Parking Aid / Sensors not working

[mwsmith29]

Hi.
I have recently purchased a 2016 Jaguar XE prestige. It is an ex lease car without warranty and have a few problems to sort out.
The parking sensors do actuate for a fraction of a second when first selected but then a message appears on the screen that says. Parking Aid is unavailable contact your dealer and the switch on the L/H side of the screen flashes. I do not get a high pitched warning that I believe indicates a fault with one of the sensors.
This appears to be common fault with these cars. Any help would be appreciated.

[mike020150]

As with all electrical issues, start with the simple stuff. Get out your handbook and check that no fuses have blown. Next, examine each of the bumper sensors. Have the bumpers been painted? If so, it's possible excessive paint thickness or incorrect alignment may be affecting sensor performance. If the system is not operational at all, it may be necessary to have the car scanned to identify a sensor, module or wiring fault. Mike.

[mwsmith29]

Finally I can report back on this. I do try to rectify faults myself but got somewhat side tracked by other faults on this car and my XJS.

Searching through other forums for Jaguar XE and Range Rover Evoque which has a similar system. People reported that wiring harnesses were breaking and were replaced to correct the fault.
I scanned the car with a Foxwell NT510 tool and it correctly identified a faulty ABS sensor (one of my other problems) and also it gave me a u3000-63 fault code, I referenced this to an online XE manual. "Parking assist control module internal circuit protection routine has deactivated the module following detection of repeated parking aid sensor short circuit faults".

As I was not able to pin point the fault to a specific sensor I got under the car to check further. After removing a rear right hand underside protector cover I found a wiring harness that had all its six leads fractured close to its connector and two leads were actually shorted together.
I started to remove the harness but it proved difficult so I decided to repair in-situ. I separated the harness connector and carefully soldered new wire lengths on away from the car and used heat-shrink to provide insulation. I then cut back the original harness far enough so it was free of damage and chaffing and reconnected to the new leads, again using soldered joints and heat-shrink.
I reconnected the plug and checked the system. Amazingly it worked !
The repaired harness was minimum two inches longer than original. I added more insulation tape and I re-routed it so it was clear of metal edges and not under strain before putting the cover back on

[mike020150]

With modern cars being DIY unfriendly, that must have been a satisfying repair. Mike.

[jeff1954]

Great result. You've saved yourself £££££.s Imagine what a main dealer or any competent garage would nave charged.