Can the latch that keeps the back hatch shut be repaired?

Have tried pricing a replacement?

 

Probably not an issue with the latch itself, but rather the wiring leading to it.
Check wiring between car frame and hatch (rubber boots).
Probably a broken wire. 5 minute repair, and probably free (assuming you have a splice in your toolbox).

 

I would not jump to suspect the wiring: the latch is electrically actuated, yes, but the actuator is what opens it. With no power, or an open circuit, it ought to stay latched.

(A simple enough test would be: disconnect the 12 volt battery ground. Now will it stay latched?)

Since you've priced the replacement, you now know the maximum amount you have at risk if you try to repair it and fail. So give it a try, you'll probably succeed. I would suspect something purely mechanical at the latch itself, maybe even the grease around the motor has gotten gummy and it is stuck in the actuated position.

The only difficulty I foresee would be if the thing is stamped/riveted/otherwise stuck together in a way that's a PITA to take apart.

-Chap

 

Seems like everything these days, right on the edge of what the market will bear.

 

I've found it pretty hard to predict the prices of dealer parts. There are some that I just assume are going to be exorbitant, and then I look them up and price them and they're quite reasonable, and then there are others that go the other way.

For example, Toyota 0w-20 oil is the best deal on a 0w-20 full synthetic you can find in my town.

I suspect that where a lot of us end up thinking the dealer is trying to fleece us is, we're thinking:

as we all learned from our lemonade stands, but Toyota's thinking:

or something like that, where maybe the cost-to-manufacture isn't even a large component of the total, especially for things that are big, awkwardly shaped, expensive to warehouse or ship, used in relatively few car models, etc. This latch doesn't seem big or hard to warehouse or ship, but then I can't remember any other post about one going bad, so I wonder how many of them are even in distributor inventory, or where they have to come from? I suppose they must see some damaged in rear-enders....

-Chap

 

Doesn't hurt to check the wiring. Eliminate the small stuff first before buying parts.
Speaking of parts - I would avoid the dealer. Find a junkyard, search online (I'm sure that latch can be purchased for under $75 through several online retailers).

 

Same here, by far. All I ever use.

 

How much is 5qt at your dealer?

 

I had the same problem on my VW New Beetle. The mechanism needed a good cleaning. I know it's not the same car, but it sounds like the same problem. I did this same fix on my VW. It was quick and easy. It's worth a try.

 

I'm buying bulk liters of Toyota 0W20 for $4.50 (Can). Bottled liters are $5.91.

(Doing the math, with the bulk price I believe that would put 5 US quarts at $21.48 in Canadian Dollars, and assuming a 0.75 currency conversion: $16.11 US dollars.)

 

So it's all good now? Thanks for sharing this.

 

That is good news.

 

Nice work!