What to do if your BMW Bonnet won’t open?
By
Vroomouk
“My BMW Bonnet won’t open” is a common issue many car owners face. This blog will give you information about the cause my BMW bonnet won’t open and how to open the Bonnet in such a situation.
What to do if your BMW Bonnet won’t open?
You can do the below things if your BMW Bonnet won’t open:
- Check whether you are pulling the hood release lever upto the maximum point
- The next technique that might open the car hood is pressing the Hood
- Check the cables in the box present next to the fender
- Examine the release present at the front of the Hood.
Causes of Faulty Bonnet
The BMW bonnet getting stuck is a common problem. People often face the BMW bonnet problem and get frustrated. A faulty BMW bonnet problem can arise due to one of the following problems present in your vehicle.
- The hood release is faulty.
- The cable connecting the latch and release lever is corroded.
- Due to an accident, the Hood has undergone a misalignment.
- The cable is stretched, leading to the Hood’s opening from one side only.
- The plastic release connected to the Hood is broken.
- Another reason why the Hood is not opening might be the cable being popped out from the channel at the latch present under the Hood.
These are some of the main reasons behind the BMW bonnet not opening on pulling the lever to open it. In such a situation, you can troubleshoot the Bonnet in different ways.
Troubleshooting Ways for the locked Bonnet
- The preliminary step in opening the malfunctioned BMW bonnet is to check whether you are pulling the hood release lever upto the maximum point. Also, to open the Bonnet, you need to pull the release lever twice, as some BMW models require the driver to pull the lever twice.
- If you are pulling the release lever correctly and the BMW hood isn’t opening, the next technique that might open the hood is pressing the Hood. Ask a friend of yours to push the Bonnet, and subsequently, you should pull the release lever. Once you have pulled the release lever, try to pop up the Hood.
- There might be a scenario where the Hood is released from one side while it stays locked on the other side. In such a case, the cable to the latch is broken, extremely stretched, or the cable is out of the latch. Check the cables in the box present next to the fender. If the cables are disconnected, then connect them back into the box.
- Examine the release present at the front of the Hood. In many cases, the release present in the front breaks down or gets stuck due to rusting. If this is the case with your Bonnet, use a wire hanger to unlock the Hood.
- If any of the steps mentioned above don’t work, the final alternative to open the Hood is by removing the double kidney grille and accessing the latch from there.
- Once the hod gets open, check the working of the cable. If you find the cable hard to pull or the latch doesn’t move by pulling the cable, the cable might be damaged. To solve this issue, you can spray some penetrating oil to lubricate corroded parts. If the Hood still doesn’t open, then your car’s Hood is misaligned, and you need to get it fixed in the workshop.
DIY Fix to Repair the Faulty BMW Bonnet
Bonnet isn’t a complicated part of your vehicle. Therefore, you can try to repair it by yourself. For example, you can troubleshoot your BMW car hood in the following way.
- Firstly, you need to remove the passenger side front wheel liner, which is present inside the fender. The liner is black and is tightened with the help of bolts onto the fender. There are 10 screws present on the liner, and you can easily open them with the help of an 8mm socket wrench. The first two screws are the easiest to remove; you need to turn the wheels to the left, and the two screws will be visible to you.
- After removing these two screws, you need to jack up the vehicle by using the screw jack provided by the manufacturer. Jacking up the vehicle will give you more space to work on it. As soon as you jack the vehicle up, you will see the remaining screws as there will be more gaps between the tyre and the fender. Remove the remaining screws and pull out the liner.
- Once the wheel liner is removed, you will get a good view of the inside of the engine area. There you will see a Bowden cable that connects the latch to the bonnet release lever present below the dashboard. If the cable is not released from the latch, then pulling it will release the latch, and you will be able to open the Bonnet.
- However, there might be another issue where the plastic part of the cable is broken, and it caused the cable to move out of the housing. In such a case, you need to order a new cable.
- To fix the new cable, you need to unhook both the left and right side latch and follow the cables to the two-way connector, which is present on the edge of the Hood on the driver’s side.
- Now open the black box and unhook the ball of the Bowden wire and the connection point from the box. Once this is removed, the box will be free, and you can remove the box from the metal frame.
- YES, you have finally removed the cable from the Bonnet, now. To install the new one, you need to place the black box onto the frame, reconnect the cable ball and connector, and close the box. Once you have completed this, you need to reconnect the cable to the latch points. The new cable installation is complete once you connect them to the latch points.
- Place the liner back into the wheel cover and tighten the screws with the help of an 8mm socket wrench. Bring the car back from the jack and try opening the Bonnet with the help of a release lever present on the bottom of the dashboard.
Other articles about BMW you may be interested in
Why My BMW Engine Won’t Start?
Which is Better: BMW X6 or Mercedes Benz GLE coupe?
Conclusion
This article explains the causes of “My BMW bonnet won’t open”. Moreover, we have also explained how to troubleshoot the issue and solve the fault by using a DIY technique.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs); My BMW Bonnet Won’t Open.
How do you open a stuck bonnet on a BMW?
To open a stuck BMW bonnet, make sure that you pull the bonnet release lever twice. Because in many BMW models, the lever needs to be pulled twice for opening the Bonnet. If this doesn’t work, try pressing the Bonnet down with the help of a helped and then pull the bonnet release lever again.
How much Does it cost to change a BMW hood?
To change a BMW hood costs around $200, and changing the Bowden cable, charges around $40.
Why is the Hood latch not opening?
The hood latch is not opening because the cable connecting the Hood and the latch are stretched completely, not properly disengaging.
Is it safe to drive the vehicle with the Hood popped up?
Don’t try driving the vehicle with the Hood popped up because it will reduce the visibility of the road, and the chances of accidents will increase. Thus, getting your Bonnet fixed before taking your vehicle out on the road is advised.
