V70 Body/Trim: Tailgate wont open

[Patdelamare]

My tailgate continues to work, so tomorrow I will be replacing the fascia.

Bending the rod has worked,

I don't know what advice I can offer in tracking this recurrent problem down.

As the first step is to get the door open I have now painted a reflective marker on the lock next to the spoon (release switch) When I now shine a light into the tailgate between the panel and the door the spoon is now clearly seen in the deep dark hole and I can direct the long screwdriver directly to the spoon..(I hope not to do this again, Read ON)......

I think you should check the lock First, if the actuator is locked fully extended I would look directly at the lock and the metal bars that open the door.

I failed to do this and moved onto the Fuses then the relays followed by the wiring loom.

All I feel need to be checked, but only after checking the lock.

As noted in other threads the operations carried out to stop excess travel with the aid of a cable tie THIS works fine the lubrication of the gears within the actuator is a must if the lock is out you must lubricate it not just ignor it and put it back.

The other quick fix of placing a thin shim under the motor if excess movement between motor and actuator gear is present, this also works but I must say never force it in as you can bend the metal arm as it comes out of the motor.

I am glad to see the back of this problem, I will close by telling you what my Volvo dealership said to me!!!!!

"Drop your car off and we will do what we can to get the rear door open it will take about two hours and we will replace the lock as we find them to be the problem most of the time"

If we find other problems we may need to replace parts of the loom as we normally find breaks in the wiring at the junction of the rear door and door hinge, this is an easy replacement however its not cheep.........

This fix cost me nothing but time and the skin off the back of my left hand.

Thanks to everyone for your help and the comments, The initial thread was fantastic the contents and photographs helped me no end, I will never have to release the lock again from the top of the door with a long screwdriver.

I have used a hole cutter to remove a 32mm hole in the fascia directly opposite the manual release spoon!

I done this with the aid of a LASER LEVEL. with the fascia off I set the laser level up pointing directly at the spoon, I then replaced the fascia and with the laser still in position I marked the fascia with a marker and then punched out a large bore hole and secured it back in place with masking tape on its rear. I cannot see the hole punched in the fascia from the drivers seat but I know its there and will use it as and when.

Thanks......

[nigelcarter]

Many thanks for your post. I have put up with a non-functioning boot-lock for more than two years now. Quote from my local Volvo dealer (Carlow, Ireland) to remedy was €350 + VAT. I followed your instructions and found that it was a dried out mechanism. A few squirts of WD40, liberal application of grease and it's now working a treat - although to be sure I won't bother locking it in future - with the price of petrol who would be mad enough to nick it?

Again, many thanks.

[jogler]

I too have a tail lid with a lock that will not open.
Having read this post I have tried,from inside the loadspace,to pull the trim panel away from the door.I can get the panel to move away from the rear windscreen only a short distance ( not enough to see down inside to locate & move the spoon) before it threatens to break the plastic trim around the fabric covered panel.
How far have you successfull DIYers had to pull the panel away from the rear windscreen & have you avoided cracking the surrounding plastic trim?

[Jameshow]

About 3 inches put a shoe or something to hold open the gap while you prod for the "spoon" which is quite hard to find the first time.
From inside the car, its a little way to the left of the solenoid.
yours James

[sylvain bourgeois]

I do everything who was writting on your notes and now my tailgate work.

tanks a lot

Originally Posted by Symes

I thought it might be good to ‘celebrate’ my 100th post by putting together a quick ‘how to’ which will might help if / when your tailgate refuses to open! This problem generally is either down to the wiring loom failing where it flexes at the hinge, or the lock itself – however there are also fuses and relays which should be checked before you start taking your car apart!

Assuming the initial checks point to wiring or lock, you’ll need to open the tailgate to remove the trim.

Before you can repair the lock or wiring, there’s a bit of a struggle involved to reach the mechanism.

Lower the rear seat(s) and climb into the loadspace, then carefully ease the top of the rear tailgate trim away from the frame. <IMG SRC="tailgate.jpg"><img src="trim removal.jpg">

Take care as you don’t want to split the plastic.
Once you have created a gap you can look down into the tailgate interior and see the lock, using a long screwdriver, or similar, press down on the ‘spoon’ as shown. <IMG SRC="tailgate interior.jpg"><img src="spoon.jpg">


The lock will disengage allowing you to carefully remove the trim.

Remove the trim around the hinge and inspect the loom which may show signs of wear and tear – repairs will be much cheaper than replacing the section of loom – as long as you ‘re handy with a soldering iron and heatshrink! If like me, you’re lucky the only damage will be some breakage to the insulation – I took a short cut and just used insulation tape to make each cracked wire safe.

To remove the lock itself:

Disengage the arm connecting the exterior handle to the lock, remove the electrical connections and unbolt the lock itself.

Once removed it was easy to see what had occurred – the solenoid had over extended, pushing the actuator arm past it’s normal position so it ‘misses’ the ‘spoon’.<IMG SRC="actuator.jpg"><img src="lock assembly.jpg>

Closer inspection of the solenoid showed that the sliding pin was ‘dry’ and showed signs of binding.
<IMG SRC="solenoid.jpg"><img src="solenoid2.jpg>

I decided to break down the solenoid further, the unit is secured with lugs which can be opened with a small screwdriver.
<IMG SRC="solenoid3.jpg">


The internal screw and cog mechanisms were greased, but the sliding pin had no lubrication where it contacts the housing.
<IMG SRC="solenoid4.jpg"><img src="solenid5.jpg>

Nothing ventured, nothing gained, so I cleaned up the pin and filled the grooves with vaseline before reassembling the solenoid into the lock mechanism.
<IMG SRC="solenoid6.jpg">

Refit the lock into the tailgate and reconnect the wiring loom, do not fit the trim until you are happy that the lock is operating reliably!

It's been 6 months since I repaired my V70 tailgate lock and so far the mechanism has operated flawlessly.

[volfan]

Very interesting post on solving the problem. However I'm stymied by not being able to access the top of the tailgate trim, in order to operate the 'spoon' to release the mechanism. My trim has a black plastic molding which traps the top of it, and also covers the wiper motor assembly. How can I get this off without breaking it? It seems pretty flimsy.

[Symes]

Hi Volfan,

I'm guessing that you have a later 'Phase3'??

The models I've worked on don't have a black plastic trim... the carpeting continues to the 'edge' which is nex to the glass - it's been easy to slide a flat bar down to ease the trim away.

I doubt that the fitment is much different on yours, it will just be a matter of gently prying in various areas until you see some movement... you might find that the mechanism itself differs to the ones I've posted about too - so be prepared to experiment!

[volfan]

Hi Symes - Thankyou for the reply.
I think I might have been under the impression that the plastic trim should release upwards, instead of away from the glass. I'll have another go!

[volfan]

Hi again - Ive solved the mystery of the plastic trim on the rear tailgate. I found that one has to slide back (towards the inside of the car) the small seperate top section that covers the wiper motor arm pivot. The top edge of the trim is them released by pushing downwards which allows 4 clips to slide out of captive slots. The main trim panel which is fastened to the plastic section, is then easily pulled back to allow access to the lock mechanism. Mine is different from the one shown, but it was a simple matter to push a quadrant shaped level over to the right, and hey presto - the tailgate unlocked. The only problem I could find without dismantling further was a loose bolt at the bottom of the mechanism which presumably helps secure it to the tailgate frame. I tightened this up, and applied a little silicon grease to the moving parts. It all now appears to work OK. I'm just wondering whether it's worth making a small mod to the main trim panel to create a small covered access point in case this problem re-occurs. Anyway, I hope this info might be of use to anyone with the same trim arrangement on their V70.

[Symes]

Thanks for the update!

If at all possible, could you take a few photos of your trim, wiper motor and lock, and post them up so that we can see the differences??