[jcalaba]

Connect jumpers from another car to your hoods battery terminals. Other car must be started of course, then use the power to open trunk.

[greybimmer]

Just happen to me on my 320i 09/09 plate, after reading forum got in touch with BMW warranty and they suggested using a battery charger on the + - posts in engine bay tried it and it worked 1st time

[Jhe]

I didn't read the entire thread, so if someone already mentioned it..... disregard this post. Hopefully you can still get under your hood. If yes, get a battery charger, hook up the positive to the post sort of thing with the red pos symbol, and find a good , unpainted chssis ground and let it charge. It will work, I've been through it myslf. Like I said, if this was previously posted, my bad. If not, good luck.

[Jhe]

Hook up a battery charger under the hood. Done

[ripclaw]

Originally Posted by Blorax

If you're reading this, you are probably stuck like I was stuck - hopefully not as bad. If you're lucky, you didn't completely remove your battery and close the trunk. If you're lucky, you have one of the features which will allow you to get access to your trunk. If you're not lucky - I feel your pain.

Here are the solutions that I found from searching.

1) 2008 models and before actually have key lock on the trunk - it's hidden above the license frame. This would have been great, but I have a 2009, so I don't have one.

2) Some models have a trunk pass through which would allow access through which you could pull the manual release within the trunk using a coat hangar or something. My doesn't. (I also spent some time trying to remove the seat backs, but I don't think I could have gotten them out without breaking something because the latches held them in place so securely.)

3) You can apply power to the car from the engine area -there's a big red + and a ground point nearby. Once power is on the car just push the trunk release in the driver's footwell. This is almost certain to work for most everyone. I'm not sure why it didn't work for me, but I'm guessing it has something to do with the fact that the battery was completely removed and the cable were lying loose. That was strike three - I felt like I was out.

4) The only solution that worked for me was to run down the wiring diagrams and locate the "central locking drive, trunk lid" that's the solonoid that actually releases the trunk. Most of the effort was getting the information - the job itself was actually pretty easy. Here it is:

a) Take out the two torx screws just below the glovebox on the left and right to remove the panel below the glovebox. Disconnect the power socket and the light which are attached to the panel.

b) Below the fusebox there is a big flat horizontal junction box (Junction Box A4010). You can spot it easily because there are two big connectors going into it facing you. There is a flat wide connector plugging into the BACKSIDE of this same junction box. There are about a dozen small wires going into it and one big brown ground. This is the one you need to get to. (Connector X14270) Ideally, you'd want to disconnect this, but I could not manage to get it out from that position.

c) Identify the small wire which is gray with a stripe of green (it looks mostly gray). If you get the connector out, this is pin 12. It's the only grey/green wire in the bunch though.

d) You need to very briefly apply 12 volts to this lead to pop the trunk. I did it the ugly way - I very carefully razored off some of the insulation to expose it. Then I just attached some leads to my new battery. I stuck the ground lead into brown wire connector for the power socket I had disconnected when I removed the glove box panel. Then I just brushed the positive lead against the exposed pin 12 wire. The trunk popped instantly.


Now that I know what to do, I'll bet I could do this in 10 minutes. It's really just two screws to remove the pane and knowing which wire to power. I hope no one ends up in such a stupid situation, but if they do I hope this helps.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Your method worked perfectly. I couldn't get the X14270 connector off either so I made a small hole using a circuit tester. Then followed your instructions. Btw, this was on a 2011 328i Coupe.

I can't believe BMW has no manual way of opening the trunk in situations like these. So stupid!

[ammar23]

This exact same thing happened to my e90 328i and I discovered your could get power into the system by connecting a battery/jumpers to two terminals under the hood. I couldn't figure it out so I called the AAA guy and he showed me that, felt really silly after lol.

[techie182]

My trunk actuator stopped working and I broke manual key wire(turned way too hard).
So had to take it to local shop. They had to remove rear seats to manually open trunk and replace actuator. PIA.

[ripclaw]

Originally Posted by ammar23

This exact same thing happened to my e90 328i and I discovered your could get power into the system by connecting a battery/jumpers to two terminals under the hood. I couldn't figure it out so I called the AAA guy and he showed me that, felt really silly after lol.

Unfortunately, I didn't have that option as there was no battery connected.

[GB-335xiCoupe]

This is what l would use...

[camco]

Thanks to this thread, I was able to open the trunk myself by following the OP's instructions. This was after over a week my car sitting in the drive and 2 different sets of mechanics tried to open by jump starting under the bonnet, even tho I told them I've done that already and charged the battery over night, but they wouldn't listen, and wouldn't follow the OP's instructions that I translated and printed off a copy for them. They said I'd have to break the trunk open,WTF, no f***in way its an ericsson trunk.
I had nearly given up, so called the garage to send a tow truck, the next morning when he arrived, he was helpful and also tried to jump it even tho I said its been tried, I showed him the translated instructions and he was up for it.
After an hour or so the trunk was open and the positive lead was back on the battery again. He only wanted ฿500, ($15) for the 2 hrs of his time, but because he was more helpful than the others before him and he actually listened to me, I gave him ฿2000 ($60).
So thanks to these instructions and 1 helpful mechanic, I was back on the road again. But now the f***in air-con doesn't work. lol.

[bavarianx]

Thanks for sharing this

[sd_luis]

Are you guys aware you could actually jump start our vehicles from the Hood also?

[alexwhittemore]

For Christ's sake, read the thread. Literally everywhere, including two posts above yours.

[camco]

Originally Posted by sd_luis

Are you guys aware you could actually jump start our vehicles from the Hood also?

Are you aware you should read before you post.

[hipnotic]

I had done the same with the key & charging under the hood. Thankfully it worked. Don't close your trunk once you take out the battery. Lesson learned for me too.

[Tyrrelll]

Glad I looked at this, I had no idea!

[TEAM SLO]

Great thread with good info.

[eagle-co94]

Blorax, thank you for starting this thread! I just got my 2011 328xi on Saturday and it arrived with a dead battery. My first step was to pull it to go charge it and I closed the trunk not wanting to leave the car unsecured. Naturally my car doesn't have a folding rear seat and since there's no exterior lock cylinder I tried pulling the trunk popping switch. I got some kind of reaction, but it wasn't enough to pop the latch. I was about to pull the rear seat when I decided to google the issue since I wasn't having any luck with jumper cables under the hood. When the car was delivered on Saturday the driver used a jump box to start the car so I know that there must be something else going on. Sure enough, one of the positive cables in the trunk was touching the floorpan.

For those that attempt this and don't want to cut into your wiring you can disconnect the front two connectors and pull the box down just enough to get a long Torx head driver in to unbolt the two screws holding it in place. Then just pull the box forward and down and you'll see the long sliding clip that goes the entire length of the rear connector. I used a flat tip screwdriver to get it started to the right and then it went smoothly.

I pulled the connector out the back of the mounting bracket and had easy access to all the terminals which made it simple to find #12 and #23.

[alexwhittemore]

Originally Posted by eagle-co94

Naturally my car doesn't have a folding rear seat and since there's no exterior lock cylinder I tried pulling the trunk popping switch. I got some kind of reaction, but it wasn't enough to pop the latch. I was about to pull the rear seat when I decided to google the issue since I wasn't having any luck with jumper cables under the hood.

And of course, unless you have the split 60/40 rear seats, you can't get the back rest out without getting in the trunk to release latches

[avizilla]

Borax,

I know this is an old thread, but I just want you to know that I totally owe you a beer, or several, or maybe my first born. I absent mindedly closed my trunk after removing the battery on my 2011 328i to take it to the store to get a replacement. It wasn't until I got back that I realized what I'd done. After cursing, fuming and trying to dismantle the car to get into the trunk, then trying to jump the car using the terminals under the hood (nothing at all, had me a little worried I'd fried something), I finally tried your Macguyver disarming a nuclear bomb technique. I was totally freaked that I'd let the magic smoke out of my car... But it worked perfectly!

Should we ever meet, drinks are on me. I won't be nearly as generous if I ever meet the person responsible for removing any reasonable way to access the trunk without power....

[kcult]

I'm fighting electrical Gremlins on my 2009 328i and have disconnected the battery so I can do other work. Well, last night my wife decides to shut the trunk, I guess to keep the neighbor's cat from getting in a claiming the trunk space as his territory.

I tried the manual key method, but because I thought I was twisting it hard enough and it wasn't working, I stopped. After reading this thread, I twisted it like a bully in the schoolyard and it worked.

Thanks!

[JCS335project]

Biorax, you are the man. You nailed my situation exactly and I had processed the other options until your solution. I found the wire, applied a short 12Volt and the trunk popped. The new battery went in & all is well.