Front Trunk Frunk Bonnet Release not working - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

2001 Boxster Bonnet release not working. No clicking sound when using release inside driver door. Rear trunk works fine. Had a friend check the switch was sending a signal and it is. Checked fuses and all seem to be in working shape. I am thinking I need to replace the hood lock actuator, but before I order it wanted to get some input/confirmation from anyone that has had this issue.

I have the problem and I did replace actuator. This is also when I rerouted the emergency release to the front bumper area to behind the tow hook cover. Reroute rear emergency trunk release to bumperette due to failure in the rear also occurring but not the actuator failure but the cable end hooks failing at the latch. Front and rear common problem should be plenty of reading on the subject in here. enjoy . these are fun little repairs and easy for the novice like me

I had a similar issue. Now and again though it would pop the hood. Managed to get a replacement actuator and changed it. It now works all the time. At the same time though i removed the headlight and extended the emergency hood release cable with some sheathed cable to up behind the wheel liner. Just incase any future battery issues etc. easily reachable by hand.

Thanks for the confirmation guys, bought and replaced the actuator and now it is all good!

I have a 2001 base model boxser and can't find thee emergency cable to release the hood. Does.any one know where it is. I tried behind the plastic of both wheels. I saw this one post, can any confirm specific to a 2001 boxster base model. Thank you https://youtu.be/Yp6zu0cFxn4

may have been relocated to the tow hook opening or in my case on the S bumper has 3 opening mines is relocated to the lip of the middle opening on the bumper. Is it possible to trace it from the latch back? Good luck

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I can confirm that the release cable shown in the video you linked is for the 2000 and earlier models with the manual cable type of latch. The 2001 and later cars have an electronic latch. Hopefully you can find the emergency cable that has been mentioned - normally behind the right side headlight in the fender well. It is a small stainless steel cable and can be hard to see. If the problem is a dead battery, you can open the latch electronically by applying 12 volts to pin A33 of the blue connector to the module under the driver's seat. If you are not familiar with electronics, I do not recommend trying it though. Here's the video:

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I have the new actuator now, but can't seem to find clear instructions as of how to chage it. Is the change of the actuator done from inside the front trunk, under the car or first removing the bumper or...? Any help would be most appreciated

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It's inside the trunk on the driver's (left) side towards the front. You'll have to peel back the carpet. You do not need to remover the bumper cover.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9o3X7DaHrxw At 1:45 it shows exactly where the actuator motor is located.

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Fantastic, thank you, thank you, thank you!!!:dance:

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You're quite welcome!

Fron trunk actuator is now changed - it took probably 15 minutes to do and it is fantstic to see how great it works. Intermittent operation reason was the faulty / tired actuator. Thank you all for advice!

Bumping an old thread, but I have a 2001 Boxster S (Canadian model.) Went for a grocery run, put some groceries in the front trunk, closed it, went home, tried to open the front trunk using the button on the driver side and then the key - no dice. I can hear the electronic actuator when my neighbour helped me press the button, but it's not enough to release the latch. Battery is good and I've been driving the car almost every other day for over a month, so I know it's not the battery. Checked fuse D7 and swapped with other fuses - no go. Rear trunk opens no problems. Any leads on how to tackle this one? Thankfully it's just oranges, some bottles of water, avocado, bread, and whatnot. Thanks in advance.

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Have your buddy push down then release on the trunk lid while you are pushing the button. If you have success , simply oil the latch.They get sticky, then tmake the actuator go out.

Thanks for chiming in. I managed to get the frunk open literally 10 minutes ago. It's a lot cooler here in Toronto, and enough time for the whole car to cool down. The trunk popped open upon first attempt, so it looks like my actuator is on its last legs. A really good explanation by foxcart61 over on the Rennlist forums https://rennlist.com/forums/996-forum/766817-2002-996-c4-front-hood-switch-intermittently-not-working.html#post16577384

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Just went through finding the emergency cable on my 98 when the latch failed. Had the front fender liner entirely out and could not get a good grip on the cable. It felt like it was caught on something. After a shop got the frunk open and replaced the latch (which had a sprung torsion spring) I removed the right headlight and found why I could not get to the cable. The loop on the end never made it to the tire well when the car was built: If you have not yet done so, pull your headlight and relocate that cable NOW! I wasted two weeks on this.

For anyone looking for an overview of the actuator replacement process, here ya go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59K7yBvQ06I

2004 986 Boxster, front lid only recently sometimes opens, sometimes doesn't. What was Dr Ferdinand thinking when he "designed" the lid opening circus? To access the emergency release cable of the front lid that you just discovered you cannot open when activating the sill switch, you have to first open that very lid (which won't open) to get to the headlight cavity where this cable is taped up when the car was built. How do you do this? EASY Just open the lid that won't open Get the special headlight removal tool from the toolkit stored in the frunk whose lid you can't open From inside the frunk that you can't get into, use the tool to unlock the headlight assembly From outside the car (at last!) extract the headlight assembly to reveal the hidden release cable Now pull the emergency release cable to open your lid (provided it isn't jammed along its route in some crevice, as mine is) And you supposedly do all this with the lid shut - because, remember, you couldn't open it. Furthermore, there is no mention in the owner's handbook of a lid emergency release. So you don't even know it exists. Not that knowledge of same would help you in an emergency anyway. When you pay well in excess of $100k (Australia) for this car new, you should be able to change a tyre or get the wine you just bought out of the frunk without all this nonsense. In deference to suggestions you could put all the bibs and bobs from your toolkit inside the cockpit, you shouldn't have to; FFS, that's what the boot's for - all your junk. Are you going to put the spare wheel behind the passenger seat as well, just in case?!! So I'm forever grateful for the advice these forums provide.

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Everyone agrees the the design is less than perfect. One thing I do is keep the tool kit neatly rolled up behind and under the driver or passenger seat. This way it is accessible regardless of what you need it for. Also, once you do get it all open, reroute the emergency release to the front bumper where the toe ring goes. And another thing I have is a 5 mm socket in the tool kit that works better at releasing the headlight but you may not need it if the tool you have works okay. I learned all this from fellow forum members, a huge resource of knowledge.