Keyless start? Anyone got it working?

[aitch]

My DK will open the car only still (Trophy) and will not start. Are others still having this issue?

 

[cbowen]

My DK will open the car only still (Trophy) and will not start. Are others still having this issue?

Yeh, mines never started the car. Unlocks and locks fine on the DK. When you press start ignition on the app,it says sucibut the car just says now key present and does nothing. It's booked in for Friday for them to look at it.

 

[AdamMGEV]

Yeh, mines never started the car. Unlocks and locks fine on the DK. When you press start ignition on the app,it says sucibut the car just says now key present and does nothing. It's booked in for Friday for them to look at it.

Please can you update when you get an answer because mine does the exact same thing. Mine is a Trophy btw

 

[cbowen]

Please can you update when you get an answer because mine does the exact same thing. Mine is a Trophy btw

Will do

 

[Yorkshire Hillbilly]

Just tried it on my Trophy again:

1. Walked to the car (key still in the house)
2. Opened the App
3. Waited for it to do the scan thing
4. Pressed back
5. Tapped My Profile
6. Tapped Digital Key
7. Waited for it to connect
8. Tapped Unlock
   [car unlocks instantly]
9. Tapped START/STOP
   [app says Success.]
   
   
10. Get in and sit down
    [car chimes and displays Smart Key Not Detected]
    
    
    
    [car chimes again and displays Put Key to Manial-Start Position
    
    

 

[Eber]

[car chimes again and displays Put Key to Manial-Start Position

Place your phone on the bottom of the box in the center console, the one with the lid. There is a key symbol there. Worked for me.

 

[Yorkshire Hillbilly]

Place your phone on the bottom of the box in the center console, the one with the lid. There is a key symbol there. Worked for me.

I'll give it a go and report back... It's a bit daft putting it in there if it's meant to be use for storage. Would have been better having it on the phone shelf, where my phone goes

 

[cbowen]

Place your phone on the bottom of the box in the center console, the one with the lid. There is a key symbol there. Worked for me.

Just tried this and made no difference sadly. When I press the start button, the car pings to say no key present so it’s responding to the command.

 

[Yorkshire Hillbilly]

Just tried this and made no difference sadly. When I press the start button, the car pings to say no key present so it’s responding to the command.

Confirmed, no dice

As above earlier steps but, placing the phone at the bottom of the storage box. Forwards, backwards, every which way possible.
*all within 120 seconds as pre the apps instructions

Car still says Smart Key Not Detected & Put Key to Manial-Start Position

 

[Diggsy]

Just out of interest, have you tried sitting in the car before pressing Keyless Start?

 

[Yorkshire Hillbilly]

Just out of interest, have you tried sitting in the car before pressing Keyless Start?

Confirmed.

I've tried unlocking the car with the remote control function instead of the digital key function then sat down and used the digital key to try and start it. No dice.

I've also used an actual key to unlock the car, popped it in an RFID bag and then tried to start the car with the digital key. No dice.

I've tried using the start function before sitting down, after sitting down. Before I unlock the car, after I unlock the car. Nothing works.

 

[Diggsy]

Hmm, this is definitely an odd one.

 

[siteguru]

Just been and tested my car again:

• Key fob was well away from the car
• I stood next to my car and opened the iSMART app, and let it find the car etc.
• I selected Profile | Digital Key and let the Bluetooth connection complete
• I clicked on the Unlock/Lock icon and the car unlocked
• I got in, sat on the seat, closed the door and saw the Smart Key Not Detected message
• I clicked on the Start/Stop icon and got a Bluetooth connection error
• I did it again and got a success message, but no change on the dash
• I pressed the brake pedal and everything kicked into life
• I drove off my drive, then reversed back on (to test that the car would actually drive)
• Edit: I then got out, shut the door and pressed the Unlock/Lock icon to lock the car

So for me it still works.

 

[Tiny Tim]

So I played with this on my ZS the other day and I couldn't initially get the digital key to start the car. My phone is notoriously good at messing up the bluetooth links, so I just turned the bluetooth off and on again and it worked.

On the whole I think it's a great redundancy feature. If you lose your key or the battery goes, you've got another option to open the car. I have in the past lost all my keys to a car (temporarily) and inquiring about the cost to replace a key for which you don't have an existing copy is.... painful! So having another option is reassuring. Will I use it normally? No, it's a faff!

As a general rule - our cars are just computers with wheels. So the normal rule about fixing computers works here:

1. Reset the car
2. Turn it off and on again
   1. (maybe include locking, walking away, and unlocking in this case)
3. Pull the plug out and plug it in again (10mm spanner in this case)
   1. do this multiple times
   2. Do the same with any apps or keys
   3. Don't forget to sing the song before turning it back on..... (I don't think twinkle twinkle little star will cut it, though - I think something like brothers in arms, extended edition is more like it!!)
   4. leaving it overnight may be worth trying
4. Ring someone up who will talk you through the above 3 steps
5. Get someone out who will go through the above 3 steps
6. Take it to a garage who will take it through the above 3 steps
   1. They may add doing a fresh install of the software if you're lucky
7. Write it off!

 

[Eber]

So having another option is reassuring. Will I use it normally? No, it's a faff!

Although the Digital Key seems to work with my car, I don't really put much trust in the stability of the app and MG's software underpinnings in general.

In the (Tesla) Model 3 I have never used the key(card) once. The Tesla app is brilliant and stable.

 

[Yorkshire Hillbilly]

My phone is notoriously good at messing up the bluetooth link

Mine too, I have a Pixel 7 Pro and a Pixel Watch too.

The phone can't handle more than 2 connected devices so I purposely left my watch inside and made sure the phone wasn't connected to anything.

I turned off Bluetooth and tried to connect the digital key to the car. The app asked if it could turn on Bluetooth, I said yes and it connected straight away. Still doesn't start the car though.

I've done a factory reset on the head unit with no joy.

I pressed the brake pedal and everything kicked into life

I've tried this method too, no dice.

It's booked into the garage in 3 weeks time as the USB C port never worked since I got it, there's a whistling noise at the rear passenger side, the LKA needs an update and the light sensor for the auto headlight is far too zealous. I'll see what they say about the digital key then.

I'd be interested to know if any other Trophy drivers have got it working though.

 

[cbowen]

Mine too, I have a Pixel 7 Pro and a Pixel Watch too.

The phone can't handle more than 2 connected devices so I purposely left my watch inside and made sure the phone wasn't connected to anything.

I turned off Bluetooth and tried to connect the digital key to the car. The app asked if it could turn on Bluetooth, I said yes and it connected straight away. Still doesn't start the car though.

I've done a factory reset on the head unit with no joy.


I've tried this method too, no dice.

It's booked into the garage in 3 weeks time as the USB C port never worked since I got it, there's a whistling noise at the rear passenger side, the LKA needs an update and the light sensor for the auto headlight is far too zealous. I'll see what they say about the digital key then.

I'd be interested to know if any other Trophy drivers have got it working though.

Mines booked in for tomorrow and the digital key is on the list for them to look at. Not sure how when I have my phone on me mind.

 

[siteguru]

The weird bit is ... I have an SE SR, and I thought the digital key was supposed to only be a Trophy feature?

 

[tsedge]

The weird bit is ... I have an SE SR, and I thought the digital key was supposed to only be a Trophy feature?

Yes, it seems a bit random, I think they have two independent code bases and they are not properly synchronised and matched to the features advertised.

 

[Eber]

I'd be interested to know if any other Trophy drivers have got it working though.

Well, it works well here.

If your Digital Key opens the car but doesn't start it I wouldn't say the phone is the problem. If your car is booked in anyway the dealer should have a look at it.