I've been trying to find it too. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I noticed the driver side works more often than the passenger side.

 

I cannot say precisely, but go in about 6 inches on either rear corner of the car.

https://youtu.be/mSq7GinPFro

 

From the owner's manual "Sensors are positioned within the outer parts of the rear bumper. The sensors recognize a valid kick below the bumper level and allow automatic opening or closing of the powered tailgate." See attached picture. Also note that "The gesture action is a smooth kick and return motion, not a swipe motion."

 

Its been pretty stable for me, and definitely a great feature to have.

 

The gesture tailgate is the one feature that I can always get to work.
This is how I trained others in the family:
Think of the rear corners of the vehicle as square.
Use a slow kicking motion from the midpoint of the corner toward the center of the vehicle.

 

I literally just tried what you said and it worked 100% of the time after a few tries on each side. Thanks for the tip.

 

I use a kick motion. Foot directly under and back out. No side to side.
I kick directly below the vertical gap between the liftgate and fender. Works every time now.

 

Mine has NEVER worked any time that I have actually had stuff in my hands. It only works later when I try to "test it". And, it never seems to work if the car is asleep (i.e. when you've been away for 10 minutes - like in a store where you come out WITH YOUR HANDS FULL!!!!!!).

 

You guys should make a stink and demand that JLR update the software for that. The sensors are clearly there, they just have to dial in the scope of the gesture. I don't have it but I thought about it and if it functioned correctly it would be great to have. This is something that was promised in promotional materials, you've paid the money for it ... but it sure seems like the functionality is not there.

 

My passenger side is intermittent, but the driver's side in nearly 100% in one kick.
More disturbing is when it closes by itself without the motion, which has happened a few times.

 

So, rather than standing safely behind your car, you should be out in the next lane of traffic over before you "kick"?

 

I will say it again although it would appear to be a bit off from the 'official' position. Very easy to be consistent from the rear of the car:

I use a kick motion. Foot directly under and back out. No side to side.
I kick directly below the vertical gap between the liftgate and fender. Works every time now.

 

That explains it. It's a British car after all. Kick it like a soccer ball (uh, I mean football)! Score every time!!

 

I went to my garage last night and tried 20 straight kicks from standing to the side at the corners and kicking towards the center of the car. It worked the first two times, and NONE of the following 18 ... ?!!!

This morning, with groceries in hand, I tried it 4 times and gave up and pushed the GD button. I firmly believe that the probability of failure is in direct proportion to the number of other people around to watch you do a Lord of the Dance fail in the parking lot. I'm done. I'll use the remote like I have been doing on cars for 20 years.

 

I think I just had a breakthrough ... 10 successes in a row making my kick sensor work!! After months of Python levels of silliness, humiliation and abject failure.

Here's my "method". Stand a foot away and square on to the 8" sections of your car's back end/tail lights that are just outside of the tailgate, but still behind (vs. to the side of) the vehicle ... i.e. to the inside of the corners. Give a small kick that lifts your foot off the ground only a few inches. If I get close to (or worse, touch) the underside of the bumper it fails to work. Kick straight forward, not side to side at all as long as you're standing square to that small section of the car. Kick once, and wait a second for it to work. It's no faster to respond than the radio.

Good luck, chaps!

 

 

Maybe I am just silly to begin with but I find a 45 degree from side single sharp kick gesture works pretty much 100% of the time. But I also have learned to not doing anything else for 2 seconds while I wait.

 

Literally the first day I have ever had it work with handfuls of shopping bags!

 

Ok, I want to DISABLE the freaking kick tailgate sensor. It has only worked two times for me. But it works every freaking time the wind blows and anything; leaves, dust, bad breath, a ghost, moves under the car. I have had the freaking thing re-open on me multiple times just trying to close the tailgate and getting far enough away with my arms full before the wind triggers it to open again. And I have avoided car washes totally out of concern in having the tailgate open while the car is moving through the car wash (nearly every car wash in my area has the driver stay in the car as it moves through the wash).

The absolute worst, and dangerous situation was when I was unloading the cargo area, and was leaning way into the cargo area and the crazy tailgate started closing on top of me!!!!

This is the only thing that I absolutely hate about my FE I-Pace, even the wiring in the windshield is not an issue, the crazily inaccurate GoM mileage display is not a big issue. But having the tailgate randomly open, and then close on me while I am unloading the car is flat out NOT acceptable.

So, my question is how do I permanently kill that function, where can I pull a plug, or can I cover the sensor in thick tape, or something, to kill this "feature" for good?

 

That isn't normal. I would have the dealer look into it.

Otherwise, in a different post, #Ayepace stated it is Fuse 17 in the loadspace fuse box that controls the tailgate.

 

I think the sensors are inside the bumper, so a bit of tape probably won't do anything. A fuse maybe, or complain toy our dealer. I've gotten better and can usually get it to work on the first kick. Straight in and out at about the corner.

 

Sensor pictures?

I took some pictures when I had the rear bumper off, installing the trailer hitch. I guessing the yellowish panel in the picture is the part of the sensor that picks up the key in your pocket. It doesn't use the bumper sensors because the tailgate worked with the bumper off and unplugged from the car. If you crawl under the rear bumper be ready for the tailgate to go up and down! I kick twice under the outside 1/2 of the bottom red reflector. I have to leave my foot under the bumper after the 2nd kick, until the tailgate is fully up or it will stop mid travel. Just like my Ford Focus Electric it never worked when you were carrying something (like a bag of groceries when you needed it to work) that blocked the communication with the key in your pocket.

 

The driver's side works 100% for me, but not for the other sides.
Though the kicking motion has to be proper. I had the Jag sifu showed me the kick-fu because I was failing miserably. Between the 2 driver's side sensors, 1-sec kick fwd + 1-sec pull back back, no pause in between, can't be too slow nor too fast. Works everytime.

 

Kick sensor

Is this kick feature for the i-Pace hatchback on all vehicles, or do you have to have a certain option package or trim level to get it?

 

you need to have bought it [i didn't and i'm unsure whether i'm happy or sad about it]

 

ahhh.. Thanks. I see it was a $100 option on the SE (which seems cheap), standard on the HSE. My SE doesn't have, but does have the $100 cooled glovebox, which seems pretty silly.

 

To make the kick sensors work (90%+), just stand behind the car 1 foot in from either corner. You'll see a place on the outer ends of your rear bumper where the decorative cover bends/kinks slightly forward near the corners of the car - just outside the hatch edges just below the tail lights. Stand at those spots and give a slow "soccer" kick under the bumper under the tail lights - get close, but DON'T touch the car. Then, pause for 1 full second and give the car a chance to "think" about what you just did.

 

Ok...I am beyond frustrated with this "feature" and I wish I did not realize I had it.

I have tried it about 50 times now (and yes I have read EVERY post on this thread, some multiple times)....and I have gotten this foot gesture BS to work maybe 2 times out of the 50 or so times I have tried.

I just cannot get it to reliably work.

 

Ok...I am beyond frustrated with this "feature" and I wish I did not realize I had it.

I have tried it about 50 times now (and yes I have read EVERY post on this thread, some multiple times)....and I have gotten this foot gesture BS to work maybe 2 times out of the 50 or so times I have tried

I just cannot get it to reliably work.

I find it has to be quick on and out. No pausing, no swiping. My driver side works better.