ortslike

I just got a Thule Apex "swing away" bike rack for my wife's GL350 (great rack BTW, you can swing it out of the way of the rear hatch while fully loaded with bikes).

My question is: does anyone know a way to temporarily disable the key fob (or more importantly the remote drivers door switch) so that we don't accidentally open the tailgate into the rack after we have forgotten it's there?

ortslike

BTW, I noticed in the online manual that cars with a spare wheel bracket will disable the door opener, so clearly there is something built into the car to disable the opener.
Has anyone ever run into this?

Fourdiesel

Talk to your dealer and ask if they can find out how to code the car electronics AS IF yours has a wheel rack. Then get then to do just that. I'm sure it will take a star computer access to make the change.

ortslike

Thanks I'll give it a (long) shot and see if someone can make the change. I'll let you know if I am successful at even finding someone locally to do it.

cmarshack

I am sure you can pull the switch in the door out and unplug it from behind so that she can't open it from the inside of the car. I know that does not help with the remote, but at least it keeps one option from opening the door.

Another solution would be to put a small square of helicopter tape on the exact area that would hit the rack in case it does happen. This way you will not scratch the paint. The stuff is clear and pretty thick...just a thought.