sliding door and flat battery.

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karena
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sliding door and flat battery.

Post by karena » Tue May 12, 2020 3:59 pm

My sliding door jammed shut and would not re- open - i booked it in to the garage as MOT was due anyway and i knew i needed a couple of things sorting -and then we had lock down so it was all cancelled - i carried on driving (no rear passengers no dangerous faults that was needing sorting) Since then i have been up and down a few times for shopping but not very far and not had starting problems - then not driven at all for a couple of weeks.
Then it wouldn't start - so jump started it and went for a longer drive thinking maybe those short trips had used more battery than charged it - that was only a week ago and it did start the next day but now is dead again.I am wondering if the sliding door mechanism is still trying to work as though the door was trying to close (although it appears fully closed) and draining the battery or if it is just co-incidence and i have a different problem.

any ideas welcome

( although there is nothing i can do right now because some-one has very kindly parked their car in front of me -so i cant jump start it again at the moment until they move.)
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by g8dhe » Tue May 12, 2020 4:20 pm

Its possible, I've never checked the current being drawn when the door has got out of Sync. However it may also be a battery on its last legs and needing replacement. For the door see below;

Sliding door not working from either inside or outside

The mechanical soft close mechanism has not fully rotated, often caused by a flat or disconnected battery.

First try slapping HARD several times the inner door panel, 1/2way along and 1/3 way up, this is often sufficient to trip the switch and complete the rotation of the mechanism.

If above hasn't worked then you need to remove the inside door panel, open the plastic vapour barrier and manually rotate the mechanism.
Start by pressing the door panel inwards around the handle, so that you can hook out the "C"clip that holds the handle in place from the rear of the handle. Take care not to loose/drop the clip, pull the handle off, put the clip back in position straight away to avoid loosing it!

Unclip the panel itself from the door frame by carefully tugging the panel at the bottom, better still use a proper clip removal tool or a long flat screwdriver to release the clips

Now slide the panel up and off the clips, open the vapour barrier (remember you need to seal it again later), using a screwdriver push the rotating mechanism inside around - don't use your fingers - the system will catch up and take over and complete closure.
Reseal the vapour barrier, put the inner panel back in position, push the handle with clip back on the spindle until the clip clicks back in position.
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Bob
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by Bob » Tue May 12, 2020 10:22 pm

Hi Karen

If you can find a buddy with a booster pack you can start (naughty) Bongy without jump leads.

You likely won't want to buy one for a 'one off' but a quick Google will show you the sort of thing.

Good luck. 8)
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by karena » Wed May 13, 2020 10:20 am

Thanks guys. i decided its worth getting a power pack we had one years ago -(i had forgottem about them #-o ) but this will be handy for camping even if i do have to get a new battery as well as they now have usb sockets for phones etc and are considerably smaller -and i might even have a go at the door myself using your instructions.fingers crossed the smacking the door option works. :lol:

Just out of interest after a conversation with my teenage grandson ( because teenagers know everything - and actually sometimes they do ) - would removing the fuse turn it into a manual (functional) door -
he says it would stop the battery drain at least until it can be fixed - which i can concede might be right but after that could it be turned into a manual door (i,m not planning on doing it just curious) i say its a bongo it must be far more complicated than that.
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by mikeonb4c » Wed May 13, 2020 10:30 am

A crude workaround could be to disconnect a battery terminal when bongo not in use (or fit an isolating battery terminal as its then very quick to isolate the battery). Hopefully Geoff may give his thoughts on this (and best type of isolating terminal). My other question for Geoff and the techies is would the door mechanism make any noise if the motor was continuing to draw current? And, as said, it might just be battery on the way out. Seems to me that isolating a battery is always worth considering when car not being used (trickier on a lot of cars as it can cause other issues but my old 95 Bongo doesnt fuss at all)
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by g8dhe » Wed May 13, 2020 12:49 pm

No removing the fuse won't enable the door, the mechanical mechanism is jammed and must be released first before anything can happen.
Get the battery tested and I suspect it needs replacing, all the problems your refer to point towards battery problems.

Isolating the battery is only a good idea IF there is a parasitic drain on a temporary basis, the chances are you will open the sliding door again when the battery is disconnected and suffer the jammed door again!

The problems all come back to the battery, get it sorted, then if there are ongoing problems they need to be sorted.
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by Bob » Wed May 13, 2020 1:33 pm

It's worth considering one with the ability to over-ride the reverse polarity protection.

Most booster packs have to sense 1 1/2 - 2 volts before they will work, just in case the leads are hooked up backwards, so won't kick in if the battery has gone open circuit or is completely dead. :wink:
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by mikeonb4c » Wed May 13, 2020 5:01 pm

g8dhe wrote: Wed May 13, 2020 12:49 pm Isolating the battery is only a good idea IF there is a parasitic drain on a temporary basis.??
I've tended to suggest it when a person is having trouble establishing if there is a parasitic drain and/or where its coming from. In that situation, getting a new battery and having it tell you there is a mystery drain seems an expensive way to do it. Have to say i used to regularly isolate mine for security reasons and never had a problem. First (should i forget to reconnect the battery) the single drivers door key operation would remind me i needed to reconnect. But I've also regularly opened and closed the sliding door mechanically (i.e. with battery disconnected) and never had an issue. Full disclaimer applies etc :lol:
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by karena » Thu May 14, 2020 11:08 am

ok so if i do manage to get it re-started then charged again then disconnect it - if it drains again its the battery that needs replacing if not its something potentially side door draining it.or find some-one with a battery /current tester (cant remember the name of them :oops: )
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by Bob » Thu May 14, 2020 11:45 am

Just what you said, Karen.

Battery tester to check the battery condition, multi meter, or ammeter, to check for drain.
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Re: sliding door and flat battery.

Post by karena » Fri May 15, 2020 9:58 am

Thanks will give it a try.
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