rtralabama

so i lost the keys to one of the parts XJs I got and I cant remember the mileage on it. Anyway to figure it out without a key? Other than tearing apart the ignition?

black label

You might be able to get a key cut from the vin. It should be very inexpensive as it doesn't need to be coded to start, it just has to turn the ignition (I the XJ was new enough to have a chip in it).

A cut key for my 93 is less than $3 at the hardware store.

nowhereman98

Pull the gauge cluster and put it in another XJ. The clusters store the mileage.

Big David

Is there a oil change sticker on the windshield? It might be close.

hbracing13

Either swap gauges with another one or jump pins in the back two are ground two other are gauge light power and the other is for the IC chip. That the easier and cheapest.

rtralabama

i was taking the key to go get a spare made and i doubt it has a chip. my 2000 aint got one. idk if they ever chipped XJ keys.

rtralabama

guess thats what im probably gonna have to do. thanks

rtralabama

unfortunately there aint. simple stuff like that gets over looked sometimes though lol thanks

Kalali

They did. As far as I know all 2000 XJ (black) keys had an internal security coded chip. At least that's was is written in my owners manual.

rtralabama

hmmm.. ive gotten keys made for like $3 and they worked are turning over the engine. idk, maybe some do and some dont. Ill probably just connect the gauge cluster to another XJ

Rockfrog

SKIM keys are grey and thick, the thin black ones are not chipped. My 00 has the thin black Keys and no chip.

dmill89

^This, the SKIM keys look like the pic below:

black label

Do you know how the skim key works on jeeps? On a honda it just keeps the engine from starting but you could still get power to the gauges with a properly cut non chipped key.

Rockfrog

The jeep works similar, but the SKIM will hard code the ecm if the vehicle is started. Have yet to find hard data on what actual parameter causes it to lock up the ecm though ... some will lock immediately, some after so many attempts, some after running for 1-2 minutes (guessing there were module program changes through the years).
Meaning the ecm needs replacement, or dealership refresh.

The previous poster and I were pointing out the difference between the two types of key systems.

salad

IIRC the Jeep SKIM doesn't lock out.

The PCM is programmed to talk to the SKIM, and the SKIM is programmed for the signature of only a couple keys. SKIM uses a near-field RF to read the key and passes an "ok" message to the PCM. Without an authenticated message the SKIN-enabled PCMs shut down the go parts. So yes a chip key is not required just to boot the cluster.