another parts job for Super David at Everyday XJ.

ok, one down, I sure can do THAT !!

but Doug, I take it your picture does not show the bent rod coming from the solenoid installed / in place?? I assume it goes in front of the screw?

 

half way there! What now? haha! I'm lost!

 

Right !


Cheers
DD

 

Reattach the rod and you should be go to go.

If the small bolt interferes with the fit of the rod you may to do some tweaking...file down the head of the bolt a bit or some such. I don't recall having to do so years ago but each time is a little different. While waiting for a replacement solenoid I might try to conjure up something lower profile to use other than the tiny bolt

Cheers
DD

 

that's it? so the whole idea is to reduce the rod travel by about 50%?

it puzzles me that the issue of locking and unlocking the trunk lock can be fixed
mechanically rather than electronically.

so if the screw head is too tall and interferes with the rod, then a rivet or a flat screw
might resolve it instead of bending the rod? The instructions shown above are very weak, no pictures or illustrations, leaves a lot to guessing.

I am not worried about the valet because I would never hand over my keys or my car, to a valet. I'll park it myself thank you.

Thank you Doug and Carl for staying with me on this mod.

 

Bingo !



You're just modifying the mechanicals so the 'throw' is useful in both directions rather than just one.

I can see one scenario where it might not work, though: A weak solenoid.

The solenoids have three positions, in, out, neutral. Voltage in one direction pushes the fully arm out, reversed voltage sucks the arm fully in. Zero voltage lets the arm return to a neutral position.

The trunk lock solenoid, on my car, at least, has a single voltage wire and ground wire attached to the body. Therefore there is no capability of reversing the voltage to get maximum throw in *both* directions. For this mod we must depend on the strength of the 'return to neutral' to reverse the movement of the lock linkage.

But....I've never heard of this mod not working, and it worked perfectly on my '87 (although it has lock motors rather than solenoids).


Yes.

While waiting for my replacement solenoid I might tinker about in finding an alternate to the 'small bolt or screw' method

Cheers
DD

 

Doug, thank you for the detail.

I am also tinkering with the screw today, eliminated the washer and filed the top of the screw head flat, painted it to avoid rusting, trying to avoid bending the rod so the link connector sits flat on the lever and moves freely over the screw.

 

Exactly. The solenoid throw works both ways with the slot "converted" to a hole.


I doubt that I'll mess with mine. But, if I did, I'd consider two ways:


1. A "pop" rivet rather than a nut and bolt.


2. Way out. Remove the "bracket" with the slot. Close the slot with braze. drill a hole in the "right" place.


3. further out. Toss the original bracket in to the odds and ends box. Use a small
piece of metal and make a replacement. No slot, only the hole in the right place.


Gee, I don't know mine reacts to the lock paddles or not? Old tech, I lock it with the key...


Carl


'

 

been messing with it all day, no cigar so far. It simply does not unlock.

the instructions say: "Tighten the bolt securely in the left-hand end of the slot".

However, Doug's picture has the bolt on the right-hand end of the slot, which is what I did too.

could this be the issue?

 

Possibly. I just quickly installed the screw to illustrate the general idea. Sorry I didn't mention that. I should have

Try it in the other location.

Or....

Operate the locks and observe which direction of throw locks the latch. I think it's an outward push of the solenoid (towards the right side of the car) that locks the latch. A reversal of direction should unlock the latch. You want to arrange you little screw so there's no wasted motion when the solenoid returns to the neutral position.

Does you solenoid return to neutral 'smartly"? That is, with enough oooomph to actually move the mechanism? And/or is the lock mechanism sticky?

Cheers
DD

 

Doug,

the locking throw is from the right to the left (passenger) side of the car, i.e., the solenoid (located on the right side), pushes the locking "pin" towards the left. Then the key reverses this manually, unlocking the trunk.

the solenoid in my '84 is quite powerful, you can hear a loud "clack" when locking takes place from the driver's door. I've never had to replace it since I purchased the car in 1989, so I assume it is the original solenoid.

what I am not understanding is the "neutral" you refer to, I can pull or push the rod at the solenoid, but I feel no "detente" such as a "neutral" position between the fully contracted or fully extended position of the solenoid rod.

I am starting to wonder if this mod works with the later XJ-6 solenoids as opposed to the earlier ones which may have the "neutral" position you mention. My car was built in June 1983, then first sold in Sept. 1984.

 

There's no detent. It just feels sorta loose....like you can push the rod a little bit in either direction. In stick shift car you can put the stick in neutral an it can be wiggled around a bit....that sort of thing

With voltage applied the solenoid snaps fully outward forcefully; reverse the voltage and it sucks fully back in forcefully. No voltage it naturally returns to and rests between those two positions. We are relying on this 'return' to provide the movement to unlock the latch

The later lock motors used an actual gear drive to move in and out. I don't recall if there was a mid or neutral positon.

I should have my solenoid in a couple days. We'll see if my luck I any better

Cheers
DD

 

if you can, take a picture of the solenoid you are getting, to make sure it is the same as the one in my car.

I put the screw on the left, bent the rod, etc. nothing. It keeps locking fine, but no unlock.

 

Got the replacement solenoid from David, works fine, but.....

Even though I haven't installed it I don't see how this mod can work with the solenoid lock system. With voltage applied the plunger juts out smartly as it should but there just isn't any significant 'return' or 'reverse' action to pull the lock lever in the other direction.

It *could* work if an additional wire was installed to provide reversing voltage to the solenoid.

Cars with the motorized lock system (versus solenoid system) already have a two-wire installation to provide forward and reverse voltage.

Over the years this mod has been done quite a few times by various people. I don't recall hearing about this issue before.

One possible explanation....and I emphasize 'possible' here.....is that earlier Series IIIs (pre-83 or so) had the earlier version of the solenoid system. Maybe in those cases the trunk solenoid IS wired for reversing voltage. I dunno. It's just our dumb luck that we have interim cars. Pure speculation on my part

I'll move forward with installing the new solenoid, obviously, but I think we're sunk

Cheers
DD

 

I would like to know what year XJ the writer of the mod has or had. Not knowing if 1985-on cars had the three-wire solenoids, and I had never heard of this mod before.

so I take it you tried it and it doesn't do it either?

 

Not three wire. two wire !



I bench tested the solenoid and determined that without 'pull back' or reverse voltage there wouldn't be enough oomph to pull the lock linkage into the 'unlock' position

Cheers
DD

 

Hey Doug...
One thing I recall noticing when I was testing the different locks... One pin engages the lock solenoid, the other retracts it.. The ground is to the body of the car..
I know that some of the switches in the car reverse polarity for in and out, but I think the lock solenoid is charged on different pins, if that makes sense. (?)

David
shop.EverydayXJ.com

 

Exactly right.

As built, voltage is supplied for only one direction of operation---'push'

If a second voltage wire was run to the solenoid you'd have both 'push' and 'pull' action from the solenoid.....making it operate just as it does on the door locks.

The labor of stringing the wire is a bit of a nuisance but you'd simply tap into existing door lock wiring. Where the wiring goes into the b-pillar would likely be the easiest choice

Cheers
DD

 

I wonder how that fuel leak is going?

 

so later solenoids have three wires then? (one of the 3 wires being the ground wire).


and where do I connect the 2nd "pull" wire to the solenoid? I am interested in doing this, so running a new wire is no problem.