Closing Trunk/Hatch/Boot

[senorgregster]

Quick question for other 2007/Gen3 owners. Does your hatch/trunk/boot or whatever it is called close easily? I'm used to a car trunk that closes very easily without having to check it. My wife and I have now left the trunk open at least twice without knowing about it. It seems we have to take extra care to make sure that the latch catches. How about others?

Thanks, Greg

[Black Pearl]

Closing easily is very subjective. A 6' 200 pound man and a 5'2'' 105 pound woman may report different results. Also what did you have before? A person coming from a Plymouth Voyager may have different expectations than someone that had a Acura or Lexus.

I came from the Voyager and the Honda closes easier, but it is also a smaller hatch. I don't think that the hatch requires excessive force, but I have noticed that it has a neutral spot where it will hang freely about 8 inches from closing. Thus when closing the hatch, there is no weight assisting you when the hatch gets to that neutral spot. As such, you need some momentum built up before you get to that spot.

The other thing I have battled is where to push on the door to close it. I don't want to push on the painted surfaces and scratch the finish (especially with as gritty as the rear hatch can get). I didn't like pushing on the license plate, because it is loose enough that it will chip the paint under it. So that left the H logo which is high up on the hatch and doesn't have much mechanical advantage. I would have liked a plastic molding to push against near the handle.

I have found the best way to close it is to get it moving with the inside handle with some authority and then a gentle push on the H to latch it. You can't be wimpy when you start though.

Another minor complaint I have with the hatch in the rain is that it holds water on it and then dumps it on you when you close it. Stand back.

[alex2364]

I've never had a problem closing the truck. And just to confirm everything is closed and locked I press the lock button on the remote twice and it gives me the confirmation beep.

[Carvingbarn]

I have noticed a little push back from what I think is air pressure when I close my back hatch. I have my windows closed most of the time and the car seems to have a good seal and takes a bit of extra push to make sure it clicks.

[1ownerT]

Closing easily is very subjective. A 6' 200 pound man and a 5'2'' 105 pound woman may report different results. Also what did you have before? A person coming from a Plymouth Voyager may have different expectations than someone that had a Acura or Lexus.

I came from the Voyager and the Honda closes easier, but it is also a smaller hatch. I don't think that the hatch requires excessive force, but I have noticed that it has a neutral spot where it will hang freely about 8 inches from closing. Thus when closing the hatch, there is no weight assisting you when the hatch gets to that neutral spot. As such, you need some momentum built up before you get to that spot.

The other thing I have battled is where to push on the door to close it. I don't want to push on the painted surfaces and scratch the finish (especially with as gritty as the rear hatch can get). I didn't like pushing on the license plate, because it is loose enough that it will chip the paint under it. So that left the H logo which is high up on the hatch and doesn't have much mechanical advantage. I would have liked a plastic molding to push against near the handle.

I have found the best way to close it is to get it moving with the inside handle with some authority and then a gentle push on the H to latch it. You can't be wimpy when you start though.

Another minor complaint I have with the hatch in the rain is that it holds water on it and then dumps it on you when you close it. Stand back.

I went through the very same deliberations and arrived at the same conclusion.

[Black Pearl]

Yes wouldn't a crummy piece of plastic at the door handle, like my plain jane Voyager had, be a great improvement?

Good point on the air compression. I have not noticed the air compression, but yes my windows are usually all the way up too. Although there are cabin air vents to allow the AC and heater air flow. Carvingbarn, do you usually run your AC in recycle mode (recycles the internal air rather than inducting air)? That might shut down the cabin vents and make the door harder to close. I always run mine on outside air unless it is extremely hot.

[Carvingbarn]

Yes wouldn't a crummy piece of plastic at the door handle, like my plain jane Voyager had, be a great improvement?

Good point on the air compression. I have not noticed the air compression, but yes my windows are usually all the way up too. Although there are cabin air vents to allow the AC and heater air flow. Carvingbarn, do you usually run your AC in recycle mode (recycles the internal air rather than inducting air)? That might shut down the cabin vents and make the door harder to close. I always run mine on outside air unless it is extremely hot.

Yes, I keep it in recycle mode most of the time. It seems to cool faster and we can keep the fan on a lower setting. It is extremely hot here. It is 9:50am and 97f at my house and HUMID!

[senorgregster]

thanks for the replies. Now I re-read my post I don't think I was clear enough - sorry. I'm finding that when I attempt to close the trunk it sometimes bounces slightly out of the latch. Without close inspection it looks closed. I try to avoid the double lock action on the key because I don't like to irritate the neighbors with the chirp. Oh well, perhaps they will have to grow to love the V chirp. :)

[Black Pearl]

That is one of the things I really like about the V, you can lock the doors without that annoying horn blast. Regrettably some of my neighbors seem to take a sadistic delight in locking their doors with gusto, which at times can mimic the open bars of Beethoven's 5th symphony.

If it is bouncing back out, the locking mechanism may need adjusted, take it back to the dealer. But... I think Carvingbarn may be on to your problem with the air compression idea. Do you keep your air conditioner on the recycle mode? This recirculates the air in the car and may be closing the external vents. When you go to shut the hatch a large volume of air is compressed, only slightly, but when acting on the surface area of the hatch, makes the hatch harder to close. Try putting the AC in fresh air mode before shutting off the engine. Then closing the hatch. Also try winding a window down to see if it closes any different. I am not proposing that you leave windows open all the time, but it may shed light on your problem.

[mikey]

thanks for the replies. Now I re-read my post I don't think I was clear enough - sorry. I'm finding that when I attempt to close the trunk it sometimes bounces slightly out of the latch. Without close inspection it looks closed. I try to avoid the double lock action on the key because I don't like to irritate the neighbors with the chirp. Oh well, perhaps they will have to grow to love the V chirp. :)


I haven't had your problem at all, although I've never shut it really hard. Mine either latches or if I haven't given it enough force, I just gently push on it and it latches. Never a bounce back. If you find that your situation is uncommon, I'd get it checked at your dealer.