I found that these backup sensors work for my 2004 x350.

Here are the new sensors. They come molded in black. They are specified for BMWs, but work on my X350 and hopefully others as well as the X358s.



The new sensor on the left and my old one on the right.


I bought the full set for $21.88 with free shipping on amazon -->

Amazon says they will not work, but they are an exact fit and work as expected.

They are cheap, so we will see how long they last. At least we know that BMW sensors will work so there are likely many other manufacturers out there for these if this particular set are not very robust.

 

Great price if you have time to wait, on that slow boat from China.

Have to have my neighbor order them, for the free prime delivery.

 

Ordered on Tuesday and got ‘em yesterday.

 

Thats fast, looked like shipped from China, on the ones i saw

 

Yeah, I was pleased with turnaround time, but availability can certainly change...

 

Ordered a set off fleabay for $23, just don't care for amazon.
Not yet needed, but its always good.
Having replacement parts on hand.

 

Nice!

 

Hi Jacuar,

I have a question I hope you can help with!
My 2004 XJ8 has trigger happy rear parking sensors, which is driving me nuts with the constant beeping when you reverse. Can't even set the volume of it!

The previous owner said it started when he had a fender bender and a new bumper was fitted. I tried cleaning them as per some youtube guru; tested & found that all 4 work using a phone sound recording trick I also found on youtube.

Then slowly I began to form a theory, and when I researched it, it seemed very plausible:
These sensors generally have a right way up, which is indicated in some way, usually an arrow or "UP" or something.
This is because their "field of vision" is not identical in all directions, they have wider angles in the horizontal plane, than in the vertical.
If my sensors were fitted to the new bumper without observing this, some of them can now be "hearing" the ground and think it is a wall.

So my questions are:

• Can you install them any way round, or do those little pegs run in a slot on the bumper which prevents that from happening?
• Also, can you rotate them once installed? (My one is lose and I can push it into the bumper, luckily I can reach this one from behind and push it back, but I could not seem to rotate it - didn't try too hard)
• Lastly, looking at that plug at the back, which way is up? (If I'm lucky and only the 2 outer sensors are wrong, I might be able to correct it without removing the bumper).

Thanks!
Leon

 

Hi Leon,

I think it is possible to install them in an incorrect orientation. I know they will slide into the opening, but I am not sure if they can fully lock into place. There are two tabs on the sensor body that slide inside groves in the locking tabs on the inside of your bumper.



The two circled tabs slide into the grooves of the locking tabs in the bumper.

As I understand these, for either side of the car, there is a pair of sensors. One for transmitting a signal and the other for receiving it. If either one is defective it'll cause issues. I originally had an extra full set from a junkyard xj8. My backup sensors have never worked since I purchased the car. I would just get the long warning tone that indicated a fault in the system. I individually swapped out each sensor in a stepwise procedure with one of the junkyard ones until the warning tone ceased. I thought the problem was sorted easily enough and reinstalled the bumper, etc...

When I first tested it all seemed great, so I buttoned it all back up and parked the car. The next day it started beeping indiscriminately and intermittently, and then eventually just regularly (as you are describing). There must have been more issues, so I did some research and learned more about them, discovering the transmitter/receiver aspect and also learning that our sensors are common and cheap (I randomly watched a video with some guy troubleshooting his in a Renault, and noticed they were exactly the same as ours!). So I just replaced them all, which corrected problem.

The point of sharing this is that, I can't be sure if I reinstalled one of them incorrectly, when I was having the same problem as you. I know when I installed the brand new ones, I properly cleaned all of the locking tabs and openings in the bumper, and made sure each sensor was fully seated. The first attempt, with the junkyard sensors, was a little more careless as I was merely troubleshooting at the time and I wasn't really approaching it from long-term perspective.

To answer your second and third questions, unfortunately they can't be turned in situ, and the bumper has to come off to correct this problem. Well, except for the outer two. You can just barely access them with the tail lights removed, but at that point it is not much harder to remove the bumper. The little sensor housings are weakly bonded to the bumper (melted to it, I think), and trying to fight them with the bumper installed risks breaking them off, for which repair would necessitate bumper removal anyway. There is only six mounting bolts for the bumper, so it is not too bad. The most annoying part is the removal of the trunk upholstery, floor, back panel, and rear lights. It's not too bad a job. You can also update your rear marker lights to while you have your bumper out.

I hope this helps and good luck!

 

Thanks Jacuar,

This helps a lot.
I can see I'm going to remove that bumper after watching a video or 2, I take it some of the 6 screws are accessible from inside the boot.

I didn't know they work in pairs, when I did the "does your sensor work?" test they all emitted a clicking sound (of course this doesn't mean the sensor is perfect, only that 1 aspect of it works).

When you say the sensors slide into locking tabs (which have grooves that match the pegs) , but that you can still possibly install them wrong - does that mean the "locking tabs" can rotate in the bumper?

Which way is the correct way up? Loom socket on top? Bottom? To the side?

Thanks & Regards,
Leon

 

Try installing them, in the same position, as the ones you just removed.

 

I fail to see how that would help, since mine is already wrong and I'm trying to establish how they should go in

 

Try turning them to another position then.
Maybe a 180 degree turn, would work.
Hit or miss, they will only fit so many ways.
How does the wire harness, line up best.
To fit into the space provided???