Key Tag (activity key) battery

[AndyN]

Hi all

I got one of the key tags / activity keys with my 2020 motor.

This is a very practical key being so much smaller but knowing the battery is officially not replaceable and unofficially it's not the simplest process.
I don't trust the nearly 3 year old key to not hang me out to dry one time with no emergency key to open the doors.

My question is does the car tell you the battery is getting low? I have looked in the manual and it says there is a battery low warning so I should be good to go. I was just wondering if anyone had actually seen the battery low warning.

[ropetko]

Hi all

I got one of the key tags / activity keys with my 2020 motor.

This is a very practical key being so much smaller but knowing the battery is officially not replaceable and unofficially it's not the simplest process.
I don't trust the nearly 3 year old key to not hang me out to dry one time with no emergency key to open the doors.

My question is does the car tell you the battery is getting low? I have looked in the manual and it says there is a battery low warning so I should be good to go. I was just wondering if anyone had actually seen the battery low warning.

Hi Andy!
Yes, I've seen that message couple of times, although I may say it is not always accurate and you might find yourself being not able to enter your car without prior warning. Still it sucks that Volvo couldn't provide us a chargeable keyfob, which could be charge either on a wireless phone charger or on some predefined place (like BMW has for their buttonless key fobs).
Someone already mentioned to me that one of the first signs of a low battery is not being able to open the tailgate with a foot movement, which happened to me days before I saw the "Key Battery Low" message.

Hope this hepls

[AndyN]

Thanks for the reply and info.

I don't think I can trust this key but I'm not willing to pay the extortionate price Volvo want for a replacement. So I'm goung to buy the replacement battery and crack it open and solder a new one in it.
Sure I may bugger the key but I'm not going to use it anyway. The correct battery is a
CR2032-PCN2.

Pretty sure I have seen a post on this forum about it. The battery is less than a fiver so it's worth a go.

I know it won't be waterproof after but a want it for the size rather than the specification.

[NitramA]

Have a look here viewtopic.php?t=3261

It’s easy enough if you’re careful and my view is you’ve got nothing to lose

[AndyN]

Have a look here viewtopic.php?t=3261

It’s easy enough if you’re careful and my view is you’ve got nothing to lose

Perfect, thanks for the link and making the post in the first place.Top work.

Yes I will definitely give that a go in the next few weeks.

[eugen61]

[AndyN]

Job done

New battery installed. Was definitely a bit of a pain to get apart.

I have it taped together at the moment but am thinking about a few drops of superglue to hold it so it's easy to open again then I may run a bead of clear or if I can find some Black silicone around the edge to fill out the hollow and will make it a little more dust proof than it is currently.

It works a treat I just need to trust it enough to have this as my only key when I'm out.

[eugen61]

Great job Andy! Does the Key Tag still work for opening the boot with foot-kick movement?

[AndyN]

Great job Andy! Does the Key Tag still work for opening the boot with foot-kick movement?

I have just been out to check, yes it does work with the foot gesture and all 4 doors.

Happy days, much more convenient to carry around than the big leather key, my wife can keep that one.

[eugen61]

Great job Andy! Does the Key Tag still work for opening the boot with foot-kick movement?

I have just been out to check, yes it does work with the foot gesture and all 4 doors.

Happy days, much more convenient to carry around than the big leather key, my wife can keep that one.

Thanks for sharing, it’s very encouraging for those wanting to try this at home.