.... for the time between buying a Range Rover P38 and it having it's first major breakdown?
Well I ignored the advice and after looking into cost of parts, insurance faults, etc I bought a 1997 R reg RR 2.5 DSE last Tuesday, from one of those one mam, work from home traders (this one in Castleford).
He had been using it sine April and it had a new MOT since mid July and I got the price down by £500, looking it over, there was no warning messages showing apart from a "key battery low" now and then on start up (easy fix I thought) BUT it only came with one remote/key.
It also needed the pillar trim panels sorting out, as the "velvet" like trim was coming off (I thought I would sand this off and recover in leatherette).
Well, we travelled the 68 miles back North and everything seemed OK, drove nice, no noises, etc.
Took it to show my parents and borrow his jet was to wash it ... still OK.
Drove it the 2 miles home and parked it on double yellow lines outside the next door neighbours to load some bits and pieces out of our previous car.
......AND THEN IT HAPPENED ...... it would not let me back in with the key fob
.
Thought, maybe the battery ..... changed the battery in the fob BUT it had already had a repair done to it which meant a weak +ve connector, so it snapped of course so changing the battery took longer than the 1 min allowed after soldering the connector back on.
Tried the key again, still nothing ..... read the manual and saw the bit on the EKA code as it had now alarmed itself and set it off if I tried to get in with the key...... looked for it in the documents ......nothing .... BUGGER.
Had to explain to a couple of local police on patrol what was happening so I did not get a ticket...... spent the next day begging a lift from a work colleague to a LR dealer for the EKA code ...... tried this and still nothing.
I remembered someone on here mentioning Durham 4X4 (George Stoker) ad gave them a call ..... they sent a bloke out who linked his system up to the RR and found the BECM was giving some strange info ...... it was saying the car was a French, LHD, Petrol Manual when it is a UK, RHD, Diesel, Auto and watever he tried to get the ECU code into the BECM it would not store/ save it.
Had to get Recovery to take the RR to Durham 4x4 who called me a couple of days later to say, YES it was the BECM that was knackered and needs a replacement. George has put me onto a supplier for this (used) to replace the BECM, locks and key/remote and once it has got to him they will fit it.
SO, once you all stop laughing and the "I told you so's" is this a new record ..... 4 hours from buying a RR P38 to it having it's first major breakdown??
By the way, those of you that recommended Durham 4x4, you are definately right, I asked George how much I owed for the work up to now and was very relieved at what he said.
Well I ignored the advice and after looking into cost of parts, insurance faults, etc I bought a 1997 R reg RR 2.5 DSE last Tuesday, from one of those one mam, work from home traders (this one in Castleford).
He had been using it sine April and it had a new MOT since mid July and I got the price down by £500, looking it over, there was no warning messages showing apart from a "key battery low" now and then on start up (easy fix I thought) BUT it only came with one remote/key.
It also needed the pillar trim panels sorting out, as the "velvet" like trim was coming off (I thought I would sand this off and recover in leatherette).
Well, we travelled the 68 miles back North and everything seemed OK, drove nice, no noises, etc.
Took it to show my parents and borrow his jet was to wash it ... still OK.
Drove it the 2 miles home and parked it on double yellow lines outside the next door neighbours to load some bits and pieces out of our previous car.
......AND THEN IT HAPPENED ...... it would not let me back in with the key fob
.Thought, maybe the battery ..... changed the battery in the fob BUT it had already had a repair done to it which meant a weak +ve connector, so it snapped of course
so changing the battery took longer than the 1 min allowed after soldering the connector back on.Tried the key again, still nothing ..... read the manual and saw the bit on the EKA code as it had now alarmed itself and set it off if I tried to get in with the key...... looked for it in the documents ......nothing .... BUGGER.
Had to explain to a couple of local police on patrol what was happening so I did not get a ticket...... spent the next day begging a lift from a work colleague to a LR dealer for the EKA code ...... tried this and still nothing.
I remembered someone on here mentioning Durham 4X4 (George Stoker) ad gave them a call ..... they sent a bloke out who linked his system up to the RR and found the BECM was giving some strange info ...... it was saying the car was a French, LHD, Petrol Manual when it is a UK, RHD, Diesel, Auto
and watever he tried to get the ECU code into the BECM it would not store/ save it. Had to get Recovery to take the RR to Durham 4x4 who called me a couple of days later to say, YES it was the BECM that was knackered and needs a replacement. George has put me onto a supplier for this (used) to replace the BECM, locks and key/remote and once it has got to him they will fit it.
SO, once you all stop laughing and the "I told you so's" is this a new record ..... 4 hours from buying a RR P38 to it having it's first major breakdown??
By the way, those of you that recommended Durham 4x4, you are definately right, I asked George how much I owed for the work up to now and was very relieved at what he said.
