Long time lurker, first time poster. The key fob on my XC90 ran out of battery so I replaced it, but now, it's not working correctly. Can't open doors, and the boot, the only way the car starts is if I place the key fob on the designated area near the cup holders. How can I reprogram the key?

Thanks!

 

A battery replacement does not require "reprogramming the key". It should just work. Is the battery installed correctly? - it will fit upside down.

 

I just had the same thing happen for my 2017 XC90 Key Fob. It will not unlock the car and it will only start the car by putting the fob on the cup holder spot. Yes, I changed the battery and rechecked it was right side up. Hope I don't have to get a dealer involved in this for big bucks?

OK, now I'm editing this post because within 30 minutes of posting the sentences above, I found the solution. I took apart my wife's fob and compared the inside battery compartment with mine. I found that two very small plastic tabs near the two silver side contacts for the battery in the fob compartment were bent and broken off. This was not allowing the two small silver side contacts to contact the rim of the battery as needed. I was able to remove the broken plastic and carefully insert the battery to make sure the side contacts were touching the battery. The battery felt pretty stable in the compartment so I reinstalled the compartment lid and now the fob works like new. I hope. If the battery comes loose in the compartment with use, I'll have to find a way to stabilize it up against the side contacts. Hope this helps someone.

 

Thanks for sharing this - no doubt this will come in handy for me one day - and seeing if there’s a way to prevent that issue.

 

Thank you! This was my exact problem!

 

my fib battery tabs broke also, are you saying there’s a way to insert battery to make it touch contacts correctly, if so does it still work?