Good afternoon, i was wondering if anyone can help, I have a 2018 A7 50 TDI and one of my tailgate ( boot ) struts has failed. I couldnt afford a new one from Audi £502 plus fitting!! I have sourced a second hand one. It looks relativly easy to fit however i do not know how to get at the plug on the end of the cable, it goes into the bodywork but i dont know what trim i will need to remove. Could anyone help please

Please could you post some pics? 

Hi Steve

apologies for the late reply, please see attached photos of where the power goes through the bodywork and the replacement t strut I have bought. I am assuming I would need specialist tools to remove the trim on the inside of the car?

Hello Ian, 

Probably too basic a question - before moving on:- Do you see anything if you remove the two Torq screw you have already slackened, do you have any better view of the wire connection point? 
Other option:- contact the seller and ask how they removed it. My guess is the rear quarter pillar panels will need to be removed, and these are normally clipped in. Having said that, I think you are wise to ask before pulling at some inappropriate point.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

Hi Gareth

do you mean the torq screws holding the mounting bracket to the bodywork? I haven’t removed them and I did think that there maybe was a void behind? The cable length is about 200mm from where it goes into the body and the plug on the end, I just don’t know which way ( up or down ) the cable runs once inside the bodywork

Hello Ian, 

Yes, that’s the plate I meant. Nothing to lose I expect from removing them to see what you can see, but I’m inclined to believe the connection is in the quarter/pillar panel. 
If the seller was a breaker, then I guess they will know. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

Hi

I have the same problem and im told to remove the Pillar trim that will expose the plug.

Did that work for you and not to remove the bracket attached to the tailgate.

This seems like a Manufactures fault.

J

Hello John, and welcome.

The OP hasn’t been on here for over a year, and didn’t let us know the conclusion. 
I would suggest you PM him. 
Perhaps you could let us know how you get on.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

Gareth

Many thanks . I have posted Lightbulb001 and wait a reply.

John 

Hi

I've not heard.

Would anybody have an idea on the location of the plug. I'm assuming its behind the rear quarter internal panel.

 

27 minutes ago, johnmi said:

Hi

I've not heard.

Would anybody have an idea on the location of the plug. I'm assuming its behind the rear quarter internal panel.

 

Quote

 

Hi the best idea is remove the rubber boot and see if there is enough slack to pull the plug out, other than that a suitable range of trim removal tools should supply you with the right tool to persuade the panel to come off, try looking on YouTube for a guide on how to remove the panel.

Steve.

Steve

Thanks for the advise.

Nothing on youtube I'm afraid.

I'm going to try the panel having invested in some tools.

cheers

John 

27 minutes ago, johnmi said:

Steve

Thanks for the advise.

Nothing on youtube I'm afraid.

I'm going to try the panel having invested in some tools.

cheers

John 

Hi dont be afraid of giving it some GBH as they are held on with spring clips, personally I would start from the top of the panel as most of that sort of panel have locating prongs in the bottom where it joins the solid plastic, also make sure you remove the parcel shelf first for easier access,

Steve.

Many thanks I will give it a go over the weekend.

John

All

Thanks for your help.

So

Remove parcel shelf and two torx screws that hold the shelf carrier.

Remove the seatbelt panels by pulling them and remove the top of the boot side panel by pulling it down, you will need a set of trim removal tools.

You now need to remove the plastic bracket that holds all this in place by removing three gromits with the tools and then slide the bracket towards the front with a bit of gbh and remove it.

The plug is attached to the bodywork with a grommet so use a tool to prise it out and then pull the cable so you can undo the connector.

Use a draw wire on the plug and pull it through the hole having pulled out the rubber gasget. This needs a bit of patience.

Remove the old strut by prising the spring clips.

Install the new one and put trims back in reverse order.

When all back press button and will close with beep. Open and manually set height and hold the button to set it when you will hear a beep and the lights flash.

Hope this helps if anyone else? has the same problem. Water has corroded the spring.

John 

4 hours ago, johnmi said:

All

Thanks for your help.

So

Remove parcel shelf and two torx screws that hold the shelf carrier.

Remove the seatbelt panels by pulling them and remove the top of the boot side panel by pulling it down, you will need a set of trim removal tools.

You now need to remove the plastic bracket that holds all this in place by removing three gromits with the tools and then slide the bracket towards the front with a bit of gbh and remove it.

The plug is attached to the bodywork with a grommet so use a tool to prise it out and then pull the cable so you can undo the connector.

Use a draw wire on the plug and pull it through the hole having pulled out the rubber gasget. This needs a bit of patience.

Remove the old strut by prising the spring clips.

Install the new one and put trims back in reverse order.

When all back press button and will close with beep. Open and manually set height and hold the button to set it when you will hear a beep and the lights flash.

Hope this helps if anyone else? has the same problem. Water has corroded the spring.

John 

Hi excellent tutorial, well done.

Steve

Did you have to remove the speaker unit ?

Hi

No did not have to remove the speaker unit.

just the trims