Boot soft close failure-Fixed

Spent a couple of hours addressing this today. First off I checked the boot light connector. 12v present but no continuity to earth - very likely the left-hand soft close loom identified by others on this thread. Stripped the boot lid down, stripped the insulation back and...bingo!

Black wire was broken, green came apart with the lightest of touches, blue was good albeit exposed:
51836495353_ebe0e9f42d_c.jpg

Right-hand loom didn't have any broken wires (yet) but was deteriorating:
51835436032_f77e72217c_c.jpg

Soldered up the left-hand wires, insulated with heat shrink and relooomed with fabric tape:
51837226330_5309e9a13e_c.jpg

On the right-hand side I just insulated the exposed wire with electrical tape and reloomed:
51837226250_fb03994bb5_c.jpg

Put it all back together, worked a treat :thumbsup:

Took a couple of videos from inside the boot of each latch - you can see how the loom moves when the boot opens or closes.
LH latch:
51836523428_d8eb48d472_c.jpgz4 boot left by Ian Conuel, on Flickr
RH latch:
51837117830_9dfa68bf8f_c.jpgIMG_1265 by Ian Conuel, on Flickr

Fingers crossed that my repair lasts :?

Have to say what a great resource this thread (and forum) has been. Would have taken quite a lot longer to trace that without the help of fellow owners
:ilz4f:
 
Perfect!

After renovation of the wires, i always secure the strain relief with fabric tape and cable ties like on the following pic:

2022
20211101_E89-Lock.jpg

Update 2026:
20260411_000000_cpr.jpg

In between I extend the new wiring with a loop to reduce the bending angle.
 
Last edited:
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RobbiZ4 said:
Perfect!

After renovation of the wires, i always secure the strain relief with fabric tape and cable ties like on the following pic:

20211101_E89-Lock.jpg
Click to expand...

:thumbsup:
 
I'm not sure if this is related but when we bought our car, I never noticed or realized there's a "soft close" function where you lower the lid and it slowly pulls closed and then locks. But I saw a video recently where the person mentioned this feature existed in the E89. My trunk closes and locks (I can hear something in there doing stuff) just fine. I can press the trunk open (fob, in the car, or emblem) and it unlocks like it should. I have no warning lights. When it unlocks, I reach under the lip and lift it open. Then I pull down and let it drop to close it, and it locks like it should. The whole episode is not any different than my Ford Fusion other than it is obviously an electric/motorized lock mechanism (the Ford is just a spring-loaded catch with a motorized release).

So, did all E89s have the soft close function and if so, could it be the wires people are mentioning on this thread? To be clear, my trunk locks and unlocks fine, it just doesn't do the soft close thing.


TIA, Chunks
 
Hey,

Firstly, thank you this forum is an amazing resource.

I have experienced the boot soft close failure on a trip to France... is it normal that the boot locks but appears slightly open
Please can someone talk me through the tools required to fix this (solder iron, heat shrink + tubing, wire stripper, flat head screw driver to pop the liner retainers, and a torx screwdriver set)
And the initial steps of the repair? Are you disconnecting the battery?!

I've tried the local garages but they won't touch a BMW, and the dealer is booked out.

Thanks,
 
Another thank you to the forum and those member who impart their knowledge.

Had this fault occur today! Boot unlocked warning light and gong sounding and boot motor running continously. Thankfully ISearched this forum this afternoon and followed advice. Problem was blue wire had sheared on nearside switch. Other two wires insulation was cut showing bare wire.Wire Soldered and extra insulation placed at plastic clamps. Boot lock and soft close working perfectly. Job done!

Well pleased. Time for tea and medals! Lol.
 
Hi All,
Just wanted to post and share i had a similar issue with E89 Z4. I finally got the courage and took the assembly apart and found two broken wires on both side of the with microswitches. I want to thank your your support on this issue as you helped me out to root cause the issue. Many thanks.

MY_Z4_E89
 
Hi all,

I also have had this fault occur on my 2011 e89 Z4. Two severed wires (green and black). As per the above, without this forum I'd a) have zero clue where to start in finding the fault, b) would be shelling out Ā£400 for a replacement unit and incurring the wrath of my wife for 'buying a heap of junk'.

I took the route of grafting in a new section of wire to bridge the cut. Soldered, heat shrink tubed and then taped for a bit of extra protection. Job's a good'un.
 
Had exactly the same issue on my 2010 E89 and thank you for your help -the problem was exactly as you described. Both sides now checked and repaired. Just glad it happened close to home as this is not really a "Roadside" repair. Many thanks
 
Hi All,
Just resurrecting this old thread with a related issue please, before I can check if I have to repair the infamous green and blue cablesā€¦

I recently tracked water ingress into the boot thatā€™s coming from the left hand side of the boot not shutting fully, as the soft-close on thatā€™s side isnā€™t working (offside / driver side soft close works fine). Iā€™d hoped it would be the relatively straightforward repair described in great detail above (thanks again to everyone :thumbsup: ).

However, one of the former keepers had ā€œrepairedā€ the soft close resulting in a loose & broken connector block on the boot lid wiring loom and a butchered connector on the motor (looks like they tried to hardwire the connectionsā€¦). Iā€™ve ordered a replacement connector / repair kit from BMW (part 6909052 - now blue and with the pins). As three of the five wires had come loose from the connector, Iā€™d like to ensure I reinstate them correctly. Does any one have a photo of the correct order of the cables for the near side please?

1. Red / Green stripe
2. Brown / black stripe
3. Empty
4. White / blue stripe
5. Brown / black stripe (thinner than #2)
6. White / black stripe

Pins 1 & 2 appear to have remained intact, so just looking to check pins 4 to 6 please. Having looked at the offside connector the thinner brown cable is in position 5 but really keen to ensure I donā€™t ruin a replacement part Iā€™ve located.

Many thanks in advance for any help / guidance.
Thanks !!
 
Just collected the connector repair kit (61132359992 includes one block connector and 14pins in case you really mess up :wink: ) and the BMW dealer kindly provided the wiring diagram with the correct cabling as below:

1. Red / Green stripe
2. Black / brown stripe (thereā€™s more black than brown)
3. Empty
4. White / black stripe
5. Brown / black stripe
6. White / blue stripe

Now onto getting it all working againā€¦
 
ThirdMLC said:
Just collected the connector repair kit (61132359992 includes one block connector and 14pins in case you really mess up :wink: ) and the BMW dealer kindly provided the wiring diagram with the correct cabling as below:

1. Red / Green stripe
2. Black / brown stripe (thereā€™s more black than brown)
3. Empty
4. White / black stripe
5. Brown / black stripe
6. White / blue stripe

Now onto getting it all working againā€¦
Click to expand...

:thumbsup:
 
Ian_C said:
Spent a couple of hours addressing this today. First off I checked the boot light connector. 12v present but no continuity to earth - very likely the left-hand soft close loom identified by others on this thread. Stripped the boot lid down, stripped the insulation back and...bingo!

Black wire was broken, green came apart with the lightest of touches, blue was good albeit exposed:
View attachment 202765

Right-hand loom didn't have any broken wires (yet) but was deteriorating:
View attachment 202766

Soldered up the left-hand wires, insulated with heat shrink and relooomed with fabric tape:
View attachment 202767

On the right-hand side I just insulated the exposed wire with electrical tape and reloomed:
View attachment 202768

Put it all back together, worked a treat :thumbsup:

Took a couple of videos from inside the boot of each latch - you can see how the loom moves when the boot opens or closes.
LH latch:
View attachment 202769z4 boot left by Ian Conuel, on Flickr
RH latch:
View attachment 202770IMG_1265 by Ian Conuel, on Flickr

Fingers crossed that my repair lasts :?

Have to say what a great resource this thread (and forum) has been. Would have taken quite a lot longer to trace that without the help of fellow owners
:ilz4f:
Click to expand...
Thank you very much for your post ā€” it was genuinely a big help to me today.
Yesterday everything was working perfectly when I closed the boot, and this morningā€¦ surprise ā€” the soft-close stopped working.
After a quick search on the forum I found your post, went back home, spent about two hours on it ā€” and everything is back to normal again.

Great job and once again, thank you very much šŸ’ŖšŸ‘Œ
 
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I had the issue of the boot would not soft close, a friend of mine who is quite goo with electrics and has a soldering iron fixed mine, it had had a previous repair and it was obvious that this was what was failing so he re soldered it, however it only works now intermittingly and seems to not to work more than often when its cold work which is very frustrating and annoying that i dare not put the boot liner back on! any advise would be appreciated.
Thanks
 
Have you checked all the cables for any signs of braking and the connectors for loose pins and corrosion?
 
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Since resoldered wires (especially after a previous repair attempt) usually end up too short, it is much better to completely replace the old, stiff wires with new, flexible 0.25 mmĀ² wires.
 
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If you think about the soft close is a safety feature.
In a rear end shunt you don't want the boot lid coming loose decapitating you.
 
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