How to start a Prius even when the key fob is dead

The other day, I sat down in my Prius and pressed the Start button on the dashboard. That’s how you turn on the ignition in a Prius — usually.

This time, nothing happened. The remote fob in my pocket no longer worked! Its battery had died.

With a little poking around online, I realized that there’s a backdoor — a way to start your car even if the fob battery is dead. Weirdly enough, you hold the fob against the Start button when you push it. Believe it or not, the car now starts, even with a dead battery.

You can thank me in your heart, on your drive home.

Adapted from the New York Times bestseller “Pogue’s Basics,” available here.