X5 Boot Lock Fix

[dbx5]

I had a problem with my 2004 X5 Boot lock not locking, the boot was open and would not lock, just stopped working for no reason. Neither the Key or the button on the dash would work, changed the fuse and no luck. Had to drive around with the boot open for two days, brought the car to my BMW dealership in Dublin to be diagnosed, and they said the spring inside the lock was gone and it would need a new replacement lock costing €190 plus vat, plus labour to fix it. Said I would get back to them, and they were totally surprised, told me that there was only one lock in Ireland in that was in BMW Head Office and I would not get the lock cheaper anywhere. Found a second hand lock on ebay but did not need it in the end!

Anyway, deciding what to do, buy it from BMW or ebay I took the fuse located in the boot fuse panel out and the plastic trim off the inside of the rear door so that I could get in at the lock to see if I could change the lock myself. The trim is held on with 4 screws, one in each of the grab handles and one behind each of the cargo lights, they just pop out. The trim is then held in place with several plastic plugs, taking care not to break the trim insert a screw driver between the metal and the trim and they will slowly pop out to reveal the lock motor. See Lock picture below, after wasting time trying to take the motor out I noticed a STAR shaped screw of some sort on the lock. With a screw driver, I turned it clockwise and just seemed to keep turning, turned it anticlockwise and the lock clicked and locked. Put the fuse back in the lock, and the lock is working perfect. All I can say is that BMW were very quick to tell me I needed a new lock, when all it need was a screwdriver to reset it. The lock is even working better than before, when the car was unlocked you could only open he boot with the key or the button on the dash, now you can press the handle on the booth and it now opens as well! Needless to say I was a happy man!



2004 X5 Boot Lock Fix

[mojamusic]

my boot lid latch stopped closing, and i got the open boot lid warning on the dashboard. i pulled off the lining as described in this thread. i removed the lock to find it looks a little different to the photo in this thread. i have a x5 4.6is. there is no screw hole to turn clockwise etc.. but rather mine has a back cover which is removed by lifting 4 tabs, which revealed that the internal metal spring which retains the lock hook was broken (the hook end of the spring had snapped off), so my lock was not closing. BMW wont give you a new spring but rather want $330 for a whole new lock. of course! my local mechanic had a similar spring which we cut down a bit, just make sure it's a similar coil strength or you could have open/close issues. you could probably match a similar spring from an auto store or hardware. Any how it's fixed half an hour and $1 spring later. Works well, no warnings.

[mojamusic]

I had same issue with my boot lock stopping working.
I have a 4.6is and it was a broken spring. I did the repair on this thread and it's now perfect.
Worth noting, you must remove the lining, then the wiper assembly in order to remove the lock to open it up and replace the spring.
Rather than getting another spring, it's safer to use the existing one and twist a new end on it. They typically break off at the hook end, so twisting out a new end keeps the spring length almost as original. The X5 boot usually gets slammed hard to create a good seal which is probably why the spring ends break off. It's about a 40 minute job. Well worth avoiding the $300 new lock and $100 install by the stealership!

[freddan]

Thanx for this post. Just fixed the same problem with the X5 I bought a few weeks ago, the spring was broken. So now I have changed the spring and it works fine again Here's a picture how it looked inside.

[ennui]

Thank you so much for this info.

Have now finally joined the forums because I wanted to say thank you.
Have got so much useful info from this site since the purchase of our 3.0 e53 and have accumulated much knowledge, it's time to give back.

Fixed this in 30 min at no cost.

Removed trim and part.
Found broken spring.

Used 2 pairs of pliers to unwind spring and match ends.

Refitted. Works perfectly.

Cost $0.00!

[Discus47]

Thanks so much. Spring was broken so I fashioned a new loop as per ennui's advice. Had to rotate wiper motor out of the way to extract part.

So far so good.

Cost $0.0

[ennui]

Glad to help.

My fix still going strong without any problems 18 months later.

Cheers

[[email protected]]

hi ennui,
should I remove the metal rivets to be able to access the spring
inside the back trunk lid actuator?

[ennui]

Hi Sirwilly,
Sorry it’s been a while since I did the fix, (no further problems).
I definitely did not remove any rivets.

[omodos]

Originally Posted by freddan

Thanx for this post. Just fixed the same problem with the X5 I bought a few weeks ago, the spring was broken. So now I have changed the spring and it works fine again Here's a picture how it looked inside.

gonna try this tomorrow thanks!, I can see the broken end but where does it latch after you make a new end to it?