AndyCharlie · May 20, 2015

Hi all...I have a 97 p reg 4.6hse auto,i parked at work the other day and came to use the keyfob to lock the doors and it didnt work,but as it was in the works car park i decided to just leave it unlocked as its secure.When it came to going home i got the dreaded 'engine disabled' message and no matter how much i pressed the fob it just wouldnt work!!.....after research it looked like it could have been that i was parked beneath a huge phone mast...so got it towed down the road and hey presto!..she fired up!!..BUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...........after getting it home im getting the same fault,sometimes the fob works and i can start it sometimes it just doesnt work at all....the battery cover on the fob is in very poor condition and it seems the fault may lie with the fob as when i 'play about' with the back cover i can get it to work....so my question after my much long winded first post is where can i get a replacement key/fob done and it programmed to my vehicle and itsd not gonna cost a small fortune?..also can i get it done whilst I wait as ive only got the one key!!!...thanks in advance................Andy

Big vee · May 20, 2015

Main dealers for new key costs a bit but worth it then send the other for refurb that's what I had to do

gfromleeds · May 20, 2015

Hi Andy
You never said your fob was knackered when I spoke to you through ebay lol
If the battery is loose it's almost definitely your problem
You can get a complete fob from a dealer but there bloody expensive
In your case I think you'll get away with just fitting a new case which are available on ebay for not a lot of £'s
Link
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=290954801723&alt=web

AndyCharlie · May 20, 2015

Hi again G!!...I didnt realise it was the fob,I saw that the back was a mess but didnt read into it too much,ive seen the refurb kits so i'll get one of those and see how i get on!!

Littelwill · May 20, 2015

+1 ^^^ There is a company on Ebay saying for £14 they will send you an already cut fob and all you have to do is swap the chip thingy...

Saint.V8 · May 20, 2015

Littelwill said:
+1 ^^^ There is a company on Ebay saying for £14 they will send you an already cut fob and all you have to do is swap the chip thingy...

The fun part is getting the 'chip thingy' out as the key bodies are plastic welded together.

AndyCharlie · May 20, 2015

Ive seen the blank casings on ebay...kinda refurb kit,plastic casing comes with new buttons etc,you just swap the insides over,but if they are 'welded' together how do i get IN to swap it all over!!???

Saint.V8 · May 20, 2015

AndyCharlie said:
Ive seen the blank casings on ebay...kinda refurb kit,plastic casing comes with new buttons etc,you just swap the insides over,but if they are 'welded' together how do i get IN to swap it all over!!???

Thats the trick!!

Could try a small dremel cutting disc, but the electronics sit very close to the edge of the case so care is needed.

Could also try a scalpel or Stanley Knife and slowly slice the case open using multiple cut passes until to get through....

However you choose, just be careful, and before you start, DO NOT SUPERLOCK THE CAR, cos if you do and you feck the key, you will be in a world of pain!

AndyCharlie · May 20, 2015

Thanks...will wait for the kit to arrive and give it a go!!!..in the mean time i'll look into getting another from a dealer and will just have to pay up i suppose!!!...any dealers recomended in the west yorks area?...around Wakefield Pontefract if possible?

ukadamwest · May 20, 2015

AndyCharlie said:
Hi all...I have a 97 p reg 4.6hse auto,i parked at work the other day and came to use the keyfob to lock the doors and it didnt work,but as it was in the works car park i decided to just leave it unlocked as its secure.When it came to going home i got the dreaded 'engine disabled' message and no matter how much i pressed the fob it just wouldnt work!!.....after research it looked like it could have been that i was parked beneath a huge phone mast...so got it towed down the road and hey presto!..she fired up!!..

Had that happen to me at Halfrauds in Alder**** getting the AC filled..

About two days later they had another P38 pull in, they shouted at the driver not to turn the ignition off.. he did.. it wouldnt start till they towed it down the road. A Land Rover specialist moved out of the adjoining industrial unit. ..

benthomas · May 20, 2015

The bloke i sold my last P38 to rang me 3 days later asking if i had ever had immobilizer problems, told him no never, I rang him couple of days later to see how he was getting on and he had identified it was because he lived near a phone mast, he had to buy some sort of Diagnostic reset tool to keep in the car just so he could start it every morning.

gfromleeds · May 20, 2015

I knew domestic WiFi could cause problems but never relised the cell towers were such a big problem

ukadamwest · May 21, 2015

gfromleeds said:
I knew domestic WiFi could cause problems but never relised the cell towers were such a big problem

Oh hell yes.. It's not a Range Rover specific problem either..

Having done a bit research on the matter, it turns out there are some notorious spots in the UK as well, there's one location where the AA regularly recover cars that just die due to signal interuption (apparantly a close by military base is suspected as the source)

Electronic car key fobs fail on Southampton street - BBC News

Phone mast locks up parked cars

P38 - immobiliser - strange one !!

just google phone mast and immobiliser / phone mast car key..

Datatek · May 21, 2015

Needs the RF receiver in the car replacing, not the FOB. Common problem.

AndyCharlie · May 21, 2015

I think im right in saying an updated aftermarket RF Receiver is available but i also believe it to be costly.

Datatek · May 21, 2015

AndyCharlie said:
I think im right in saying an updated aftermarket RF Receiver is available but i also believe it to be costly.

No aftermarket receiver available, Dealer only OEM Mk3 receiver about £250

There is a mod in the P38 section using a second FOB/Receiver combo that disables the car's RF receiver until the second FOB is operated whence the normal FOB can be used to operate the locks. This does not get over the problem of the RF receiver being swamped by spurious signals from WiFi etc but does stop the car battery going flat.

tomcat59alan · May 21, 2015

Datatek said:
No aftermarket receiver available, Dealer only OEM Mk3 receiver about £250
There is a mod in the P38 section using a second FOB/Receiver combo that disables the car's RF receiver until the second FOB is operated whence the normal FOB can be used to operate the locks. This does not get over the problem of the RF receiver being swamped by spurious signals from WiFi etc but does stop the car battery going flat.

Did mod myself some time ago, no problems since. The receiver can be swamped as much as it likes but with the wire to the BECM effectively cut by the second remote switch they have nowhere to go.

AndyCharlie · May 22, 2015

Anyone have a link to the mod please?

tomcat59alan · May 22, 2015

AndyCharlie said:
Anyone have a link to the mod please?

See post Killed my new battery #5 on this page or pm me

gfromleeds · May 22, 2015

Don't I remember numerous threads about disconnecting the receivers aerial

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