[pev]

So, hi!

Had my (2014) V40 a few months - had a friend getting into the back and they held the handle open before Id unlocked and it seems that doing this whilst I pressed the remote unlock caused the lock to fail and now I cant open the door from the inside or outside. I couldn't believe this was likely so I then tried the other side and exactly the same thing happened and now I have two rear doors that won't open at all...

Whilst the car isnt under warranty of course this is clearly a design fault and Im loathe to spend the insane amounts of money the dealers are going to ask the resolve this... (£500+ for no good reason??!?!)

Has anyone had any joy in dealing with this? Im not even sure where to start given that I cant even open the doors to gain access...

 

[55282]

lucky I haven't had this issue, theres a good detailed link to a guide of how to remove door card etc and the topic has been discussed once or twice before.... seems the lock failing is a case of when, not if....

 

[hullu]

Thanks for posting this, you may have identified the cause of this, or one of them. I'll definitely avoid unlocking the doors if someone has hold of the door handle.

 

[craigjohnmaz]

This seems a common problem and has also happened to mine, i love my v40 but ive never had so much trouble with a new car, rear view mirror falling off, wing mirror not folding in, rear door deadlocked, now a faulty dipped beam. They should of recalled it for the door issues if nothing else. Wont be buying another

 

[james cox]

Hi Sadly just read the posts , we started with one us rear door on our 2013 x country 40 , now we have 2 us rear doors , Not good , from the discussion seems Im looking at loads of money .
had an xc 90 prior to this x country 40 , the 90 had to have the engine out for a starter ring , cost a load of money , Will I ever buy another Volvo NNNNNNNNNNNNo

 

[jactac]

Personally I would contact Volvo UK and express your concern that this could easily be a safety issue, and you want it sorted out, warranty or not !
A long shot but, imagine you had a young child in the back of the car in a baby seat, that you needed to get out of the car in an emergency, let's say you were parked and getting petrol, key fob in your pocket, as you wouldnt leave the key in the ignition, especially if your child was alone in the car, another vehicle comes along and drives into car, someone goes for the handle to get the child out and and you accidently hit the unlock on the remote.
Result, one child locked in the back of the car with free flowing petrol spurting all over place, ok you can use the front doors but its not ideal in an emergency !!

I guess it sounds a bit over the top, but these type of freak accidents do happen.

 

[james cox]

Hi Thanks Jactac
Yes I agree , a problem waiting to happen , sadly the Company response when my xc90 chipped a start ring tooth seemed to be deliberate delay ..................mixed with unhelpfulness , and my MOT is due , so I'm stuck .
I have removed the door card (with out ruining it ) have access to the lock , the parts move . tomorrow will try again and hopefully I will find and share a solution. JC

 

[jactac]

Have u tried pressing the safety locking button inside the car, or setting it to lock/unlock as you drive off/slow down, I think this is done in the settings ?
It might reset the whole system ?
Or holding the handle open again and pressing lock/unlock on the remote.
Disconnecting the battery perhaps ?
Just some thoughts.

 

[james cox]

Hi
Yes tried all those in attempt to clear fault. Will attempt a repair again today.
Regards. JC

 

[hullu]

Perhaps report your problems here, if they get enough reports they may take action.

Vehicle recalls and faults

What to do if your vehicle, vehicle part or accessory is recalled, has a registered fault and how to report serious safety defect you find

www.gov.uk

 

[james cox]

Thank you hulla
Appreciate the info I will
Hoorah got my rear door open, not an easy task, I struggled. I am retired hovercraft engineer and also trained by a good British aircraft engine manufacturer, this is not a task undertaken with out a good tool kit .
After removing the door card, window track, wiring etc, access to the lock is possible. The lock has a white plastic cover containing a spring, it pulls off and I could not work why the cover was fitted?
With the outer door handle held in open position the actuating levers are out of the way. under the cover a position of is a squarish access hole............. Insert a small bladed screwdriver at an. Angle of approx 60 upwards and lever to the right. You are rewarded with a delightful click an d the door opens. All you need is a £100 lock.
I will post a full explanation with photos when I finished the job
I hope this info can assist anyone with a similar prob
Regards JC

 

[jactac]

So it sounds like its a major mechanical issue that can occur by doing such a simple & innocent thing with the remote.
Glad you got it sorted.
But you still have to buy a lock ?

 

[RS3100]

So it sounds like its a major mechanical issue that can occur by doing such a simple & innocent thing with the remote.
Glad you got it sorted.
But you still have to buy a lock ?

Lock solenoid motors seem to have always been susceptible to damage from attempts to activate them in one direction whilst being pulled in the opposite direction at the same time. I had to replace locking motors on a couple of my cars when my kids were prone to lifting a door handle at the same time as I was unlocking the car, whether by remote or key-in-door central locking.

The only difference was that the lock motors were much easier to access and a lot less expensive back then!

 

[james cox]

Hi Jactac

RE Volvo v40 x country rear door locks not working after use of key fob.

1 is repaired , next is the other , both had / have same problem

I am posting this info..... as an overview ....to aid others with same issue . But I would advise anyone ...you need to be competant and experienced DIYer with a good tool kit and some help ...at the very least to undertake this job

It is a very difficult but possible . Dont rush , take photos ,be careful lots of components are fragile , and lots of sharp edges ...wear gloves.
Lower the window . use a metal hook to pull the top of the card ( start next to lowest part of the glass ) away from the door ,( I made a metal hook 12 mm wide ) the clips will break . Look inside To the front end of the door there is one big self tapping screw in a clip surrounded by red plastic like a rawl plug cut the red plastic off , push the screw out ..Lift off the top trim
Remove 9 small bolts holding the card , the wiper motor door all electrics ,speaker etc .
GENTLY pull the top of card card from the door , look down inside
The glass has a hole in it , the window drive unit plastic housing locates in this hole , through the access hole in the door card VERY CAREFULLY Push the centre clip clear of the glass , I used a piece of wooden dowel, then lift the glass to top of door and secure it . Remove the door card .
The whole lock has a black plastic cover over it . Slide back and remove .
The lockitself has a white "clip on" plastic cover on one end , remove it , the cover on my model car did not seem to have a purpose but there is a spring inside.
Get your helper to pull on the door handle to move the lock pivot levers out of rhe way
Below this white cover you will see square hole .
Through this I used a small electrical screwdriver ( and torch ) to locate and push the pads that released the door lock , which opened the door .

I was able to reset / repair and refit the lock , reassemble is the reverse operation of above

This information is just the bare bones of the process to help others with the problem decide how to procede
It took me 51/2 hours
Regards JC

 

[jactac]

Sounds like a pig of a job !

 

[pev]

Ouch, so have taken to Volvo in Chippenham and they reckon worst case is £600 to repair the two rear locks which is horrific given that it's clearly a faulty lock mechanism. Just waiting to hear if Volvo themselves will be willing to contribute towards this although even if they do it sounds like it would be 50% max... Really depressing :-/

 

[jactac]

Thought you had solved this yourself ?

 

[pev]

Thought you had solved this yourself ?

Nope, one of the other respondents sadly... I know how to make it break though! Just to add insult to injury found out that the front two locks have a "policy notice" against them as well...

 

[RS3100]

Just for information, I decided today that I would remove the fixing bolt on the leading edge of both my rear door panels as a "just in case it ever happens to me" measure. This is the one that can't be accessed if the door is unable to be opened and which results in removal damage to the door panel. On my 2017MY car, it appears that the bolt is no longer fitted. The door panel moulding is continuous with no covering cap or hole where the bolt should be located, so it appears that it has been modified to simplify removal if the door is stuck shut. Pity they couldn't just modify the locks so that they didn't need replacing.

 

[David(V40)]

Hi
Yes tried all those in attempt to clear fault. Will attempt a repair again today.
Regards. JC

Did any of these techniques work? As my V40 currently has the same problem.