Hi all,
I'm in trouble here. The following issues all appear at the same time:
- Steering wheel does not return when ignition is switched off
- Steering is as it should be for the first few seconds after starting, then goes heavy as if the speed-sensitive assistance is told I'm going fast.
- Ignition lock will not turn immediately, I have to wait for a faint click before it will turn
- One-touch window opening non operational (one-touch window closing still works)
- Steering lock fails to engage / disengage with the insertion/removal of key
- Remote central locking "forgets" the key signal. Resets after disconnecting / reconnecting car battery.
- Air suspension will not heed commands. (says "close doors" in display, but all doors already are closed)

All the faults mentioned above occurred at the same time on the same morning a few weeks ago. Since then I have had to disconnect the battery a number of times to get the remote locking working. A couple of times this has also cured the heavy steering, but only for the first trip after the disconnect / reconnect. It always returns to heavy after a stop / start sequence.

I've had diagnosics run and come up with two ECU faults:
P1623-00 Immobiliser code word / identification number write failure
P0501-00 Vehicle speed sensor a range / performance

Particularly, the speed sensor is suspect, since it could explain the heavy steering. The mechanic also noticed a huge error in the ECU-stored mileage. The dash says 78931 miles, whereas the diagnostics came up with - ready for this? - 1,951,113 miles !! No range rover ever rolled that far. After a short trip, he plugged it in again and found it had clocked up another 1200 miles. So, clearly something amiss here.

Anyone out there who've had similar issues? Any suggestions for tests I could do to find out if the sensor really is duff or if I may have a wiring issue?

Thanks!
Henrik

Please don't treat this as a definite answer but I remember reading somewhere that someone else was suffering a number of disparate faults, all starting at roughly the same time. From memory, it was a couple of years between him (or her) having the problems and finding the solution (including visits to dealers). It turned out that replacing his ignition switch solved everything.

I really can't remember his specific faults but I'm reminded of it because, like you, his problems seemed too unrelated to have the same cause even though simultaneous failures suggested otherwise. The ignition switch was possibly his last resort - I wouldn't have thought of it if it was doing its own job - so maybe it would be worth your while (and be inexpensive enough, relative to other options) to start there.

Thanks,
I have seen this suggested before, but I just hate buying and replacing parts without knowing that there's something wrong with them. Also, I have the impression that both the steering column and ignition switch were more problematic on the pre-facelift cars (2006 and back). Thanks for the suggestion though - I will try to find out if the switch can be tested and ruled out somehow.

Henrik

Cracked it!
As implausible as it sounds, all faults were caused by the webasto FBH. I tried to think of what events took place before the faults first occurred, and I could only come up with one: I had replaced the FBH shortly before. The original one was smoking badly and kept going out, so I bought a used one off ebay, overhauled it and installed it in place of the original. It worked perfectly. I did notice that it had been removed from a different vehicle, an X5 I believe, but it did everything it should. Yesterday, after trying most everything else, I dove in and disconnected the cables from it, put the battery back in the car and hey presto! Everything back to normal. The list of things that were affected is long:
- Steering lock failing to engage / disengage
- Steering wheel not retracting after engine shut-off
- Power steering heavy
- One-touch driver's window lift inoperative
- Remote lock/unlock intermittent
- Wipers on timed interval in 1st and 2nd pos on the stalk, slow continuous on 3rd. Correct operation is 1: rain sensor, 2: slow cont., 3: fast cont.
- Battery drain in 2 days
Probably some more I can't think of at the moment.
It doesn't make any sense at all, but it is what it is.
So, if you have odd problems which the dealer fails to diagnose and cure, try disconnecting your FBH before you start throwing parts and money away.

Cheers,
Henrik