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Lift gate stopped working

Tiny
GEORGE NJ1
  • MEMBER
  • 2006 BUICK TERRAZA
  • 180,000 MILES
The lift gate stopped working It does not respond to keyless lock or inside locking button. When last used we loaded lawn furniture. We unloaded it and have not used the gate since. The other day I needed to load gear for up coming camping trip. The gate would not Open there appears to be nothing blocking or wedge in the cavity where it locks. It's in the locked position and can not be unlocked, there is no evidence of someone who hit the rear of the vehicle. I disconnected the battery in a attempt to reboot the system but this did not change anything Any ideas what the problem can be?
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Friday, June 14th, 2013 AT 10:26 AM

3 Replies

Tiny
ERNEST CLARK
  • MECHANIC
  • 1,730 POSTS
Does it have a standard key as well? Because the lock mechanism doesn't respond to either the inside lock button or keyless remote, I would start by checking the fuse. If it's blown, replace it, but keep in mind there has to be a reason for the fuse to blow in the first place and you'll have to trace the problem to it's root cause or it'll eventually blow again.

If the fuse is good, next check the wiring going to the lock mechanism, looking for damaged wires, loose ground, and/or a loose/dirty connector. If all is good so far, then that only leaves the mechanism itself. Double check it by applying direct battery voltage. If it doesn't work, replace it. If it does, then you missed something in one of the previous steps and you should start your diagnosis over from the beginning.
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Friday, June 14th, 2013 AT 1:35 PM
Tiny
GEORGE NJ1
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
Thanks for taking the time to reply Emest. Well here is kind of a twist I took the van to a buick/gmc dealer. The service manager who had the the van for three days looked me dead in the eye and said he recomended ordering a new locking mechanism. He told me it was completly frozen, broken. He proceeded to read off the estimate and the labor costs. I was not happy who needs another problem with a car. My wife and kids were waiting by the car and I could not freaken believe what I was seeing as I looked out the window of the service managers office. The rear gate was opean and my wife looking looking into the back of the van. I looked at the sevice manager and we both went over to the van. I asked how she did that and she said she did not, my nine year old son opeaned it and was sitting in his seat waiting for one of us to put the movie in the dvd player. I asked was there anything in the locking mechanism anything?The serve manager said they did check all fuses and the battery I don't generally suspect people of lying to me but lets be real here it was a car dealer guy. He had no problem sticking me with a huge repair bill just moments before lol. The only thing I think is tat when we loaded some funiture in the back some weeks ago maybe it tripped out like a house circuit breaker. I 'm not sure if it works like that in a car but anyway thanks for your help.I hope it was a one time glich , enjoy the summer Emest.

George S
West Islip, N.Y.
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Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 AT 8:10 AM
Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 48,363 POSTS
You can remove the inner panel for inside the car and release the latch to repair the problem or replace the latch here are diagrams to help you see whats going on.

Check out the diagrams (Below)

Please let us know if you need anything else to get the problem fixed.

Cheers, Ken
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Wednesday, March 21st, 2018 AT 10:25 AM

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