The deck lid on my 2000 C5 convertible won't pop enough to grab it with my hand. It releases but requires the wedgeing/prying of something to get it up far enough to the point where I can get my fingers on it.

I'm thinking either the latch, hinges, or gas shocks are the problem area but if someone who knows about this problem can chime in to give me a few pointers it would be greatly appreciated.

Any help is great because it is getting kinda embarassing to open the lid with a pry tool, and i'm not going to grow my nails out that long.

Thanks Guys, Mark

 

Pop it open, then open and shut the door. Most of the time the
air pressure will push it up enough to get hold of. Of course the
top must be up and the windows up.

 

I had the same problem in my '98 coupe.
I used copious amounts of silicone spray on the latches and treated the weatherstrip with some as well. Now my hatch pops up without any problems.

It might just work for you too if you've got a can of silicone spray lying around.

HTH

 

I agree, lube everything from hinges to the two assist shocks and it sure solve your problems. If not they do sell a spring that mounts on the latch to assist in opening.

 

Do a search on this. Someone posted , with pics, how to bend the spring in the latch to make the lid pop up.

Gene

 

I think that it is mostly the weatherstrip sticking when the trunk has not been opened in awhile, because after I open it once, it works fine after that.
You can always just open and shut one of the doors and it will pop up.

 

That is what I end up doing most of the time!

 

with the advice to lubricate the latches. I tried that and it worked for a while. In the meantime I made up a trunk popper

Trunk Popper for a Vert or Z06

This is an easy mod but for those of you who prefer to buy the ready made item it sells for a very reasonable price of $15.95 from one of the Forum vendors. Unfortunately the vendor doesn’t ship overseas so I needed a DIY version:

http://www.c5trunkpopper.com/

If you want to try yourself, pick up a 7/8” compression spring from Home Depot. They retail at $3.98 for a pack of 4 springs, 2 large and 2 small. You’ll also need an end cap of the same diameter. I used a 7/8” rubber stopper ($1.76). The advantage is that it acts as a soft buffer and can be trimmed to fit.




Cut the large spring to a length of 2”. The springs are quite strong so it takes a bit of elbow grease to cut it. Tighten the radius at the cut end of the spring to give a hole to fasten the screw through.

Undo the T30 torx screw on the right hand side of the closure plate. Insert the torx screw down the barrel of the spring and retighten it in place.

Slot the bung in place. You can trim the bung to get whatever fit you prefer. With it as shown it takes a good push to close the trunk. Trimming the bung will make it easier to close..




It took 10 minutes and all the lubrication and fiddling with the lock are a thing of the past.

 

how simple is that

 

I like the Rem-Lube dry teflon spray for in these situations


Steve

 

Simple fix. there is a spring wire that runs across opening of strike plate behind rear lights. The trunk latch when closed pushes it down. When button on dash or key fob is pressed the locking mechanism disengages and the latch is pushed up. This wire fatigues and begins to bend downward. Take pliers and bend up - trunk will pop with at least 1" clearance.

There are photos in search. Good Luck and it is an easy fix.

 

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-g...up-enough.html

 

Thanks for everyone's reply. Closing the doors to create pressure to pop it was out because I don't have a top for it right now so it is a permanent convertible (check forecast before driving ) The spring adding idea was clever but I didn't like the look of it too much. The lubeing everything up idea was cool but I knew there had to be something mechanically wrong.

A big thanks to johnbadami for the spring bending idea. It worked perfectly and took a mere 30sec to bend and total cost was $0. If anyone else is having this problem take a few minutes to remove carpeting, bend spring and put back together. It worked perfectly.

Thanks to all that responded, Mark

 

Hi there, new to this forum as I just purchased my first C5 (02 convertible) I am having the same trunk pop issue, barely goes up 1/4in after released. I have heard the “bending the spring up” fix a couple places, but cannot for the life of my find it. I pulled back the carpet to expose the latch but see no spring other than the small coiled one inside the latch itself? I don’t think this is it as I can’t see how I’d bend this up. Do convertibles have it? Anyone have pics?

 

Check this out,https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...nk-pop-up.html

 

thanks, I think people are referring to two different springs- the aftermarket “pop up” spring that you can add, and the spring within the latch that can be bent up. I’m trying to locate the latter and adjust it, but am confused how to “bend it up”. Here is what my latch looks like:

 

Before you bend the spring did you clean the latch and regrease it?

 

I did. I think I figured it out- looks like the piece of the spring that extends out to push up the trunk lid was broken off (maybe previous owner got a little too “excited” bending it). I’ve ordered a new one so hopefully this cures the issue.