4LT GS RoadsterA number of droptop owners have reported that, when they release the trunk lid, it doesn't pop up enough to get fingers under it.
Do not waste your time and money replacing the latch assembly. It has been and is now the same part, with different numbers, since 1997, so there is no point in replacing it unless it is broken, which should be obvious on inspection. Instead, fix what you have as follows:
1. Open the trunk. Then look to see where the latch spring hits the striker; if it contacts near the end of the striker, and has scratched the paint off, you have your solution, but the latch assembly may also be too low for the spring to exert effective force.
2. Remove the one central and two lateral floor compartment covers.
3. Unscrew the four thumbnuts holding the rear vertical carpet inserts in place; pull these carpet inserts out of their upper clips until they are loose, but do not fully remove them.
4. Pull the center vertical carpet insert that covers the latch assembly out at the top so as to remove it entirely.
5. Look under the latch with a good light, and mark the position of the bottom of this assembly with a pencil for guidance as you mess around later and as a fallback "stock" position if needed.
6. Loosen but do not remove the two 10 mm bolts that hold the latch assembly in place.
7. Reposition the latch assembly laterally so that the striker hits the middle of the spring, and raise the latch assembly a bit also.
8. Retighten the nuts, but not tightly - try it out. If the latch is too high, the lid will not be flush with the rear deck when closed, and if the lateral position is not optimal the lid will hesitate when opening.
9. Keep messing with the latch position until it is satisfactory in terms of popup height and trunk lid position when closed. Then tighten the two latch assembly bolts securely.
10 .Replace the various covers in the reverse sequence of that which you used when removing them; make sure that the floor compartment cover latches are fully engaged by pulling up on the covers, or they will rattle when accelerating and braking.
My convertible trunk lid popup was only about 1/8" with the considerable added weight of the Design Specialties trunk lid insert before the procedure outlined above, and it is >1" now, which restores full functionality. This adjustment procedure only requires a few minutes and one 10 mm socket wrench with a short extension. Finally, if you mark the initial latch assembly position as noted, there is no real chance of doing harm.
C5 Registry Link
Do not waste your time and money replacing the latch assembly. It has been and is now the same part, with different numbers, since 1997, so there is no point in replacing it unless it is broken, which should be obvious on inspection. Instead, fix what you have as follows:
1. Open the trunk. Then look to see where the latch spring hits the striker; if it contacts near the end of the striker, and has scratched the paint off, you have your solution, but the latch assembly may also be too low for the spring to exert effective force.
2. Remove the one central and two lateral floor compartment covers.
3. Unscrew the four thumbnuts holding the rear vertical carpet inserts in place; pull these carpet inserts out of their upper clips until they are loose, but do not fully remove them.
4. Pull the center vertical carpet insert that covers the latch assembly out at the top so as to remove it entirely.
5. Look under the latch with a good light, and mark the position of the bottom of this assembly with a pencil for guidance as you mess around later and as a fallback "stock" position if needed.
6. Loosen but do not remove the two 10 mm bolts that hold the latch assembly in place.
7. Reposition the latch assembly laterally so that the striker hits the middle of the spring, and raise the latch assembly a bit also.
8. Retighten the nuts, but not tightly - try it out. If the latch is too high, the lid will not be flush with the rear deck when closed, and if the lateral position is not optimal the lid will hesitate when opening.
9. Keep messing with the latch position until it is satisfactory in terms of popup height and trunk lid position when closed. Then tighten the two latch assembly bolts securely.
10 .Replace the various covers in the reverse sequence of that which you used when removing them; make sure that the floor compartment cover latches are fully engaged by pulling up on the covers, or they will rattle when accelerating and braking.
My convertible trunk lid popup was only about 1/8" with the considerable added weight of the Design Specialties trunk lid insert before the procedure outlined above, and it is >1" now, which restores full functionality. This adjustment procedure only requires a few minutes and one 10 mm socket wrench with a short extension. Finally, if you mark the initial latch assembly position as noted, there is no real chance of doing harm.
C5 Registry Link
