On my 2007 XK convertible, I put the top down today (in my garage - way too cold to go topless here!), and the top wouldn’t go all the way down – the roof folded into the trunk, the tonneau, closed, but would not lock into place, and kept getting the Hood no Latched warning on the dash. I went to raise the roof, and the tonneau closed, but even though he motor kept running, the top never would go into the closed position, with the same message on the dash (Hood not Latched, even though it was clearly latched (yes, it was locked in place). I tried disconnecting the battery and reset the windows, but I couldn’t get the roof to close or open completely. I was able to manually close the roof, but the back windows would not go up, as I was still getting the Hood not Latched error message on my dash.

I am taking this car to Florida on Saturday, so any help I could get would be huge. Yes, I did search the forum and found nothing that helped. I’m guessing that a sensor must be off, but don’t know where to look. Yes, the battery is good (its my daily driver and the battery is just over a year old). I’ll put it on a C-Tek tonight anyway.

TIA
Jon

 

Jon,

You didn't get the "Luggage separator out of position" warning, so I presume it's OK. One possibility is that the cold weather adversely affected the hydraulic fluid.

Try resetting the front windows. Start the engine and lower both front windows. Press and hold the switches down for about three seconds. Then raise both front windows and hold the switches up for about three seconds. Once you do this see if the top will lower. Remember the trunk needs to be closed and the luggage separator in proper position.

If that doesn't work, then you need to lower the top manually. See your Owner's Handbook on how to do it. Here's the .pdf file.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/s177kims55...20Top.pdf?dl=0

Hope this helps,

Stuart

 

I thought I read somewhere in the OM that not to put the top down in temperatures below 32*F. What temp was it when you did this. Maybe it could be part of the problem. We have a person on the form who is knowledgeable on tops . Goes by the name of White xkr. Hope he chimes in here. Good luck

 

This is where the process stop. The pump is still running though nothing else happens. As soon as it times out or I release the convertible button, the Hood not Latched warning shows up. The back end is locked in place - no movement.
I have a strong feeling its the sensor at the latch on the driver's side. Possible a break in the wire somewhere or the sensor itself went bad - I did spray a little contact cleaner on the sensor, but still no luck.

 

It was around 45 outside, and in the garage a little warmer (had the bottom of the garage door open to let out the exhaust while the car was running.

 

No issues regarding the luggage separator; made sure it was in the right place. I did the window reset after disconnecting the batter for 20 mins. I believe I did the manual reset of the top, but to be sure I'll look at the PDF (thanks!)

 

I put my XK on the C-tek last night, and I'll be damned, the roof closed with no issues!!! Damn those gremlins!
My mistake is that I assumed that the battery voltage would have been enough since I drive the car 4-6 days each week (avg 50 miles per day); I should have check the voltage first knowing how finicky these cars are about that.
Just in case it wasn't the voltage, I'm going to order a replacement sensor (not expensive at all), and will install it if the issue arises again (along with checking the wiring).

 

You got lucky!

 

Even though your battery is only a year old, it still could be on its way out (at least for reliable use in an XK without a maintainer). It could have have had defects, or it could have been exposed to a few full discharge cycles somewhere in its history. That is enough to weaken a wet battery enough to be a problem in the XK. Consider upgrading to an AGM battery which can survive multiple deep discharge cycles.

Also, after the car is running for a few minutes, carefully touch each battery terminal with your hand. If either terminal is hot, you have a defective battery cable. It is quite common for these cables (particularly the ground cable) to fail at the crimp and present a high resistance.

 

I now have the EXACT same issue, in a different order: I got the HOOD NOT LATCHED warning (the top was down). Checked the hood, which was indeed latched and opened and closed fine. Mostly an annoyance.
When I went to close the top, it got about 90 percent through the cycle when it stopped, citing "HOOD NOT LATCHED." So I lowered the top - it went through the cycle fine. It will warm up tomorrow. Hopefully that will help. I've not had any other battery "gremlins" with this battery. Fingers crossed. Might try the hard reset to see if that helps.

 

One more time: For ANY (again, ANY) electrical issue on these cars, in any system, with any symptom, the battety voltage is ALWAYS the first suspect regardless of the age of the battery. The modules in these cars require full battery voltage for proper operation. When they do not get it, they misbehave.

 

So, OK. I'm looking into tenders. Three questions:
- there are at least 5 different c-tek tenders on Amazon, and they vary greatly in price. Does it matter? Is there a preferred model here?
- issue #2: where I live it would take at least 10 days to get one delivered. I can't seem to find stores that sell them. Are they on store shelves?
- there is a "battery tender" for sale at both local auto parts stores. Should I just grab one of those?
Thanks...

 

Probably steer clear of the plastic cased
‘battery tender’ models, others here have had those over heat/melt. I have a metal cased ‘battery tender’ brand and it only gets barely warm.

 

Some "Battery Maintainers" charge well and slowly, but once the battery gets fully charged they shut off permanently.
Get a battery maintainer that has the FLOAT capability. That's the most important factor for keeping a battery fresh for more than a few days.

 

Well, here we go. Wish me luck.
Can I attach it to the auxilisry positive post in the trunk and the tailpipe or do I have to use the battery terminal posts? (which might be hard to get to since I can't close the top...)

 

Access post in the boot, left side panel for positive. Any good grounding point for the negative. Since you have a 2010, do NOT put the negative on the battery post, as the '10+ has a Battery Monitor Module on it.

 

As requestrequested, I am wishing you good luck!

Just don't ever leave your maintainer inside your car or near anything flammable while it's charging. Check that maintainer occasionally and touch it to see if the case is too hot. Read the negative reviews on Amazon of the Clore Pro-Logix battery maintainer. I'm pointing this out so you're aware of the potential fire hazard, which is possible with any brand of battery maintainer. My old Deltran Battery Tender Jr. overheated and melted the plastic case and could have burned my house down. Just be safe and check it occasionally.

Hopefully, yours will give you many years of trouble-free service.

 

and this too,you might wanna always let the top up or down when the car is running.NEVER do this with just the ignition started with the car off.The batteries drain so quick on jags,it's ridiculous