Quick Answer
A 2021 Mercedes G63 AMG's keyless entry system worked everywhere except the owner's villa. Two dealer visits and a new key fob later, the problem persisted. Root cause: a neighbour's afterma
Some problems aren't in the car. They're in the environment.
This G63 owner had a maddening issue: his keyless entry and locking system worked perfectly everywhere — at the office, at the mall, at restaurants — but refused to respond in his own driveway and garage. The car would sit there, unlocked, while he pressed the fob repeatedly. Sometimes it would work after 30 seconds of trying. Sometimes he had to use the physical key blade.
"It's like my car hates my house," he told us.
Two dealer visits produced no answers. A replacement key fob (AED 3,200) didn't fix it. The dealer's last suggestion: "Perhaps there's some construction interference in your area."
They were closer than they knew.
Visit 1: Full vehicle diagnostic — no fault codes. Key fob signal strength tested in dealer workshop: "normal." Dealer conclusion: "No fault found."
Visit 2: New key fob programmed and issued. Cost: AED 3,200. Problem persisted at the villa. Dealer conclusion: "External interference in your area. Nothing we can do from the vehicle side."
Modern keyless entry systems use radio frequency (RF) signals:
The critical point: If external RF noise overwhelms the vehicle's receiver on the same frequency band, the receiver cannot distinguish the fob's signal from the noise. The fob works fine. The receiver works fine. But the communication channel is jammed.
We drove the G63 to the owner's villa and confirmed: keyless entry failed within approximately 20 metres of the property. We then drove 200 metres away — immediate normal function. Returned to the driveway — failure resumed.
This confirmed an environmental RF issue, not a vehicle defect.
Using a handheld spectrum analyser, we scanned the RF environment at the villa.
Findings:
The Mercedes G-Class keyless entry receiver operates on 433.92 MHz — directly within the interference band.
With the owner's permission, we spoke to the neighbour. Recent installation: an aftermarket wireless security camera system with wireless repeaters. The repeaters were broadcasting on an unlicensed frequency band that overlapped with the automotive keyless entry band.
The security cameras had been installed approximately 3 months ago — matching when the G63's problem started.
Two approaches were available:
Option A: Ask the neighbour to change the camera system's operating frequency. This was attempted but the aftermarket system had limited frequency selection — the interference couldn't be fully eliminated through camera settings alone.
Option B: Harden the G63's RF reception against the specific interference source.
What we did:
Cost: AED 900 (RF filter component + antenna work + diagnostic time)
Dubai's RF environment is becoming noisier every year:
When a car problem occurs only in a specific location, the diagnostic approach must extend beyond the vehicle. RF interference, electromagnetic fields from nearby transformers, and even certain building materials can affect vehicle electronic systems.
"No fault found in workshop" is accurate — the fault isn't in the vehicle. But it's not a diagnosis. It's a statement that the workshop didn't investigate the operating environment.
Q: Can RF interference affect other car systems besides keyless entry?
A: Yes. RF interference can affect: tyre pressure monitoring (TPMS), GPS/navigation, Bluetooth connectivity, wireless phone charging, and in extreme cases, radar-based ADAS systems (adaptive cruise control, parking sensors). Keyless entry is most commonly affected because it uses relatively weak signals on commonly interfered-with frequencies.
Q: Is this a security risk? Can someone jam my car's locking intentionally?
A: Yes — intentional RF jamming is a known car crime technique in Dubai. Thieves use inexpensive jammers to prevent your car from locking when you walk away. If your car doesn't lock when you expect it to, verify manually. If this happens repeatedly in public locations (malls, parking lots), report it. The RF filter solution also protects against intentional jamming.
Q: Should I be concerned about relay attacks on my keyless entry?
A: Relay attacks amplify your key fob's signal to unlock your car even when the fob is inside your house. Protection: store your fob in a Faraday pouch (AED 30-50) when at home, or disable the motion sensor in your key fob (possible on most Mercedes models via the fob button sequence). This is a separate concern from RF interference but equally important in Dubai.
Q: Can my home's Wi-Fi interfere with my car's keyless entry?
A: Standard Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) operates on completely different frequencies from keyless entry (315/433 MHz) and should not interfere. However, some aftermarket Wi-Fi repeaters, mesh systems, and smart home hubs emit spurious signals outside their intended bands. Poorly manufactured devices are the usual culprit.
Q: How can I test if there's RF interference at my location?
A: A basic test: if your key fob works at varying distances from a specific location (works fine 50 metres away, intermittent at 20 metres, fails at 5 metres), RF interference is likely. For confirmation, smartphone apps like "RF Analyzer" (with appropriate hardware) or a handheld spectrum analyser (AED 500-2,000) can visualize the RF environment.
Automotive diagnostics usually focus on the vehicle. But modern cars communicate with their environment through RF, GPS, cellular, and Wi-Fi signals. When those environmental channels are compromised, the car's behaviour changes — and no amount of vehicle-side diagnosis will find the cause.
Equipment. Knowledge. Patience. MotorMec's diagnostic approach extends beyond the vehicle when the evidence points outside it. RF analysis, environmental assessment, and creative problem-solving find answers that "no fault found" never will.
No Fix, No Fee. Even for the weird ones.
Reviewed by [Lead Electrical Diagnostics Engineer], MotorMec Dubai. Last updated: February 2026
