How to Open, Start and Replace Fob Batteries in Jaguar and Land Rover Vehicles
We now have six videos with help for Jaguar and Land Rover owners
This video describes how not to get into and start a Jaguar Land Rover with a dead key fob battery.
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This is an update of all Jaguar Land Rover models from 2015. A new key fob and door handle featured.
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This video covers newer Jaguar models.
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This one is for 2015 and later vehicles. Land Rover has chosen to hide the key holes.
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Here we replace the battery in a Jaguar Land Rover key fob.
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This video covers the newer key fob, post 2018 (roughly).
Models covered include the Evoque, F-Pace, Velar, Range Rover, Sport, Defender, Discovery, E-Pace, F-Pace, I-Pace, XE, XF, XJ, XP, and F-type.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
On the 
The Smart Key can be undocked with the car in Park and the ignition off. Press the Key to release and pull it out.
Found” is displayed, hold the Smart Key close to and below the auxiliary switch pack to the left of the steering wheel on the dashboard and press the Start / Stop ignition button and the brake pedal as normal. A small depression will be found in the correct location.
If it is adjusted manually, hold the Smart Key fob flat against the underside of the steering column, buttons facing down, as shown. Note the markings, three parallel lines, on the steering column that mark to the correct right spot. The Message Center in your instrument panel will display “Smart Key Recognized”. You will need to hold the key fob in place, and press the Start / Stop ignition button and the brake pedal, all at the same time, to start the vehicle. The electric I-Pace uses these markings as well.
If the steering column adjusts electrically, the process is exactly the same, except that the three parallel lines marking the correct spot are moved to the left side of the steering column. Hold the Smart Key fob against the lines with the buttons facing out, as shown. When the fob is in the right spot, the Message Center in your instrument panel will display “Smart Key Recognized”. Again, the key fob will need to be held in place, and press the Start / Stop ignition button and the brake pedal all at the same time to start the vehicle.
However, Jaguar, beginning with the newest Smart Key in the 2020 XE and the 2021 XF and F-Pace, a new location was introduced. The Smart Key needs to be laid flat against the underside of the dashboard, again below existing switches with the buttons facing out. There is an indent in the dash to help identify the correct spot. The key fob must be help against the while stepping on the brake and pressing the start / stop ignition button.
message to Step on the Brake. Press the brake pedal very, very hard when trying to start the vehicle again to be sure that the release switch behind the pedal is engaged. Or wait a few minutes and try again.
and hold the release button while pulling the key blade from the Smart Key (remote control or ‘clicker’) body. The release button must be pressed as well to return the key blade.
For the second, press and hold the release button on the side of the fob, while lifting the emergency (mechanical) key blade cover from the Smart Key body. Extract the emergency key blade and unfold. On some models, the lock cylinder (keyhole) at the back of the door handle will be visible. If so, use the key blade to unlock the door.
The third version, used by both Jaguar and Land Rover, hides the mechanical or emergency key beneath a chrome cover on one side of the fob. Slide the side cover towards the top of the fob as shown to release and remove it. The mechanical key can then be slipped out the same way and unfolded.
The newest version of the fob is thankfully a simple side button press (arrow, right) and a pull. The mechanical key is the key ring end of the fob. We have seen two instances of mechanical keys missing from key fobs in the previous styles. This will not be an issue with the newest fob.
If the keyhole is not visible, insert the key blade into the slot at the base of the door lock cover located near the back of the driver’s door handle and lift slightly to pry away the lock cover and expose the lock cylinder. The key blade will need to be twisted slightly as well. If you are in the dark, you may need to feel for the slot. Yes, you must pry off a piece of the car. It is uncomfortable but necessary and will uncover the hidden keyhole.
the Style 3 key fob, the process is just slightly different. There is still an access hole or slot beneath the key hole cover. Insert the key blade into the slot and press down on the cover slightly. Gently lever the key blade upwards and rotate the lock cover upwards to release it. And again, yes, you are prying off a piece of the car.
the key fob’s battery is dead or there is interference. The Land Rover Evoque and Jaguar I-Pace now feature the new handle as well. Other models will likely follow.
Once you have exposed the lock cylinder at the rear of the handle, use the mechanical key, which is the same in this model as others built since 2015, to unlock the driver’s door. Again, the alarm sounds until the Smart Key is positioned correctly. To disarm the alarm continue to Starting Instructions in Part II.
Does Your Owner’s Manual Have a Troubleshooting Guide?
How Deep Is Your Owner’s Manual?
We’ve done a couple of owner’s manual rants and got to thinking about where the average driver might look in their respective manual if they ran into trouble, specifically with dead or dying key fobs.
So, we examined a sampling of owner’s manuals from BMW and Mini, Fiat Chrysler, Ford, GM, including Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac, Honda and Acura, Kia and Hyundai, Land Rover and Jaguar, Mazda, Mercedes Benz, Nissan and Infiniti, Subaru, Toyota and Lexus, Volkswagen and Audi and Volvo. And since we are adding this commentary, you can probably guess the results.
To Index or Not to Index
Next, we looked to see if there was an index to resort to. Several, BMW, Land Rover, and Ford, for instance, have no indexes at all. So if someone out there is from these companies, please consider adding that in. On the other hand, the indexes we did find were no help at all with dead key fobs.
The Honda and Acura chapters point to an issue with the key fob being weak. This may not be immediately obvious to the operator, but it would be a likely spot to check out if the car wasn’t responding.
Absolutely none of the other manufacturers point directly to the electronic keys in anything remotely like a troubleshooting chapter. To be clear, they all have the solutions shown, but the driver is left to contend with 400, 500 or 600 pages of information to get to what they need.
So for all of them, walk a mile in your customers shoes and try to think like someone who simply doesn’t understand what is wrong. Then make a Troubleshooting chapter and forget the clever titles like Handling the Unexpected or Volkswagens do it yourself chapter, which is where they keep breakdown assistance.
The closer your cars get to being rolling computers, the more relevant an actual Troubleshooting chapter will be to your customers.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY