MG4 Factory Default - Smart Key Not Detected

[phil99]

I may have brought this upon myself but I don't know - the timing doesn't quite work. This morning I was trying to set up the iSmart app and found my partner had already half-done it on their phone/account. I thought perhaps a factory default might get it back to "un-bound". That didn't work (I now understand why - binding is to the account and done on MG's server-side) so I drove to work and parked the car up (~0800).

She did eventually find the option to unbind the car in the app, and later (~1030) I went to the car park and must have used the key to start the car (how else could I have done this?) and set up my account/digital key. Tested it out, it worked, job done. Locked the car and went back to work.

When I went to go out at lunch (~1230), I noticed that the keyless entry didn't work so had to use the buttons on the key to unlock, and I got the message "Smart Key Not Detected" when I got in and tried to start the car. I was able to use the iSmart app to start the car at least, and hoped it'd be a glitch. Went to Tesco, charged up at the Podpoint for an hour or so, and when I went to leave got the same issue. Still able to use the digital key to start the car and the buttons lock/unlock the thing.

[edit: putting the key in the alternative starting position doesn’t achieve anything]

What - other than head back to the dealer ASAP - can I do? I haven't been able to try the other key as that's at home and I'm not.

 

[phil99]

Well dang.

Took it to dealer whose tech tried it verified that I wasn’t going crazy and said “looks like a door handle fault not uncommon”.

Got home. Tried the second key, this worked just fine. Dang. Moved the second key far far away and tried my key again.

It worked. Argh.

I’ve now tried it several times and it seems to be working just as it should do. I don’t even….

 

[Ian Key]

Perhaps a new battery in the first key.....

 

[fnegroni]

This exact problem happened to me as well today. But for a complete different reason.

Parked car in an underground car park in London. It was moved by one of their drivers.
They left the key inside the car and left car unlocked. It was a secure car park with security guards guarding a one way entry/exit system

I didn’t know they had left key inside. Shortly before going to collect the car I tried to activate the A/C and the app refused to do it because the key was detected inside.

When I went to collect the car the key’s buttons worked but the key was not detected at all.
Luckily I had configured the Bluetooth key so I managed to start the car.

My understanding from your experience is that if I keep the key away from the car overnight it will be detected again tomorrow.

It’s either a bug or some obscure safety feature to prevent key duplication or such.

Will report back tomorrow.

Unfortunately I don’t have access to the spare key.

 

[fnegroni]

today the smart key works as usual after I unlocked and then locked the car using the Bluetooth key and kept the smart key far away from the car.

After reading other posts from ZS EV owners etc, it seems the car decided to not accept my main smart key anti theft disarming function when unlocking the car, rendering the main smart key useless for starting it.
It requires another key (spare smart key or the Bluetooth key) to unlock the car in order to disarm the anti theft system.
After doing that, the main smart key is accepted again.