/or actuator dies, then the key does nothing. That is my guess on this truck also.

The bottom line - if your driver door actuator is acting strange, fix it ASAP!!! I'm just thankful this happened in my garage and I did not need truck. This could have been a mess if out in the middle of nowhere. I guess I'd just break the window.