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Key Fob problem

8K views 11 replies 4 participants last post by  Fighterpilot 
#1 ·
I have a 2016 XER .So, a while ago my fob started playing up. It sometimes wouldn't open the car. Once it took 10 minutes of repeatedly pressing the key before it unlocked. Then a couple of weeks ago I couldn't unlock it at all for two days. Called Jaguar who told me I'd have to have it transported on a carrier to them. Unlocked it manually, alarm goes off, and tried holding against the three ridges on the side of the wheel but nothing. On the day the tow truck came, the guy took the keys off me and opened it straight away. This was after two days of nothing. Went into Jaguar who carried out thier tests and because it was working ok couldn't find a fault after 3 days! So since then I'm too frightened to lock it if I go somewhwere incase I can't get back in. I've got into it twice in one week and the dashboard indicates Key not recognised, hold onto side of wheel, which when I do it starts fine. It's not the battery or the fob's battery. Jaguar say that it could cost £1000ish if I cahnge the reciever mode but it may not be that so more costs! Any ideas?
 
#2 ·
Maybe you need to change the key fob batteries as these are suseptable to cold when they get older. You can get them cheaply from quite a few shops or for the best price Ebay. Try not to touch the battery flat surfaces as this can in some instances cause malfunction. Check all the battery contact points in the fob for cleanliness to ensure good contact. Do both fobs at the same time.
https://www.ownerinfo.jaguar.com/document/4N/2016/T19945/18377_en_GBR/proc/G1774748
 
#3 ·
Just another thought. How old is the main car battery and how often is the car being driven at present? It maybe that the car battery itself needs either a good charge or replacing. Replacing and that decision needs to only be done if a proper testing by the dealer or a good battery supplier says it is no longer fit for prupose. Halfords will test and fit a suitable battery £211.
 
#5 ·
80% is a critical point with the XE when systems shut down and things can start to go wobbly. Try a charge up with a good charger suitable for AGM batteries. I understand that the fob batteries were changed but sometimes faulty ones get through or are not making good contact.
 
#9 ·
Lived this the hard way in previous vehicles. Standard practice now (so no issues or a call from my wife saying she's stuck somewhere) is to religiously replace the key fob batteries once a year and the engine battery every two years. Yes, I've gotten up to six years out of an engine battery in the past but not being able to start my car at the worst possible moment in the worst location has me now "wasting" some cash for the confidence that my fobs always work and my car always starts. I will say the XE engine battery outrageous cost of US$500 :shock: may have me change this philosophy and replace every three years vs every two years!
 
#11 ·
Fighterpilot said:
You should get up to 5+ years out of a battery, even these AGM type.
"Should" is the proverbial word Fighterpilot. Twice in the past fifteen years my 60-month battery prematurely failed. Once when my wife was with our then-younger son meeting with a girlfriend two hours away for an all-day visit (I got the call at 8pm and didn't get home until 1am) and once when my wife and I were attending an evening event in New York City and in a parking garage that was about to close (and the subsequent hassles thereafter). Neither was an experience I want to repeat since "a happy wife means a happy life" or more concisely "when mama's not happy, no one is happy", lol. At this stage of the game, a few hundred dollars every other year is a small price to pay to avoid such experiences which have a lingering monologue for many days thereafter :)

On the other hand, you have me thinking ... if one of my vehicles begins to have reliability problems starting, maybe I can get my v8 Jag sooner? Ha!
 
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