Wednesday, October 22, 2008
hatch release suddenly popped and went weak, now the trunk will not open
Question:
My 2001 Explorer XLT back hatch release suddenly popped and went weak, now the trunk will not open. What can I do to open the trunk and fix the broken handle? Already Tried: key doesn't work, the squeeze latch stopped working today and has no tension on it to pull the door mechanism open.
Answer:
Basically the only option that you may have is to try to remove the interior trim piece from inside the truck and then turn the latch with your hand to open the hatch. Most of the time it is not very easy to remove the whole trim piece but I think on the Explorer you can pop the back glass and get in through the top of the trim piece once you pull it over the window latch. This is the way you are going to get to the inside to manipulate the latch in order to open and fix the handle.
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The end result is there is a plastic nut that joins a threaded rod to the handle that is broken. you will need to open the glass window, pry the plastic molding back from the top far enough back so you can grab the cross rod tha actuates the lock and slide it over to open the door. From there you can remove the plastic shroud and repair from the inside. This is not an easy task and this dumb plastic nut is only available from the dealer.
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