[Shai100]

Well I Picked up My XUV way back in Nov 2011 and I think its about time the key fob needs replacement. I checked up with the ASS and they said they will replace the key, It will take a few days time and cost would be upwards of 6K . I always look for alternatives and I came across the key fob top cover on AMAZON. However I also read reviews on Amazon which said the key fob cover when replaced the key stopped working. However since the top cover was available hardly for Rs 300, I decided to buy it and take a chance . So here is the Pic of my old key and the new replacement KEY FOB cover.


Steps to replace the key Fob :
1) Remove the Key back battery Cover. This is press fit will easily open with slight pressure

2) Remove the battery

3)Locate the small Screw and remove the screw using a star screwdriver.


4)Make sure the key is in folded closed condition and then remove the entire PCB . Note the PCB sits on the black portion from where the screw is removed. So once you remove the screw this portion comes out .It takes a while to open it as it is tightly press fitted. Use a small flat screwdriver and work your way on the edges of the key to slowly open the key without damaging the fob.



5) Once It is opened you will now see the Metal portion of the Key. Just lift the entire Metal key and the circular part and place it in the new key fob. You can also increase the tension of the Spring in case your key has lost tension.



6) Now the most important part .. There is a RFID chip in the OEM fob placed in the top right corner of the key. Look at the picture. This RFID chip needs to be removed from the old fob and put inside the new FOB. This is the most important part as this is what links the key to immobilizer of your car. Removing this can be tricky, I slowly cut away the old key fob to reveal the chip and then removed it. Once the chip is out use some feviquick and place it in the new key fob.

7) Also Remove the bottom metallic portion by just lifting it up from the old fob and put it in the new fob.

8)Now insert the PCB and the black portion back inside and press-fit properly

9)Put back the screw and then the Battery

10) Put back the rear cover and your done!!

GENTLEMEN START YOUR ENGINE!!! Hope this was helpful..

[rahul_kej]

Originally Posted by Shai100

Well I Picked up My XUV way back in Nov 2011 and I think its about time the key fob needs replacement. I checked up with the ASS and they said they will replace the key, It will take a few days time and cost would be upwards of 6K . I always look for alternatives and I came across the key fob top cover on AMAZON. However I also read reviews on Amazon which said the key fob cover when replaced the key stopped working. However since the top cover was available hardly for Rs 300, I decided to buy it and take a chance .

Great DIY. On top of this i would even suggest you to use a silicone case for the key which is also available on online sites.

I am using it since almost 2 years and my keys are as good as it was during its early days.

[djpeesh]

Originally Posted by rahul_kej

Great DIY. On top of this i would even suggest you to use a silicone case for the key which is also available on online sites.

I am using it since almost 2 years and my keys are as good as it was during its early days.

I did the same DIY (replacing the top of the key fob with a new one off Amazon) and got a silicon rubber cover. It works perfectly now.






One caveat, it slips on the pocket sometimes but since I have a team bhp Keychain, it doesn't come off.


Also, no need to superglue the transponder (the little chip). It fits in perfectly.

Lastly, don't open and close it too much, I stripped the screw and broke it. But since it's press fit, it's fine.

[GTO]

Thanks for sharing, Shai100! Moving your DIY to an independent thread so that no XUV500 owner misses it.

[shibujp]

Great DIY and much needed too.

The early foldable keys are not durable at all and quickly get torn. I have exactly the same problem with my father's i20. Let me see if I can use the techniques in this post to fix those. Should be pretty much the same.

Drive on,
Shibu.

[peterjim13]

Great DIY.

Mine is from 2012 and I had issues with one of my keys. Now they have got a free replacement for the keys as a part of "Goodwill" gesture.

Surely I am going to get some silicon covers as you have suggested. I am sure that the other key which is now in use may not last for more than an year or some.

Thanks Again

[rajivrt]

Great DIY. Good pictures. Thank you, should be helpful to a lot of people. I have had trouble with my old CRV keys now twice. I live in Noida and found a couple of good key makers in Sector 16 market, who not only stock several type of new casing with blank keys, but they also do a good job in taking out the RFID chip, and cutting the key automatically if required. They do it pretty quickly. Mine was done in 10 minutes flat while I waited, and they did a good job of it. Honda wanted me to replace the lock set for about 48k at the service centre. Costed me 1500/- total with a new casing, new key cut, and the RFID chip extracted and put in place. Here are the photographs of the key:



A couple of years back both my keys to my Nissan Sunny broke within a space of 1 month with normal usage- they just broke in the lock while I was unlocking the car. I took them to Nissan and called their customer care- they just were not willing to even investigate why keys will break in the lock with less than 1 year usage- charged me 5k for replacing the keys.

[arunu]

Nice DIY and thanks for sharing.

I believe only the rubber key pads are also available online and hence if the plastic key fob is not damaged, then replacing only the rubber pads will be sufficient. This way, you wont need to remove the RFID as well.

[vaibhavdalal]

Be careful in taking out the pcb, I almost broke it. If the quality of the part received is not good, it may result in screw not coming together with the new base.

[Rovergen]

Request Help With XUV 500 , I changed the Key fob into the new one purchased from Internet , In the first instance forgot to Put the RFID Chip , tried starting the car it was not working , later realized and reassembled the new Key fob with RFID chip , the car would not start ,
Tried 1 min with only in on position and then cranking ,
Tried switch off and on 5 times ,
Tried disconnecting and connecting the battery ,
Tried with Spare original key but it still would not start ,
the immobilizer light comes on and goes off after 2 seconds , any one has any idea what is happening , ASC says they have to tow the vehicle , but it must be a small thing , trying to save on the flat bed .

Moderator post in the right thread if this is not appropriate thread .

[rajivrt]

Originally Posted by Rovergen

Request Help With XUV 500 , I changed the Key fob into the new one purchased from Internet , In the first instance forgot to Put the RFID Chip , tried starting the car it was not working , later realized and reassembled the new Key fob with RFID chip , the car would not start..........
ASC says they have to tow the vehicle , but it must be a small thing , trying to save on the flat bed .

I hope you have managed to resolve this issue now? Such instances can indeed be painful. In case not yet sorted, I would suggest you let the Mahindra ASS tow the vehicle and replace new keys. They will replace the new keys with new RFID which requires generating a code from their software and then matching both the ECM and the Key RFID codes for the vehicle to start. This cannot be done anywhere except an equipped service centre.

Of course it will set you back by 10-15k, I guess, but in the circumstances this appears to be the best course of action.

You might have damaged the RFID chip, after all it is a fragile little thing or you might not be placing it correctly. These chips emit a very low signal and need to be placed in the right alignment as close to the key hole as possible. But since you are trying the stock master key as well which came with the car, I would guess the vehicle anti theft mechanism has kicked in and can be sorted out by the service centre only.

I live in Noida and have found a couple of experienced key makers in the local market, who do a good job of cutting a new key and extracting and installing the RFID from the old to the new expertly. They can also start the car without the key and its RFID chip- the gentleman opened the lock below the steering in my CRV, and started my stalled car using a screw driver instead of a key when my original key broke. Not sure I would recommend you go find such a person in your city and then experiment further- take it to ASS would be my recommendation.

[Rovergen]

Thanks Rajivrt ,

I had to call the Local ASS, they took rs 400 to erase the error code's and it was back to normal , another mahindra dealer Sirish automobiles was asking for a full key set change and car to be towed to their center .

[RajshreeM]

Originally Posted by Shai100

It takes a while to open it as it is tightly press fitted. Use a small flat screwdriver and work your way on the edges of the key to slowly open the key without damaging the fob

Super DIY! Thank you. I followed it and was successful. Just an addition on this part from my experience.

For keys especially over 5 years old it can be more tricky than this. Aside working around the edges of the key portion, one needs to crank on the other end of the plastic strip (there is a notch provided for the same) in tandem for gradual and eventual success.

Originally Posted by Shai100

Removing this can be tricky, I slowly cut away the old key fob to reveal the chip and then removed it. Once the chip is out use some feviquick and place it in the new key fob

Also, for this part, i found an easier way is to crank with a needle. A needle comfortably goes through the edge gap of the chip, and a small pull brings the chip out smoothly from its bed. Also, the bed is designed to seat the chip perfectly, so no need to apply any gum. It goes smoothly into the new box, and stays put hassle-free!

[PGA]

Originally Posted by Shai100

Well I Picked up My XUV way back in Nov 2011....

GENTLEMEN START YOUR ENGINE!!! Hope this was helpful..

I had been living with a broken fob for my 2012 XUV for last year and a half, thanks to your DIY, just finished replacing the fob. A.S.S were asking for 4k and local lock smith was asking for 1.5k which I felt was much beyond the fair value, thus came in handy your DIY and the job is done to perfection.

Thanks a ton once again.

[inder]

Originally Posted by arunu

Nice DIY and thanks for sharing.

I believe only the rubber key pads are also available online and hence if the plastic key fob is not damaged, then replacing only the rubber pads will be sufficient. This way, you wont need to remove the RFID as well.

Dug up this old thread,as my keypad top button has been damaged.
Where are the rubber pads available online,does anyone know?