Bootlid not locking

The best way, as Ian suggests, is to use the built in hand-hold to slightly get the bottom corner away from the metal, then insert something like a long tyre lever in and pop the clips one at a time. The thing you really need to be careful of is bending or breaking the edge of the trim - it's only a fibreboard type material and you can't really lever against it.
 
Thanks guys. I've removed the trim without any issues, on checking the lock further it seems it just doesn't want to hook onto the latch in the locked position and stay there. It can be moved manually but doesn't stay in the locked position and the manual pull cord does nothing - I can only summise something has come adrift in the lock so replacement sought asap!
 
Evoman said:
Thanks guys. I've removed the trim without any issues, on checking the lock further it seems it just doesn't want to hook onto the latch in the locked position and stay there. It can be moved manually but doesn't stay in the locked position and the manual pull cord does nothing - I can only summise something has come adrift in the lock so replacement sought asap!
Click to expand...

I don’t actually know about the innards of the A2 boot lock but some hook and hasp mechanisms on appliances use a spring under tension to force the mechanism to be in either open or closed rather than either in between. That coming adrift from a pin would cause the lock to bounce back to unlatched/open.
Just guessing but it sounds muffed mechanically anyway. You should be able to push it from one state to the other unless it was bust. ?
 
Evoman said:
Thanks guys. I've removed the trim without any issues, on checking the lock further it seems it just doesn't want to hook onto the latch in the locked position and stay there. It can be moved manually but doesn't stay in the locked position and the manual pull cord does nothing - I can only summise something has come adrift in the lock so replacement sought asap!
Click to expand...

That's exactly what was happening with mine - I took it off and the bit of broken plastic fell out, all working again...
 
Thanks for the guidance and tips folks, replacement lock ordered from the A2OC forum so should be back to normal with that fitted
 
The plastic cover for the lock is a PITA to remove and re use, had to spray mine with penetrating spray and left it for a day till I could lever it off. I believe new replacement ones aren't too expensive from Audi.
 
So new lock mechanism fitted and no change, the boot lock still doesn't engage...

Will it perhaps be the solenoid? It can be heard doing something when activated with either the key fob or the boot lock and It visibly moves, perhaps not enough to engage the lock though?

Any suggestions?
 
the Solenoid is only used to release the boot from the lock. It plays no part in the locking process.

Try mechanically disconnecting the solenoid arm and (with the boot lid cover off) see if that allows it to close and lock. If the problem remains then the solenoid is not the cause.
Steve B
 
Excellent, so the lock engages immediately with the solenoid disconnected.

Given I can hear it work and see it work I wonder is there a fix possible on these. I suspect it isn't giving the full range of movement for some reason
 
Evoman said:
Excellent, so the lock engages immediately with the solenoid disconnected.

Given I can hear it work and see it work I wonder is there a fix possible on these. I suspect it isn't giving the full range of movement for some reason
Click to expand...
I have had one apart. And sone of the contents will fly around when you open it especially if you push the lever in with the top off. But worth a try. But one other thing to check first is - when you connect the solenoid does it immediately operate? If the switch on the tailgate was jammed on (electrically or even mechanically) that would cause this problem.

Steve B
 
With the rod disconnected from the solenoid the boot lock engages. It seems the solenoid rod is not coming out far enough as it doesn't reach the boot lock mechanism attachment point - around 5mm too short. So when you connect it to the boot lock it has to pull the mechanism up just that fraction which is enough to keep the boot lock in the open position and not lock...
 
Worth noting that there are two different types of solenoid. Both are quite different regarding position and length of rod etc.


Have you had a look to see if the mountings would allow you to move the solenoid closer? If they won’t then perhais a previous owner has fitted the wrong solenoid. (Unlikely but not impossible).

Steve B
 
Birchall said:
Worth noting that there are two different types of solenoid. Both are quite different regarding position and length of rod etc.


Have you had a look to see if the mountings would allow you to move the solenoid closer? If they won’t then perhais a previous owner has fitted the wrong solenoid. (Unlikely but not impossible).

Steve B
Click to expand...

I carefully took the solenoid apart, nothing went flying across the room. Had a little poke to see how it works when all manner of chaos ensued with parts flying around the room. It seems there just isn't enough length in the rod which is weird as it used to work ok. Puzzling. Reassembled with the spring in the wrong direction...
 
I have had this very problem, and also fixed it.
The problem is with the solenoid, not the lock assy
The problem is the motor in the solenoid is worn and failing, it cannot generate enough force to pull the spring properly
Mine would work most times the first time I pressed the button to unlock the boot, and if it caught first time when I shut it it would lock OK, but if it failed to catch the first time, then opening it would result in no chance of the lock catching correctly.
I took the solenoid off the car and applied 12V to it in on the bench, it appeared to work OK, but when I repeated the test it got slower, the more times I operated the solenoid in quick succession the slower it got.
So, I stripped it down, and tried the motor on its own, it appeared to run OK, but after about 20 seconds it started to get rather hot
I did take the motor apart and found the brushes and commutator were almost worn away.
I tried a lot of sources for a replacement motor, but could not find it anywhere.
A2steve to the rescue who provided a used but working replacement solenoid for I think about £7.
I bench ran this and found it was MUCH quicker to operate and would repeat many many times at the same speed
Once fitted to the car, the lock catches 95% of the time first time, and almost always on the second attempt. There is an optimum height to drop the tail gate from which is about 6 to 8", this greatly helps to prevent the bounce

Apologies that I answered your PM with conflicting information, I answered the PM before reading this thread so did not have the context of what was happening and just responded to the fact contained in the PM

Cheers,
 
An update should it prove helpful to anyone.

The replacement boot mechanism came with the metal arm that connects to the solenoid. I was just using that one assuming no difference. It was 5mm shorter!

All operating as normal again ?
 
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