Hidy. My 2004 G35 has developed a really annoying rattle. It's a scratchy, high pitched horror from the trunk. I identified the source of the problem: the little metal wire that runs attaches to the trunk lid fabric cover that runs between the metal sheets of the trunk lid to the trunk release mechanism. On doing a preliminary cruise through these fora, it seems it might be a secondary manual trunk release.

My question is: can I cut this thing off without consequence? I imagine if it is indeed a backup manual trunk release, this wouldn't be a problem, and that's what it seems to be. Can someone confirm?

Thanks.

 

Rather than doing something dumb like cutting the wire off, cover the wire with plastic wire cover available at all auto parts stores. I doubt that's were the noise is coming from you describe, covered that will eliminate the possibility....Gary

 

Seems pretty silly to just start hacking things off. I'm not sure how this could make enough noise you'd hear it in the car, are you sure it's not the brace behind your back seat, that thing is notorious for coming loose.

 

I'm pretty sure it is a backup trunk release, if indeed there is such a critter. If I pull the wire taught & anchor it up the carpet thingie a bit, the noise goes away. However, the trunk doesn't stay locked. I've pulled things apart enough, seen enough of the wire, the trunk, and its mechanism, and heard that infernal scritch scratch clearly enough to be pretty darn sure the acoustics of the situation match my diagnosis.

I'd insulate the wire if there were any reasonable way to do so. It runs between the two sheets of steel on the trunk lid, and it loops around the trunk release back onto itself. The only other solution I've come up with would be to find some kind of spray foam that expands & hardens to prevent it from moving. But even if I knew of such a thing, I'm not entirely sure how I could apply it to the deep recesses of the inside of the trunk lid.

Anyhow, I'm 98% sure I've got the problem right, and 96% sure that cutting it won't cause any issue. I just wanted to run it by my esteemed colleagues on this forum to make sure it's not a self-destruct button -- or, perhaps more likely, something that might ground the electronic switch or something along those lines.

 

You must have some good ears and an otherwise incredibly tight car... Seriously, try to find a way to silence it instead of just removing it... '05 & '06 has two cables as seen below in the pic of the trunk lid with the "finisher" removed. The little pull-tab stuck on with Velcro is meant to be reachable from the backseat pass-through and the glowing handle is in case somebody locks you, or some kid, in the trunk. Kind of an important safety feature if you look at it that way...

 

Right-o, that's the sumbuck right there -- #6.

If you or anyone else have a good idea on how to stop it from moving without deconstructing my trunk lid, I'd be delighted to hear it. You're right -- the day after I cut the cable will be the first time I've locked my keys in the trunk. I'd prefer it intact. But something's gotta give. This thing is a lot louder than you might imagine.

Thanks for giving me the term "finisher," too. Sometimes all that stands between oneself an the answer one seeks is knowing the words necessary to ask the question.

 

It is probably the brace behind the rear seat. Remove the rear seat, tighten the bolts and noise will most likely be gone. Oh yeah, use loctite.

 

There's a tab or some means to secure that handle to the trunk with enough tension to keep the cable right.

Before hacking things off, I'd check to see if the issue isn't caused by something simple like this.

The idea is to fix cars...not hack things off to take the quick and easy way out. Take some pride in your workmanship