Trunk / boot lid adjustment

damienh

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I can't find any information on how to adjust the trunk / boot lid fitment. I don't mean horizontal adjustment, which seems straightforward. But when it's closed, getting the height correct. Mine is sitting too high when closed just below the rear windshield.

The car is far away, so I haven't got it close by to check it out. I'd like to know what I'm in for and what tools I need before I go there to attempt it.

Thanks for any guidance,

Damien
 
I did an adjustment on my trunk lid yesterday for the same issue. The E3 hinges are vertically adjustable by loosening the three inner attaching bolts and sliding it up/down in the range that the slotted holes will allow. The rear height is controlled by the two rubber bumpers on the corners and the clamping of the latch. I adjusted the bumpers ( they screw in and out ) and then set the latch so that it clamped properly.
 
Hinges are adjustable on both ends (3 axis). I found things changed when I replaced the rubber trunk seals, and no matter how much I fussed with it the rubber pushed the lid up.
 
The e9 hinge can be mounted to it sits lower on the body. this way it pulls the lid further down. However, as mentioned by @Thomas76 indeed the rubber will counteract and try to push the lid upwards.

the lid has some left-right-front-back adjustment:
20200513_164525.jpg


The body mounts are 2 welded M8 threaded ends:


20200115_230720.jpg


The hinges have 4 slotted holes. Left side of the pic below shows the 2 oblong holes for attachment to the body which allow for some up & down and rotational adjustment, right in the pic is the holes for attachment of the lid. In my car i needed to increase the length of the oblong hole on one hinge to get the height correct along the rear window.
1637762334965.png


When trial fitting, do install the rubber first. Use some tape to hold it in place (temporarily) if it wants to jump out. Also, this is reported also by others, INSTALL THE SPRINGS!. They also influence the curve of the lid.
remove tank to get access from below. Lay down the lid, fit, but not fasten the 4 bolts and 4 nuts on the hinge inside the trunk compartment.
I then set the left right gap with small metal plates on 4 corners (the pink tape), and set the height correct with a helper (you need someone to tighten he screws, and someone to check outside if the height is correct or not. Then tighten the 4 nuts on the hinges + the 4 bolts to the lid.
20210602_002401.jpg

The gap now was nicely between 4.5 and 4.7 mm on the four points.

20210602_001105.jpg


I then had a lid with a fit near perfect, only the corners to the window were not nicely flush. In the end the only thing that remains is brute force; bending it by hand. I used a metal lever to bend the corner of the lid a bit upward. Mind you, I still need to paint the car, so i don't worry to much about scratches; but i think it can be done relatively scratch free.
20210602_002339.jpg

After bending, the gap (up/down) at rear now good enough for me:
20210602_002632.jpg

Also front of gap is now ok, though it could be a bit higher at the edge:

20210602_002641.jpg


Hope it helps!
 
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remove tank to get access from below
(1) You can also tell your wife how beautiful she is
(2) get inside the trunk with a light, a socket wrench, a combination wrench, and a cotter pin puller (screwdriver with a pointed 90deg bend at the end
(3) ask your wife to close the lid, gently
(4) while you shift the hinges around, have your wife tell you when the panel fit is good.
(5) tighten the nuts
(6) ask her to let you out. If you failed step 1, you can pull in the latch release lever from the inside with the cotter pin tool
 
Silicon Spray is a wonderful thing when doing this kind of fitting, If you have a new seal fit it making sure that the seal is seated as low as possible especially behind the glass, same with an old seal but slightly less of a headache, you have to 'train " it to lay down, this is where the Silicon Spray comes into play , the rubber will seat far easier when sprayed, You will probably have to slam the lid to get it to latch ,and when it latches leave it closed for a few days. If when latched for the first time the fit is good, great, unlikely ,so after letting it sit do the next adjustment, let it sit again. New seals can be a real pain.
 
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