Hey guys. I'm new to all this forum stuff.
I just picked up a 96 XH XR6 duel fuel with 8 months rego for $500
Not without its problems though. I have tried searching, but haven't found any answers..

1: Electric mirrors don't work. Checked all fuses, pulled door skins off and made sure wiring is in tact and cleaned connections. still nothing?
*Any ideas on where else to look? or what to do?

2: Doors wont lock or unlock electrically. Didn't come with keyfob. But when using the key the locks cycle twice and then go straight back to the unlocked position. with no battery the locks work fine, but as soon as it has power it stuffs around.
*Simple actuator failure?? Replace them, buy key fob and program to BCM or?

3: Fuel gauge gives incorrect reading. I bought it with next to no petrol in it. fuel light was on and gauge read empty. Went and put 10 dollars in it. (about 8.5 L) and it reads nearly full?
*Is this a faulty sender unit or is it in the gauge itself? how can I test to make sure?

4:Cruise control will turn on and display Cruise light on dash, but will not activate and set speed.
Haven't looked into this at all.
*A few posts in other forums said to take buttons apart and clean them, how do I go about that? What else do people recommend?

5: Brake fluid leak from what looks like a pressure or fluid level switch/sensor on side of brake fluid reservoir.
*Cannot tell if its coming from the thread or out the white plastic looking stuff on the end. anyone else encountered this and knows of a fix? thread tape? replace switch?

6: Drivers door drops when opened. no signs of the usual body panel crack/tear.
*Would it be worn door pins in the hinges? can you replace them? If I take the hinges off the body. will the plate that the bolts screw into stay there? or just fall down leaving me to drive round without a drivers door? ;p

Also. will a normal EF/EL Gregory's manual provide Me with correct XH details? or is there a specific one covering it?

Cheers everyone. Any help will be much appreciated!

A bit of a list! Here's a couple possibilities to get you started.

Mirrors: Use an multi-meter to check that voltage is getting to the switch and mirror (with the button pressed) to isolate the cause.

Locks cycling is a common EF/EL problem, caused by a tired lock motor. One will be slower than the other, so one will register as unlocked as the other is trying to lock, and it automatically unlocks again. The proper solution is to put the appropriate resistor on the faster one to slow it down to match the slower one (beyond my skill set, so I let an auto sparky do it). As a stop-gap, you can unplug the passenger lock, and it should stop cycling. Could also be a lock motor unit out of adjustment, causing it to hit the end of its travel and unlock again.

Brake fluid leak: That's the brake pressure switch. It is used only by the cruise control (as a backup to the brake pedal switch) to disengage the cruise control when braking. It could be leaking through the core of the sensor, rather than the threads, and would need replacing. Spray with brake/parts cleaner spray and press the brake pedal to see where the leak is.

Cruise control: Does the "Cruise SET" light go on? Or just "Cruise"? If the Set light goes on, is the cable to the throttle body functioning properly? If the brake pressure switch on the master cylinder has failed, the cruise control unit could be seeing the "brakes depressed" all the time, so would never be able to engage. Considering the leak, I would replace the switch anyway. Other causes could be: a bad connection to the speed sensor input (so "not going fast enough" to engage), faulty brake pedal switch (if brake lights work, it's OK), faulty clutch pedal switch (if manual). If it's an auto trans, the clutch pedal switch doesn't exist (obviously), so the connector in the wiring harness (under the dash above the steering column) has a bridging plug to tell the control unit that "the clutch is engaged" all the time. This plug could be missing; shorting the connector with a piece of wire works just fine.

Thank you, bit of a list but the way I see it. $500 for the car and a couple hundred on the small things would see an alright hyway car and a little bit of a project.

The cruise light comes on but the "Cruise SET" doesn't. I'll be replacing the switch asap. An see what goes on.

As for the door locks. Can the actuators be unplugged and removed without setting off all the smart lock nonsense? - I'm just going to put aftermarket central locking in if possible.

Cheers again!

unplug your passenger central locking actuator, if it doesnt do it that actuator is jammed or stuffed, as for the door hinge as far as i know the bushes can be replaced fixing the door drop problem, also thats why x series door handles break!! people yank on the door to open it which breaks the handle and they replace it instead of the hinge bushes. id say ebay sell them and possibly rare spares?

Brilliant,
I found some hinge pins on ebay. so I'll get them.

I had a play with the mirrors and found some faulty connections. got the right one working properly but the left one is stuffed. It works but as soon as you let go of the direction switch, it just returns, I pulled it down and found that someone has glued it back together. will have to be a Upullit job.

lock actuators are stuffed. will just be buying the new revised design ones from ebay.

*Question- do the XH/EF keys have the transponder in them? or can I safely change both locks and the ignition key barrel? I only got one key and its proper worn. so are the locks/I had to take them apart and file some edges down.

Thanks again boys!

if it has smartLock warning light on dash no chip