J
jonesbones
Just wanted to share how I got my California tailgate open after a minor bump which dislodged the latch strut inside the door. In the end it's a 5 min job and very simple.
Unlike my 09 Transporter the California tailgate has the chair bag, chairs and door card covering the internal latch mechanism. My California also had no hole and rubber bung to give easy access like the transporter. Having reviewed all the forums and Youtube posts it seemed like I was going to have to hack all sorts of things to pieces to get the tailgate open and the latch strut reattached. There are some horror stories out there about what to do which involved trashing all sorts of bits of trim. I did some homework about the shape of the mechanism inside and worked out that if you drill a simple 6mm hole in the tailgate from the inside you can open the latch with a screwdriver in seconds. You don't even need to unzip the chair bag. The photo shows exactly where to drill, 40mm to the right of centre as you look from the inside, and 40mm above the lower edge of the tailgate edge at that point. When you have drilled the hole you can insert a small screwdriver and lift the latch arm inside to release the door. You could probably do this without taking the rear parcel shelf out and the subsequent hole can be covered with a rubber bung.
All T5's look to use the same external latch mechanism, some are powered, some manual but I think this fix will work for both.
I am posting this because it may save another owner hours or days or frustration, unnecessary damage to expensive parts, or a huge bill from a dealer.
Happy to share more details if required.
Unlike my 09 Transporter the California tailgate has the chair bag, chairs and door card covering the internal latch mechanism. My California also had no hole and rubber bung to give easy access like the transporter. Having reviewed all the forums and Youtube posts it seemed like I was going to have to hack all sorts of things to pieces to get the tailgate open and the latch strut reattached. There are some horror stories out there about what to do which involved trashing all sorts of bits of trim. I did some homework about the shape of the mechanism inside and worked out that if you drill a simple 6mm hole in the tailgate from the inside you can open the latch with a screwdriver in seconds. You don't even need to unzip the chair bag. The photo shows exactly where to drill, 40mm to the right of centre as you look from the inside, and 40mm above the lower edge of the tailgate edge at that point. When you have drilled the hole you can insert a small screwdriver and lift the latch arm inside to release the door. You could probably do this without taking the rear parcel shelf out and the subsequent hole can be covered with a rubber bung.
All T5's look to use the same external latch mechanism, some are powered, some manual but I think this fix will work for both.
I am posting this because it may save another owner hours or days or frustration, unnecessary damage to expensive parts, or a huge bill from a dealer.
Happy to share more details if required.
Yes, have heard many horror stories, but this is the first one which stated a confident 5 min job. Awesome work.
