Hi all,
I thought I'd posted this yesterday but I can't see it on the forum therefore posting again. Sorry in advance if this goes and shows up twice!!

Got a 2008 XKR the other day - all good. Love the car.. Just a couple of things I've noticed and hoped that I could get some insight.

a) Indicator light failure warning. I get this warning BUT all the bulbs are working fine... Should I just go and replace all the bulbs or is this something more sinister?

b) Smartkey... One of the smartkeys works 100%. The other works in that it unlocks the car when I am in range and that all the buttons work.. However, when I am in the car and try to start I get the 'no smartkey key' warning and I have to insert the key. If I do that I can start the car no problem. I note also that I get the low battery warning.. So; before I even got that far the smartkey was dead so I went out and got some new batteries and installed it. The smartkey started to work as described but no key-less start. Ergo: battery can't be low!!
- anyone got any clues here??

c) I've noticed the widely reported terrible FM reception problem. Actually (and oddly) most stations work fine but as luck would have it my favourite station on 100.00 is terrible (aka you can't listen to it).
Anyone got any hints / clues / etc for how I can address this. I read already that a potential fix is to have the coax cable replaced running if from the boot to the radio.
Is this something I should take on myself?
Does anyone have any other suggestions? Perhaps I can install an alternative antenna.

Anyway - love the car, just looking to fix up the minor issues if possible.

Thanks

dave

 

If the car thinks a bulb is faulty, the turn indicators and the audible ticking should be twice the normal speed - is that the case?

Just a thought: has someone replaced one or all of the bulbs with LED bulbs without adding the correct resistors to fool the bulb monitoring system?

 

I'd still replace the smart key battery again. I know, you already did that, but those are all the symptoms, so... it's either that or the key is faulty.

 

Thanks for the replies.

Update: The indicator failure is accompanied with the rapid clicking. When I get to stop and review the lights they are working. I think perhaps I might have an intermittent bulb failure. I guess the thing to do is stop as soon as it happens (if possible) and see if any of the bulbs are out.

For the smartkey - I just took the car out again with the dodgy smartkey with the replaced battery and it worked perfectly. Will just keep an eye on that.

Thanks again

 

I think the monitoring circuit looks at the resistance of the bulb - when a bulb goes, the resistance is infinite. However, it's possible the monitoring circuit sees high resistance the same way; if there's a bad connection that increases the resistance of the circuit, it may be interpreting that as a blown bulb. Just a guess, you understand...

 

This may sound strange but I had the same key problem, and after replacing the battery I still had the low battery warning... I saw a post on this forum somewhere that suggested removing the new battery, wiping it to be sure it is clean, and putting back into the key fob.. And that actually worked. It has been months since I did that and the key is still working.

 

Update: The indicator failure turned out to be a corroded earth stud. It's (apparently) a easy fix if you've all the tools etc. Involves taking the right side front wheel off, removing the wheel arch lining to gain access.
In the end the local Jag dealer did it for me in an hour and half.

Glad to get it resolved.

Radio is still terrible reception and the key fob is mostly dead and needs replacing.