Freelander 1 Rear door will not close

I apologies if I am asking silly questions but I have a 110 and a series III so am not used to things that have interior trim and electric locks.

The mother in law has a freelander 1 on which the rear door (tailgate) will now not close. The rear window goes up and down correctly using the switch but the door does not latch. Having tried to latch it with a screwdriver it simply springs back to the open position and does not stay over in the latched position.

From a bit of research this sounds like it is the fairly common problem of the mechanism springs breaking (which are available online) does this sounds correct? Is there any way of testing this without removing the door card.

I have seen this thread (link) on replacing the window regulator which explains how to remove the door card. Once this off however I am unsure what I need to do next. Looking at the structure of the inner door in pictures do I need to remove the latch to access it or can it be done in situ and where are the springs located that need changing?

You problem will be a lazy solenoid, to test keep squeezing the handle (open/close,open,close) until you hear the solenoid whirr, then close the door and it will latch. The solenoid can be cleaned and relube but are not expensive.

freelance said:

You problem will be a lazy solenoid, to test keep squeezing the handle (open/close,open,close) until you hear the solenoid whirr, then close the door and it will latch. The solenoid can be cleaned and relube but are not expensive.

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Thank you, this thread (link) was the one that I used to suggest the spring, , I will test the solenoid as you have suggested. As long as the solenoid activates eventually does that mean everything else is working and it is either the solenoid or the springs?
I will clean and relube it as a matter of course, do I need to remove the lock mechanism to do this or is it accessible on the door.

I ended up having to replace the mechanism on SWMBO's car, the solenoid was fine. I tried everything including adjusting the stay and lubricating everything but it was at best ropey and I got loads of earache from her. The springs are on the handle are a common issue too but you'll know if they're gone cause the handle won't be springy.
The door card has four screws at the bottom and comes off with a good yank to give access. Undo the torx screws and the mechanism comes out fairly easily.

Alibro said:

you'll know if they're gone cause the handle won't be springy

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What do you mean by this. The external tailgate handle just feel like a button rather than a handle that moves and springs back.

The tailgate spring would allow the grip handle to return but sometimes a weak spring cause the handle to stick up causing the locks to cease. Most of us just tease the handle back into play. If you have the door open then hear if the solenoid is naff lift the latch to lock then trigger open by the handle. Each way you will hear the motor push up the internal lever. Also sometime the washer that keeps a hook of the lever in place can wear out and simply fall down and cause a false grip.

saxavordian said:

The tailgate spring would allow the grip handle to return but sometimes a weak spring cause the handle to stick up causing the locks to cease. Most of us just tease the handle back into play. If you have the door open then hear if the solenoid is naff lift the latch to lock then trigger open by the handle. Each way you will hear the motor push up the internal lever. Also sometime the washer that keeps a hook of the lever in place can wear out and simply fall down and cause a false grip.

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Wot he said.

When you lift the handle it should be springy. If it doesn't spring back down the solenoid won't release so the door won't stay closed..

Having stripped out the door card and removed the lock mechanism the problem was neither the springs or the solenoid. The latch mechanism itself was sticking, and with a good clean and lubrication began working correctly again. While it was apart I have cleaned and lubricated the solenoid to prevent future problems. but it turned out to be a far more straight forward problem than expected.

dag019 said:

Having stripped out the door card and removed the lock mechanism the problem was neither the springs or the solenoid. The latch mechanism itself was sticking, and with a good clean and lubrication began working correctly again. While it was apart I have cleaned and lubricated the solenoid to prevent future problems. but it turned out to be a far more straight forward problem than expected.

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Nice one!

Dangerous thing to do though, fixing The Dragon in law's motor, cause you're now the goto guy for any future fault .
Hope you made it seem like a really difficult fix to get some extra brownie points. Always a bad mistake to make a fix seem easy.

Alibro said:

Nice one!

Dangerous thing to do though, fixing The Dragon in law's motor, cause you're now the goto guy for any future fault .
Hope you made it seem like a really difficult fix to get some extra brownie points. Always a bad mistake to make a fix seem easy.

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So true. I've been the go to guy for my mother in law's vehicle repairs for years. I even get the privilege of paying for the parts for it!!

Nodge68 said:

So true. I've been the go to guy for my mother in law's vehicle repairs for years. I even get the privilege of paying for the parts for it!!

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LOL, love it Nodge. I have to service my Dragons car but she's really good about paying for everything and even sends tasty home made treats too.