Hi Jeff:
Had a similar problem with mine. Could push the button but nothing
happened.
Went through the soft top compartment and unbolted the two trunk hinge
bolts accessible from the compartment (the two that attach to the body,
not the trunklid, one on each hinge). The lid itself popped up about
two inches with an ominous sound. Ominous, because the spring seemed to
want to catapult the trunk lid off the car, but was restrained by the
support prop elbows which are too wide to clear the trunk opening.
Was able to reach in through the newly created opening between the
leading edge of the trunk lid and the car body and work the springs
loose from their rear mountings. That took the pressure off the support
props (page 12, section O of the manual). Then I pushed both suport
prop elbows inward at the same time and the trunk lid came off backwards
hinging on the lock mechanism itself (kind of like an old rumble seat or
a suicide door).
Another alternative after the springs are detached is to unbolt the
support prop from the trunk lid by feel (two bolts each side) and then
'rumble seat' the trunk lid off, being careful of the lock as you do so.
In my case, the problem was caused by an overly full trunk (I was going
on a trip) and the striker plate (item 10, same page as above) got
slightly bent--the thin metal of it's side plates actually began to tear
from the pressure. Once I cleared the lock of possible obstructions, I
reassembled everything except the springs, relocated some of the stuff
from the trunk to the front seat and checked the striker plate angle as
it came down on the latch. Tweaked it a little so it would work and for
the rest of the trip handled the trunk lid like it was made of glass.
Got a replacement striker plate from Smitty after my trip and had HIM
put the springs back in place (grin).
My paint job isn't very good, so I can't speak to the possibilty of
damage to it. If there is, you might want to have words with the person
who closed the trunk lid and caused the problem......
Best Regards
David Sosna
Holt, Jeff wrote:
>
> So I think it is grabbing something that is not the latch, since I
>can push the button, and nothing happens. No release. But if it is wedged in
>something, it is wedged GOOD. The guys that did it said it happens all the
>time to them and that I could just go through the trunk to get it open. Any
>thoughts? How tough is it to wiggle into the trunk from the soft top
>compartment? I don't want to scratch the paint by prying it open.
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