mobyspares

Hi All,

I need help.
I have a 2000 CLK 200 (RHD)

I have been away for a few months, and the battery has gone completely flat - the only way to get into the car is by using a key to unlock the door.

To make matters worse, the battery is located in the boot, and I cannot get into the boot to open it
I think the previous owner has damaged the boot lock, and it does not open at all with the keys (I have never had to use the key to open boot before -always been electronic).

What can i do? Is there any other way to "jumpstart" or "tap into" the battery from another part of the car - Only for 10 seconds whilst I hit the boot release button?

Your help will be much appreciated


Sanjay
mobyspares@gmail.com

lowphat

I've had the same problem before -

I used the long thin metal "mechanical key" that slips into and out of the the remote opener to unlock the trunk. It took a LONG time for the stupid rear mechanical lock to finally unlock the trunk - I don't remember which way I turned it but I do remember that it helped to press down on the top of the trunklid as I turned the lock mechanism to get it to unlock. I also recall that since that little metal "key" has no real handle on it it was difficult to get the thing sunk all the way into the lock mechanism.

It definitely took MANY tries and it seemed like the mechanism would never do its job but keep trying, pushing down on the lid, sinking it in all the way and turning (sounds like something for your girlfriwne but I'm serious)

Good luck

mobyspares

Thanks for the really quick reply.
I have been trying that same method for hours.
It seems like there is something broken inside the boot lock that stops the "mechanical key" from actually entering the lock. Im a little stuffed

Is there any way that you know of, that I can actually use a jump lead / spare battery to find the positive battery lead and "tap into" it.

Just so I can get temporary current into the system to activate the electronic release for the trunk?

TIA

Sanjay

lowphat

Sorry but I don't know the answer to that - but if there is I'm sure one of the other more benz-mech savvy members will help you out shortly.

Good luck.

MarcusF

You want a cigarette lighter jumper. It will give you plenty enough juice to open the trunk. It's the only way to get to a dead battery on a Boxster. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO START THE CAR WITH IT. If you ignore this warning you’ll burn up the cigarette lighter fuse as the amperage required to turn a starter is much more than the 15 amps or so the lighter was designed to handle. They come in a couple of styles -



If you burn up the cigarette lighter fuse of the person who's giving you the jump (yes, either car's fuse can blow if you attempt to start the car), they may decide to leave you and your dead battery to AAA. Lastly, did I mention that you should only use it to open the trunk?

J Lucas

EEK Dont use that contraption. I have the perfect solution for you. The same thing happened to me. Pop the hood and there is a place for you to the connect the batter terminal ( + ) and you can ground the negative to something else on the car. It is a black box on the drivers side of the engine with like an X on it. Open it up and you will see two metal prongs. Connect the positive to that and ground the other wire. That will immediately juice the car and the alarm will go on and you can pop the drunk. I didnt try to boost my car from there I just used that to open the trunk. Hope this helps.

redbrick

I think I've seen some car chargers where you plug it into the cigarette lighter...you might try that...just to get enough juice into the car to pop the truck open.

mmgrad

i know not all people read through the entire thread before responding... but damn... how do you miss those 2 huge pictures of cigarette lighter chargers already mentioned...

proform

mtimmy

POP the HOOD and Jump start it using the front connector

redbrick

Where is this front connector?

RX_Renesis

read J Lucas's post... it works... it is suppose to be a stright connection from the prong to the battery in the trunk....

Dovey

J Lucas you are a star, this worked a treat. Many Thanks Dovey

Sandmann99

Hi .. been reading all over the web today because we have this situation here, seems you know your stuff here, so I hope you don't mind if i revive this old thread with our situation? The car's been stationary on the drive for a couple of months, came to move it at the weekend and the battery was completely flat. Without thinking, removed the battery to put it on charge indoors and of course - closed the bootlid -

Yes we have the manual key for the mechanical boot lock, however .. we actually managed to break a pair of pliers trying to get it to turn in the lock. Tried WD40 on the lock, applying pressure to the lid...it won't budge!



Without the battery in the car, I'm guessing that the jump point isn't an option



So...any suggestions? Can't see any easy way to access the boot from inside, well without completely removing the seats somehow...? Any advise on that, or any other way we can get the stupid battery back in the car would be very much appreciated? Or is it time to call Mercedes dealer for assistance and no doubt a huge bill


It's cabriolet by the way.

Thanks

rrich49132

I had my battery go dead and could not use the remote and had to use the tiny key myself and it did not work. I read over the posts in there and went to the auto parts store and got some sort of key lube that looked like wd40 and sprayed it into the key lock.

I still had to fiddle for about 20 minutes and got the trunk to release with the key but it was such a pain in the rear and took about 3 cycles of spraying and trying. It seems that the key just does not work well.

MarcusF

Try this. Open the hood. In the picture there is a red arrow. The arrow points to a plastic cover. On your car, remove that cover. Apply 12V positive to the wire under that cover. Apply a negative ground anywhere you can. Now you can use either your electronic key to open the trunk, or the lever in the car.

Sandmann99

Hi

Thanks for your reply Marcus, although...yes we already tried this to no avail, which is where I referred to RX_renesis' post stating that the jump point thingy -

"it is suppose to be a straight connection from the prong to the battery in the trunk...."

I'm no electrician, but surely if that's the case ^ then without the battery in the boot, connecting a live to the under bonnet terminal won't actually achieve anything - other than send a live feed to the live battery terminal which is flapping around in the boot - not connected to anything? So yer, when we tried that and nothing happened, I wasn't at all surprised

Thank you also rrich - gonna try to get my hands on some better lock lubricant, a pair of hardcore pliers and persevere with the key a bit longer tonight (obviously whilst keeping fingers crossed that the key doesnt end up snapping in there) if that does happen, i'll take a trip to HSS and hire an industrial sized angle grinder I think



Thank you both for taking time to repond

dlbehrns

there are two terminals inside that box. which one do you connect the + feed to, or does it matter?

Sandmann99

Something else which would concern me.... if the 'flapping around in the boot' live battery terminal is erm touching anything metal or such inside the boot ... What would happen if we were to try again (unsure if my jumpleads work .. couldn't get the car started with them when we originally tried, so thinking about trying with another set) might it make my hair stand on end?

jack o`connor

I had the same thing happen to me , and It was so hard turnning that stupid key I just knew I was going to break it off in the lock.I never did manage to get it to unlock with the key.
The under hood hood Batt connection worked well and I was able to open the trunk electrically after I hooked up the jumper cables .
I think I`ll go try to open the trunk now just to see if I can , But I`ll bet I still cant.

krustyone

I dont see why it wouldnt work without the battery, unless your positive lead is grounding out in the trunk. It really shouldn't matter where the battery is connected if it's a straight shot from the underhood terminal to the pos. cable. just make sure you have your jumpers on a good ground... ????

Dandeman

hi everybody, any advise for abs and eps lights come on and stay on soon after starting and accelerating. Car running normally.

Sam34

Dandeman, have you disconnected the battery? If so, turn your steering wheel completely to the left and then to the right.

230clk

Any advice if the jumpleads are also in the boot?

MarcusF

I don't understand the question.

The battery is in the boot (trunk), so yes, one could jump the car from the main cables. I wouldn't, but someone else could.