James,
Sounds like it's time for a new rear spring to me!
What exactly is the issue with the boot lock? The boot is locked and the
key will not turn to unlock it? Or the key will unlock the lock, but the
knob then won't rotate to operate the latch?
If it's the key not operating the lock, a locksmith should be able to
release it for you (for a fee).
If you can lever the knob up by any significant amount, you may then be able
to rotate it with brute force. The knob sits within a collar, and the
collar is prevented from rotating by two bits sticking out, which locate
into two cut-outs in the hole in the bootlid through which it all passes -
i.e. the collar and the hole both look a bit like a Nissan logo:
___
_/ \_
|_ _|
\___/
... well, something like that! Anyway, the tabs on the collar don't go down
very far, so if you can force the collar up (which will involve a
screwdriver between the rim of the collar and the bootlid, thus spoiling the
paint just there) you might be able to force the knob round. Check out
http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/spitfire/images/157a.gif for a layout of
everything - you can just about see the tab at the top of the lock collar.
The only other thing I can think of is removing the rear cockpit panel, the
fuel tank, then the boot panel, and crawling through that way. But I don't
think you want to do that!
Ah, just thought of a hitch. All the tools you might want to use to do this
job are stuck in your boot...
Good luck!
Richard
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