Many Toyota owners are confused about whether they need a subscription to use the remote start feature with their key fob. It’s a common misconception, sometimes even perpetuated by dealerships, that the key fob remote start expires quickly, often after a short trial period. However, official information from Toyota clarifies a different story, especially for vehicles with Premium Audio systems.
Key Fob Remote Start: The 10-Year Benefit for Premium Audio
According to a Toyota official response and documentation, if your Toyota is equipped with the upgraded Premium Audio system, you can enjoy key fob remote start for up to ten years without needing an active Remote Connect subscription. This applies to models like the Platinum, Limited, and XLE with the Dynamic Navigation option. This is excellent news for those who prefer the simple, limited-range functionality of the key fob and don’t require the additional features offered through the Toyota app.
Understanding the Trial Period and Key Fob Functionality
It’s true that Toyota vehicles often come with trial periods for connected services like Remote Connect. In the case of Premium Audio, this includes a 1-year trial for Remote Connect and a 10-year trial for Service Connect. While the Remote Connect trial, which allows you to start and control your vehicle through the Toyota app, does expire after a year, the basic key fob remote start functionality remains active for much longer.
Toyota’s confirmation explicitly states that the key fob remote start will continue to function for nine additional years after the 1-year Remote Connect trial ends, totaling a potential ten years of key fob remote start capability without any subscription. After this ten-year period, a subscription would be required to maintain remote start functionality of any kind.
Lower Trim Levels and Key Fob Start
The information available is less clear regarding the L, LE, and XLE trims without Dynamic Navigation. A Toyota document mentions “up to three years” for some vehicles and “up to ten years for select vehicles,” creating some ambiguity. It’s possible that these lower trim levels might have a shorter key fob remote start duration without a subscription compared to the Premium Audio equipped models. Further clarification from Toyota may be needed to definitively confirm the duration for these specific trims.
Toyota’s Official Confirmation
To clear up the initial confusion, direct communication with Toyota provided the following answer regarding a Highlander with Premium Audio:
Your Highlander has the upgraded Premium Audio, which includes a 10 year trial for Service Connect and a 1 year trial for Remote Connect. The key fob option of starting your vehicle will be operative, as long as you have any active subscription or trial. After the 1 year Remote Connect trial, the key fob only remote start will function for 9 additional years and after that period of time you will need to purchase a subscription for your vehicle. During this time, you will not be able to access additional Remote Start functions through the Toyota App, unless you subscribe to Remote Connect services.
This clearly confirms the extended availability of the key fob remote start feature for Premium Audio systems, even after the Remote Connect trial expires.
For detailed information, you can also refer to the official Toyota Connected Services PDF: Remote_Connect_CFA.pdf
In conclusion, if you own a Toyota with Premium Audio, you can likely rely on using your key fob for remote start for many years without the burden of a subscription, enjoying the convenience right from your key fob.
