Gas Door Wont Stay Shut.
06-29-2008, 01:03 AM
#21
Melting Slicks
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Yup, it's kinda cheesy, so all of the ideas so far are good, depending on what you run against. Mine stopped latching in place reliably for a while there, and I discovered residual tension on cable, plus some stiction in the plunger was at fault. A spritz of some lithium lube, and a gentle re-guiding of the emergency cable seems to have resolved it for now, BUT there is not a lot of engagement there between the tab and the plunger face, so it won't surprise me if I have future issues...
07-14-2008, 06:57 PM
#25
Melting Slicks
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St. Jude Donor '07-'08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16-'17-'18-'19-'20-'21-'22-'23-'24
Well, the spring apparently finally died. Getting an new latch and emergency release cable installed under my GMPP. Fortunately we have a good dealer with a great mechanic.
07-14-2008, 07:15 PM
#26
Race Director
Went to the dealer service area. Figured I am a novice with car repair and they were the experts.
First thing the dealer said was the solenoid is gone. I pointed out that when I pushed the gas door open button, not only did the solenoid click, it retracted the cable. I suggested it may be the spring or the cable got gummed up. Then the service tech (along with the service manager)opens the rear hatch and begins yanking (HARD) on the emergency driver side door release!!!
At the same time the tech started pulling the interior fabric away from the side of the Vette. By this point I realized they were CLUELESS!! 
The Manager said, "you will have to leave the car with us for a few days since we will have to remove this side body panels of the car to get in there to see what is wrong".
At that point, I told em to back off from my Vette, I pushed the interior carpet back in place and left. So much for dealer maintenance. I would not take my tricycle to that dealer.
So, I still have duct tape on the side of the Vette. Sigh.
Not sure how to get in there to fix it myself.
First thing the dealer said was the solenoid is gone. I pointed out that when I pushed the gas door open button, not only did the solenoid click, it retracted the cable. I suggested it may be the spring or the cable got gummed up. Then the service tech (along with the service manager)opens the rear hatch and begins yanking (HARD) on the emergency driver side door release!!!
At the same time the tech started pulling the interior fabric away from the side of the Vette. By this point I realized they were CLUELESS!! The Manager said, "you will have to leave the car with us for a few days since we will have to remove this side body panels of the car to get in there to see what is wrong".
At that point, I told em to back off from my Vette, I pushed the interior carpet back in place and left. So much for dealer maintenance. I would not take my tricycle to that dealer.
So, I still have duct tape on the side of the Vette. Sigh.
Not sure how to get in there to fix it myself.
I'd rather have a brand new part than rehab the one that was on there.
I also have the problem with the gas pump shutting off prematurely. I never knew buying gas could be such a hassle.
07-15-2008, 01:17 PM
#27
Instructor
Member Since: Jun 2007
Location: Ct
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Fixed my Fuel Door
on my 05 Coupe. The door would not stay shut. After awhile even moving the cable forward does not work. The Fix, trust me. pull down the panel where the cable enters. Loosen the bracket nut holding the solenoid, disconnect the wire, press tab. spread the locking tabs (2) at the front of the solenoid. This will allow the solenoid to be separated from the cable. Clean the cable end slug and the solenoid hole. Install a .480 O/S dia. compression spring, About a .030 wire dia. 3/4 inch lg. in the hole. Connect the solenoid and cable together. The button at the fuel door will now be out and under tension, move it in with your finger, it will move back out. Finish the bracket and connect the electrical wire. Now try the button release at the dash, the door will pop open. I did this a week ago and tried the door repeatedly. It works flawlessly. No need to remove the cable assy.
10-06-2009, 05:27 PM
#28
Spring in the door plunger is gone
This is a known problem. The spring in the plunger falls apart. The release in the trunk can be pushed to lock the door until it is fixed. I've been told you can take the part apart and replace the spring. Otherwise the part runs $60 - $85 depending where it is purchased plus labor. Carpet in the trunk needs to be pulled back, left wheel pulled and the fender liner removed. I've been told the part lasts about 4 years..I have the same problem. TomWhiteWkgn@aol.com I have pictures
03-25-2010, 10:14 PM
#29
Pro
Thread Starter
Sorry I did not get back to the forum/thread. Took her to another dealer and they replaced the solonoid in a couple of hours while I waited. Works great so far!
Again thanks for all the help!!
Again thanks for all the help!!
04-27-2010, 09:06 AM
#31
Safety Car
Member Since: May 2006
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St. Jude Donor '08-'09-'10-'11-'12
I just starting having this problem as well. The relasse fully retracts the pin, the cable seems fine. So far I have layered several small strips of duct tape together and used them to extend the inner lip of the catch on the door. This is keeping the pin from slipping out. I may permanently extend it with plastic if it seems to solve it and works well.
07-28-2010, 11:06 PM
#32
Drifting
I had the same problem about a year ago. The spring on the plunger had corroded and the plunger would stick in the down position. I could manually push it back out with the emergency cable but it would eventually push back in the the door would pop back open. Pretty embarrassing driving around with your gas door open. 
What I did was pull back the interior liner on the driver side above the rear tire, exposing the solenoid cable and emergency cable. Take a small spring that has light tension and hook one side to where the emergency cable is attached, and then hook the other side to the cardboard backing of the insulation. Basically you are pulling the plunger assembly to the up position to hold the gas door shut. I've had this fix for a year now and it works great. I used a carb spring that I had in the garage so my fix was free, but you can buy a $1 spring at the hardware store.
A fellow Vette owner that I sold some parts to had the same problem and he just did this fix with great results also
What I did was pull back the interior liner on the driver side above the rear tire, exposing the solenoid cable and emergency cable. Take a small spring that has light tension and hook one side to where the emergency cable is attached, and then hook the other side to the cardboard backing of the insulation. Basically you are pulling the plunger assembly to the up position to hold the gas door shut. I've had this fix for a year now and it works great. I used a carb spring that I had in the garage so my fix was free, but you can buy a $1 spring at the hardware store.
A fellow Vette owner that I sold some parts to had the same problem and he just did this fix with great results also
Last edited by gr86ss; 07-28-2010 at 11:27 PM. Reason: added pic
08-31-2010, 09:01 PM
#33
1st Gear
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rubber band and 2 paper clips
This is a variation on post number 32 from gr86ss, so refer to his photo. I was not able to find a spring that i could be sure had the desired span and tension level, so i made my own from a rubber band with paper clips on either end.
you'll need to pull back about a 1 ft section of the upholstery in the rear hatch area on drivers side above the rear wheel to locate the mechanism in the photo( see post no 32 by gr86ss).
one clip i fasted around the silver rod left of the tan thingy in the picture where he says to fasten the spring.( obviously I'm not overly mech tech inclined so if i can do this u can too) stretching the other paper clip 8 inches or so forward (toward the location of the fuel door) i found adequate stuctures to hook it on. This created adequate tension to pull the plunger out enough to catch the latch on the fuel door. the rubber band i used was about 3 inches long unstretched and 1/8 inch wide.
you'll need to pull back about a 1 ft section of the upholstery in the rear hatch area on drivers side above the rear wheel to locate the mechanism in the photo( see post no 32 by gr86ss).
one clip i fasted around the silver rod left of the tan thingy in the picture where he says to fasten the spring.( obviously I'm not overly mech tech inclined so if i can do this u can too) stretching the other paper clip 8 inches or so forward (toward the location of the fuel door) i found adequate stuctures to hook it on. This created adequate tension to pull the plunger out enough to catch the latch on the fuel door. the rubber band i used was about 3 inches long unstretched and 1/8 inch wide.
04-03-2011, 07:12 PM
#35
Instructor
Great forum for sure - I too have a problem with an intermittently open fuel door. I've noticed a direct correlation with how often the door is open with gas mileage and throttle position! 
All humor aside - this forum has solved a number of problems over the years. Thanks to all!
All humor aside - this forum has solved a number of problems over the years. Thanks to all!
06-19-2012, 08:46 PM
#37
Pro
Not to thread dig at all, but i just used this to fix mine, but i changed the formula since i didnt have one of those long springs you were talking about. I just used a spring from a mechanical pencil, then attached two large paperclips, one on each end of the spring. Wrapped one paper clip around the manual pull and popped the end of the other paper clip(after bending it out) into the cardboard side wall(as instructed above). Then i bend both paperclips so they would not bend back.
Works like a charm.
I was going to use the rubber band scenario, but then realized i was in FL, high humidity and damp equals 2-3 years max life on that rubber band.
Maybe when i have the wheels off again, i will replace the spring or entire mechanism with a new one + stainless spring.
Works like a charm.
I was going to use the rubber band scenario, but then realized i was in FL, high humidity and damp equals 2-3 years max life on that rubber band.
Maybe when i have the wheels off again, i will replace the spring or entire mechanism with a new one + stainless spring.
02-07-2016, 02:47 PM
#39
1st Gear
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I had the same problem about a year ago. The spring on the plunger had corroded and the plunger would stick in the down position. I could manually push it back out with the emergency cable but it would eventually push back in the the door would pop back open. Pretty embarrassing driving around with your gas door open.
What I did was pull back the interior liner on the driver side above the rear tire, exposing the solenoid cable and emergency cable. Take a small spring that has light tension and hook one side to where the emergency cable is attached, and then hook the other side to the cardboard backing of the insulation. Basically you are pulling the plunger assembly to the up position to hold the gas door shut. I've had this fix for a year now and it works great. I used a carb spring that I had in the garage so my fix was free, but you can buy a $1 spring at the hardware store.
A fellow Vette owner that I sold some parts to had the same problem and he just did this fix with great results also
What I did was pull back the interior liner on the driver side above the rear tire, exposing the solenoid cable and emergency cable. Take a small spring that has light tension and hook one side to where the emergency cable is attached, and then hook the other side to the cardboard backing of the insulation. Basically you are pulling the plunger assembly to the up position to hold the gas door shut. I've had this fix for a year now and it works great. I used a carb spring that I had in the garage so my fix was free, but you can buy a $1 spring at the hardware store.
A fellow Vette owner that I sold some parts to had the same problem and he just did this fix with great results also
02-07-2016, 03:32 PM
#40
Its a $1 part (new spring), to repair it the correct way.
Here is the problem, hence the spring snapped,
And you can get a replacement spring from Lowes for about a buck that you are going to clip to lenght to replace the snap spring instead.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...n-t-close.html
Here is the problem, hence the spring snapped,
And you can get a replacement spring from Lowes for about a buck that you are going to clip to lenght to replace the snap spring instead.
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...n-t-close.html
