I have really been enjoying my new (to me ) XK8 in what has been an unusually dry and warm British summer, and am gradually working my way through the various small issues I have found. Although both my remote fobs ("blippers") work, they don't seem to work at any great distance so I decided to replace the batteries.
I found 1 x CR2032 in each fob. The handbook specifies 2 x 2016 for each.
Now - 2032 and 2016 are both 3 volts. Both are 20 mm is diameter, and the 2032 is 3.2mm thick, and the 2016 is 1.6mm thick (hence the names !!)
Am I correct in thinking that I SHOULD have 2 x 2016 (in series and a total thickness of 32mm) and therefore 6 volts to operate the fob, rather than the 3 volts (same thickness) I have with the one battery ? I realise that there are different radio frequencies for different parts of the world, but I assume the basic fobs are all the same.
Cheers,
David.

 

Morning David,
I just had the batteries replaced in my remote yesterday at an auto electrical shop, my old batteries were Chinese ones and would not operate the security lock module and were obviously not paired to the car. New maxcell batteries from the shop at £7 cured the fault. However I found 5 x batteries on an auction site for £1.75 ( maxcell ) do a search and bought them, coming Tuesday hopefully with a spare remote I bought as a standby.
I saw an episode of Top Gear a few years ago where Clarkson increased the range of his remote by putting it to his head and activating it, range increase remarkably. Not sure if that was anything to do with the mechanical or electrical gubbins in Clarkson's ridiculously large bonce but it worked.
Just thought I would mention it, I do not however recommend you do this its just something I saw that was featured on the program.

 

Hi David

When I got the car a few months ago I was also disappointed by the range of the fob and its lack of reactivity in general. I then replaced its batteries by 2x2016 as specified in the handbook. Unfortunately it did not really improve the range nor its reactivity.

I have then observed that once the car's battery is fully charged (using my CTEK device), the fob's range increases substantially.

A deep clean of the fob and all its internal contacts - with alcohol or any efficient degreaser - also helped. The reactivity of the fob improved significantly.

You may try this as well.

 

Morning ArtyH. - thanks for the reply. My question is really about whether there should be TWO batteries - and - if my understanding of the way they are fitted is correct - therefore 6 volts to operate the fob, or whether there should be ONE battery and therefore 3 volts. At the moment, I have 1 x 2032 (3 volt) in each fob and they both work, but not as well as I would expect - you have to get quite close to the car for them to operate. Before I start major surgery on the security module or anything equally complicated, I would like to be sure there isn't a very simple solution.
Cheers,
David.

 

All I can say is my fob has two thin batteries so is 6v. I tried other similar batteries which were thicker thinking the same as you, one or two. For me the two thick batteries would not allow the fob to close. My car is a XK8 V reg 1999 model. I would NOT believe going into the security lock module has anything to do with you problem, but I am no expert. Change the batteries FIRST as I was advised to by GGG and if that does not work have a look at this link which members helped me out with advice but note it was for fob not linked to car. Ohh, have you checked the aerial is making good contact in the boot, sometimes thay come loose so I believe?
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...71/#post804685
Good luck and if I can be of any more help just ask.

 

Thanks ArtyH. Yes - I think "Plan A" is to try with 2 x CR2016. I think I'm right in saying that two batteries in series doubles the voltage, and two batteries in parallel doubles the capacity. I also think I'm right in saying that if there are two batteries fitted in the fob, they must be in series. So ........ 1 x "thick" = 3v, and 2 x "thin" = 6v. Logic says that 6v must be better than 3v PROVIDING that the fob is designed for 6v. which, from your reply and others, seems to be the case.
Thanks again.
David.

 

I have just checked mine and I have a single CR2032 battery which works fine and has a range of about 100 yards (without putting it to Jeremy Clarkson's head). However, when I checked my handbook, it does specify a single CR2032 which is, as you state a 3volt battery. Mine is a 2001 model, which may be different from yours.

It may be that the original batteries were replaced by a single battery because that is what is specified for the later model. However, before going down the twin battery route, I would check the output of the single battery to check that it hasn't just lost power. If it is reading a full 3v, you may have identified the problem that it is only getting half the voltage it requires, but if the battery is low, you may harm the unit if it is not designed for the full 6v.

Good luck

 

Thanks Renaultvation ........................... but you "hit the nail" in terms of my concern. My handbook specifies 2 x CR2016 which, when stacked one above the other to make a total thickness of 3.2mm, would be in series and therefore deliver 6 volts. But, start Googling XK8 + keyfob + battery and you get mostly 1 x 2032 - same overall size and thickness, but only 3 volts. Maybe it doesn't matter if it's 3 volts or 6 volts, but would like to be sure before I turn a minor inconvenience into a £zillion module replacement