How to open trunk using the valet key.

[XFireXLR]

A friend of mine owns a 2008 Platinum Edition XLR over the weekend we had a 3 day cold snap....temps dropped to zero. Needless to say his battery is dead. He tried to open the trunk using the bumper valet key to no avail. The owners manual is a bit vague on how to do this. Should the trunk just pop open when the key is inserted and turned, do you turn it to the left or the right? I myself have never used this function, and will also learn something. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[xlrlist01]

A friend of mine owns a 2008 Platinum Edition XLR over the weekend we had a 3 day cold snap....temps dropped to zero. Needless to say his battery is dead. He tried to open the trunk using the bumper valet key to no avail. The owners manual is a bit vague on how to do this. Should the trunk just pop open when the key is inserted and turned, do you turn it to the left or the right? I myself have never used this function, and will also learn something. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

It is a while since I did this. IIRC the top of the key turns to the left, but I'm only about 55% sure! It turns against a modest resistance, certainly not a stiff one. It is possible to break the release mechanism if you heave too hard, others have done that and then there is going to be a lot of trouble getting in.

With power, the trunk deck lid will open using the pump hydraulics to lift it to fully open.
Without power, the lid should pop but it won't lift. You will need to lift the lid slowly by hand, against the hydraulics. Once you have lifted far enough, you can get to the pump and open the valve to release the hydraulics and then it is easier. However, you probably don't need to do that, just open the door and release the hood (you know how to do that right?). You might maybe need to help the deck lid to lift as you turn the key, it can also help to push down on the lid as you actually turn the key and then lift by hand once the key has turned. If possible do this on a warmer day, the colder the hydraulic fluid the harder it will be to force past the mechanisms. Sequence: Put key in lock, push down on deck lid, while pushing down - turn key, while holding key fully turned (I don't recall it as being as far as 90 degrees, about 40 degrees IIRC) - lift lid.

The better solution is to try to open the driver's door in the usual way, there might be enough power left if the battery is able to get a bit warmer?

 

[XFireXLR]

It is a while since I did this. IIRC the top of the key turns to the left, but I'm only about 55% sure! It turns against a modest resistance, certainly not a stiff one. It is possible to break the release mechanism if you heave too hard, others have done that and then there is going to be a lot of trouble getting in.

With power, the trunk deck lid will open using the pump hydraulics to lift it to fully open.
Without power, the lid should pop but it won't lift. You will need to lift the lid slowly by hand, against the hydraulics. Once you have lifted far enough, you can get to the pump and open the valve to release the hydraulics and then it is easier. However, you probably don't need to do that, just open the door and release the hood (you know how to do that right?). You might maybe need to help the deck lid to lift as you turn the key, it can also help to push down on the lid as you actually turn the key and then lift by hand once the key has turned. If possible do this on a warmer day, the colder the hydraulic fluid the harder it will be to force past the mechanisms. Sequence: Put key in lock, push down on deck lid, while pushing down - turn key, while holding key fully turned (I don't recall it as being as far as 90 degrees, about 40 degrees IIRC) - lift lid.

The better solution is to try to open the driver's door in the usual way, there might be enough power left if the battery is able to get a bit warmer?

Thanks for the speedy response.....please forgive my ignorance but what does IIRC mean? Tomorrow will be a much warmer day (50 degrees vs 17 degrees), so I will try nto help him with it.

 

[Crimson Pearl]

.....please forgive my ignorance but what does IIRC mean?

If I recall correctly

 

[rexster314]

IIRC= If I Remember Correctly

If the battery is dead, it's almost a 2 person job to open the trunk. One to bend down and twist the key, the other person to lift up on the trunk lid. Be sure to lift from the center so as not to jam up one side of the hinges. Then open the little trap door on the left hand side of the trunk wall and pull the cable to unlock the driver door

 

[cubby558]

The key turns to the right, and without battery power, you will need to lift the trunk lid while the key is turned to the right or it won't open. As stated, working against the hydraulics, it is a two person job.

 

[MOTO13]

Pop the plastic door open, insert key and turn, lift trunk. One person job is no problem at all.

 

[XFireXLR]

If I recall correctly

Gotcha.....I guess I am not hip.......lol.

 

[XFireXLR]

Went over to my friends house today and tried to get the trunk open, but to no avail. He turned the key and I attempted to get the trunk up.....several times. He mentioned to me when he picked the car up earlier in the year, he said the dealer said there was some bumper damaged and that they fixed it. Maybe if they had to remove the bumper to repair it...maybe they did not reconnect the mechanism that is connected to the cylinder. Tomorrow we are going to jack the car up and try to get to the starter and connect a jump box to the positive starter wire and see if we can get enough current to open the doors.

 

[xlrlist01]

Thanks for the speedy response.....please forgive my ignorance but what does IIRC mean? Tomorrow will be a much warmer day (50 degrees vs 17 degrees), so I will try nto help him with it.

If I Recall Correctly

 

[xlrlist01]

Went over to my friends house today and tried to get the trunk open, but to no avail. He turned the key and I attempted to get the trunk up.....several times. He mentioned to me when he picked the car up earlier in the year, he said the dealer said there was some bumper damaged and that they fixed it. Maybe if they had to remove the bumper to repair it...maybe they did not reconnect the mechanism that is connected to the cylinder. Tomorrow we are going to jack the car up and try to get to the starter and connect a jump box to the positive starter wire and see if we can get enough current to open the doors.

Is it possible to do this? The starter is high up in the valley. However, the alternator is low down at the front left.

WARNING, the following can crush your fingers, use a tool!
Once you have the deck lid open and battery power restored, you can test the latch easily, though you do need to keep your fingers clear. With the deck lid up, you can use a pusher to push the latch (inside the lock mechanism) to the left, as it starts to move, the internal motor will take over and pull the latch all the way across and down. if you have your finger in the way, it will be crushed. Keep the tool you poke the latch with on top of the latch. Once the latch is across, you can use the key to see how/if it releases. It is on the second cable into the latch mechanism. The other cable is the manual release from inside the trunk. Make sure you release the latch BEFORE you close the trunk! (Just press the remote to open the trunk).

 

[XFireXLR]

Problem solved he was able to get to the hot wire on the alternator, hooked a jump box to it and the car came alive.....and all is right with the world (at least for now). Thank you to all who have replied and tried to help.

 

[MOTO13]

This spring I am going to run a battery wire from the pos side of the battery to the lower frame (or somewhere convenient), cover it and secure it. If I ever need to jump the car or have a dead battery, I'll have instant access to a cable.

 

[XFireXLR]

This spring I am going to run a battery wire from the pos side of the battery to the lower frame (or somewhere convenient), cover it and secure it. If I ever need to jump the car or have a dead battery, I'll have instant access to a cable.

Sounds like a good idea.... What I did is hooked the extra set of cables that came with my trickle charger directly on to the battery. I then fished it through the windshield wiper well. The cables have a cover attached to them.

 

[MOTO13]

Good idea. I will never understand why they made this car so you couldn't manually just open the hood also. Even if it was a locking hood, just make it so you could open it in an emergency.