yep, it happened to me... battery draining overnight... help!

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eminenz

eminenz

New Member
Posts
59
Location
London
Hi all,

its been a while, I bought my P38 Bordeaux edition, 2001 2.5 diesel in December 2008, its been all good until 2 weeks ago... my transfer box went... dealer wanted £1100 all inc, got a refurbished one for £350 on ebay, all good bt this was my first major issue with the car. Its only 62k.

Now, for a number of days I have been struggling with the battery draining. Dealer says its the EBCM playing, not sleeping, the central lock on/off overnight (which it does sometimes, even when cruising...) whatever... I am not an expert, have to take his word for granted I guess. Still he tells me that if I drive regularly the battery will be fine.

On Sunday came back from a trip to Paris, Rangie was parked still for 5 days, unlocked the car with the remote no problem, at trying to start the engine, some codes, "engine immobilized"... battery obviously down.

Charged the battery and followed advice from the dealer, leaving the drivers door open so I dont have to put the EKA codes again... put the battery back and all good, no codes needed, try starting the engine... crank the engine for 3, 4 seconds... engine doesnt start... get a code "traction failure".

Upon reading about this "traction failure" realise that it may be down to the battery being down... so I take the battery to Halfords to make sure the battery is OK. It is, 12V and capacity was at 72%.

Get AA to sort me out (better then my dealer getting the car and charging me a load of cash) they test all fuses... all is good, still crankin' the engine, nothing. Then the AA guy tells me it could be that the engine is immobilized (even though I am not getting this message in the dash), to check the FOB battery and eventually do the EKA code insertion procedure again...

It is night now, wont do it but will try new batteries on the FOB and EKA code re-insertion... could it be it?

Is the engine immobilized even though it cranks?

what do you guys think?

thanks very much.
 
it sounds like it out of sync thats where becm not com with ecu only a two min job but you will need the help of testbook or a resync box
 
Could be a bad earth connection....or the battery is not absolutely 100%.....these cars are extremely sensitive to a battery with even the most miniscule problem - it has to be perfect for a P38!!!! The drain was likely due to the RF Transmitter picking up local signals from wireless routers / doorbells / weather stations - there are zillions of threads on it if you do a search.
 
thanks guys,

"it sounds like it out of sync thats where becm not com with ecu ...!

dont understand this mate, can you re-write?

regarding picking up wireless, radio etc... the car has been parked in the same place for 10 months with no problem and now it started... not sure about this causing the problem.

would like to understand this: I can crank the engine but it doesnt start... isnt this the immobiliser cutting of fuel injection because the ecu doesnt recognize the key coding??

what should I do if this is caused by the immobiliser?


thanks guys,
 
only way to get it started is a resync. you can buy a box to do it yourself or get some body out to do it for you. as above it prob your rf box that is at fault you can turn it over till cows come home but it wont start
 
eminenz said:
thanks guys,

"it sounds like it out of sync thats where becm not com with ecu ...!

dont understand this mate, can you re-write?

regarding picking up wireless, radio etc... the car has been parked in the same place for 10 months with no problem and now it started... not sure about this causing the problem.

would like to understand this: I can crank the engine but it doesnt start... isnt this the immobiliser cutting of fuel injection because the ecu doesnt recognize the key coding??

what should I do if this is caused by the immobiliser?


thanks guys,
Click to expand...

hi,just because your car has been parked in the same spot does not mean that someone nearby has not upgraded their internet router or put in a wireless doorbell or something else that can affect your rf transmitter.
 
I can crank the engine but it doesnt start... could it be the immobilizer?

guys, I am not an expert, be patient with me...

resync... resync of what? the BECM? the KEY?

best,
 
eminenz said:
I can crank the engine but it doesnt start... could it be the immobilizer?

guys, I am not an expert, be patient with me...

resync... resync of what? the BECM? the KEY?

best,
Click to expand...

the resync box just resyncs the becm with the engine ecu,this then allows you to start the car,you might have to put in the eka code but there again you might not.
 
A 2001 model will have the latest (for a P38) RF reciever - LR upgraded these to a different frequency to combat interference experienced on older models.
The probable reason it won't start is because of the low voltage the engine ECu has lost its security code from the BeCM. you need someone with TestBook/Autologic or Rovercom to do a reset.
Next you need to find out what's causing the battery drain. There are many ways of doing this and sometimes it takes time P38s have a few electrical issues!!!!
One way, put an ammeter on the battery with the engine running, if your battery is good 14v the BECM should go to sleep after a while and the amps should drop to a few milliamps if not you must find out what is draining it by switching everything off/on etc - good luck
 
Last edited:
go to black box soulitons basic bits and have a look at the resync box. comes out at £130 with vat and p/p. idont agree with yours having a newer type rf i would think it got the mk2 witch is no better than the early rf. easy way to check if yours is waking up lock it go back to it after 20 min or so look at gear shift if red light is on in park poss it is awake, it is hard to see.
 
There is a lot on mysterious draining here Range Rover P38/4.0/4.6 Common Problems and Fixes
Don't overlook the obvious though. The battery might be on its last legs. This time of year does show a lot up.
If the battery has been flattened don't expect the alternator to fully recharge it. They aren't designed to do that (that's from Delco Remy who make them BTW not just my opinion) and repeatedly doing so will shorten the life of the alternator. Use a bttery charger to fully recharge it.
 
Thanks guys, I appreciate your time.

I will give Callrova (distributors for Black Box solutions) a call tomorrow. I am in London they are in Brighton... dont know how much is their mobile call, but if too expensive will get my Land rover dealer to sort car just so it starts and then go visit Callrova... I want this to be PERMANENTLY fixed, its a nightmare, been 4 days without car...
will report back,

best!
 
thanks for your input.

Went through the key resync, EKA code just in case, all good with the remote, key in ignition fine, crank the engine, engine wont start... battery is low, I can feel it.. Called my breakdown assistance to jump the battery, sound of crankin' shows higher voltage now, still nothing happens... AA guy says its definitely the immobiliser.

I had enough of this, tomorrow another expensive call out from the land rover dealer...

My wife is now doing my head, she wants our lifestyle back. F**k, this is not how things should be, a car is supposed to be a car, not a ****in' computer.

thanks again, will report back.
 
eminenz said:
thanks for your input.

Went through the key resync, EKA code just in case, all good with the remote, key in ignition fine, crank the engine, engine wont start... battery is low, I can feel it.. Called my breakdown assistance to jump the battery, sound of crankin' shows higher voltage now, still nothing happens... AA guy says its definitely the immobiliser.

I had enough of this, tomorrow another expensive call out from the land rover dealer...

My wife is now doing my head, she wants our lifestyle back. F**k, this is not how things should be, a car is supposed to be a car, not a ****in' computer.

thanks again, will report back.
Click to expand...

Keep the car, get rid of the wife:lalala::mil36:
 
and Ratae, yes, the battery went flat a couple of times in the last weeks but only since i started having this problem and my land Rover dealer said it is the BECM.

I took the battery to halfords and they said it was fine, operating at 12V and with 78% charge.

I bought a charger and charged it to its full capacity!

I dont think it is the battery.

its like the engine is immobilised, it just wont start.

thanks
 
if you buy a box then you will be able to do it if it goes again. i would take wire off rf it has 2 plugs first has 3 wires, 2 has one thats the one to unplug, lets know how you get on. j
 
The AA man should have read the codes. If it logged P1672 then it is definately the Becm losing sync with the ECM as mentioned before. With this fault it will not start until re-synced with Autologic/Testbook or Black Boxes Becm syncmate, a 2 minute job and if you have full AA coverage they will take your Rangie to a place of your choice for nothing.

The flat battery is most likely due to the Becm waking up and because you are not using the motor its flatterned the battery.

Some say the becm losing sync is all part of the RF receiver issue, some say it has nothing to do with it and its just the P38 spitting the dummy.

Hope you get it sorted.
 
i dont think its the rf that makes it lose sync tis flat bat that is gulty rf will wake up becm. as rg said earlyer in post thats where i would put my money
 
Thanks guys,

tomorrow will get the dealer to get the car sorted... can they bring the laptop/software/black box/whatever with them or will they need to put the car on a truck to dealer's address?

later,
 
ah... they are a franchise Land Rover dealer, official as it can get so they should have all available tools right?
 
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