DIY for tailgate motor removal
- Thread starter adam123
- Start date
Well ive decided to do one myself hopefully it will help somebody else out.
First off we need to remove the centre trim at the top. I used a plastic knife but a trimming tool would be better I imagine.
Then we need to remove the left hand side panel, this will hang down as it is connected to the passenger side middle pillar, also I recommend just popping off the right hand panel just to help with the head lining.
Once we have the trim removed we need to remove the bracing piece, its held on by 5 12mm bolts and slides right out, note there is 2 cable clips in the piece so a pair of long nose pliers will get these out of the way.
Next remove the black trim that covers the hinge and cables, this then allows you to remove the arm from the hinge. Its only held on with a circlip..
I struggled getting photos of the next few steps as its tight with the head lining. On the right hand side there are 3 10mm bolts holding the unit in place we need to remove these. Then on the left hand side there are 2 12mm bolts holding the unit upto the roof of the car.
Once these have been removed we begin the tricky part of unplugging the cables, there are 3 in total. The small round grey one closest to you, you need to push the tab down on this plug and it will slide straight off. The other 2 plug directly into the ecu and can be unplugged with a bit of fiddling and a long flat headed screw driver. Have patience it can be done (ive done it 4 times now) but youll need even more patience getting them back in!
Picture just to show the plugs you’re looking for
And then after that the unit should pull straight out!
First off we need to remove the centre trim at the top. I used a plastic knife but a trimming tool would be better I imagine.
Then we need to remove the left hand side panel, this will hang down as it is connected to the passenger side middle pillar, also I recommend just popping off the right hand panel just to help with the head lining.
Once we have the trim removed we need to remove the bracing piece, its held on by 5 12mm bolts and slides right out, note there is 2 cable clips in the piece so a pair of long nose pliers will get these out of the way.
Next remove the black trim that covers the hinge and cables, this then allows you to remove the arm from the hinge. Its only held on with a circlip..
I struggled getting photos of the next few steps as its tight with the head lining. On the right hand side there are 3 10mm bolts holding the unit in place we need to remove these. Then on the left hand side there are 2 12mm bolts holding the unit upto the roof of the car.
Once these have been removed we begin the tricky part of unplugging the cables, there are 3 in total. The small round grey one closest to you, you need to push the tab down on this plug and it will slide straight off. The other 2 plug directly into the ecu and can be unplugged with a bit of fiddling and a long flat headed screw driver. Have patience it can be done (ive done it 4 times now) but youll need even more patience getting them back in!
Picture just to show the plugs you’re looking for
And then after that the unit should pull straight out!
freddofrog
won 16.4k on Euro lottery :)
Excellent work and an excellent write up. Well done ! 
wouter
New Member
I finally changed my tailgate motor for a second hand one, which does work .
Sometimes the old unit would open the tailgate and it would always close. But recently it wouldn't even close all the time.
After inspecting the old tailgate motor I noticed it didn't slide up and down as easy as the new (second hand) one. So there's the problem!! Problem solved.
I followed this perfect guide for installation of the new unit. Excellent write-up!!
By the way the unplugging and refitting of the ECU cables was a bit of a nightmare
.Sometimes the old unit would open the tailgate and it would always close. But recently it wouldn't even close all the time.
After inspecting the old tailgate motor I noticed it didn't slide up and down as easy as the new (second hand) one. So there's the problem!! Problem solved.
I followed this perfect guide for installation of the new unit. Excellent write-up!!
By the way the unplugging and refitting of the ECU cables was a bit of a nightmare
woodie
Members
how do we get the pictures please
freddofrog
won 16.4k on Euro lottery :)
Unfortunately a major picture-hosting site that was used by many forums worldwide has "pulled the plug" on free hosting of embedded images, see the discussion here --> http://typeaccord.co.uk/forum/topic/23681-end-of-a-free-ride/woodie said:
You can still get each image above by right-clicking & "open in new tab", then go to the tab, right-click "open in new tab" there, and the picture will be visible in the next tab, where you can right-click and use "save as".