Unlocking your E32 in an emergency (battery flat)
"Omigod I'm locked out, it's just a 2-ton doorstop!"
You're locked out and the door don't work right, huh? Usually after leaving the lights on, so there's no power-unlock to the doors too... and if you've got an alarm, the central-unlock is gone too. It's catch-22, can't get the bonnet up to jumpstart without opening the door without jumpstarting the power without getting the bonnet up...
The main golden rule:
First, don't panic - there are options
Calm down.
The classic, approved method is this:
If using remote locking, GET THE KEY.
Go to the PASSENGERS door... the manual override is definitely present there. This procedure should also work on the driver's door too, but it's your choice and one maybe more difficult than the other.
Put in the key (duh)
Lift the handle; hold it up now
Turn the key to the rear of the car; should hit resistance at about 45 degrees
Carry on turning to 90 degrees - it will be stiff, it's meant ot be. (Stiff does not mean break the key or lock. Your car may have problems or be different - your call).
at 90 degrees lock pin should pop up
return key to vertical
let handle down
open door as normal
Other alternatives are based around at least applying 12v to power locks temporarily. This WILL be required to get into the other doors IF YOU LOCKED UP from the drivers door with the "deadlock" feature... then all the other doors are in deadlock "ignore the pin" mode (and possibly the trunk too).
Suggestions I have seen involve:
somehow releasing the bonnet catch from the front of the car with a small hook to catch the bowden cable of the hoodlock
breaking into the boot, then applying a 12v battery across the trunk courtesy light (which will be powered up with the lid up)
if you KNOW side lights were left on, try to get into one and jumper a battery across it (may not work depending on the state of relays in between it and the battery)
In all cases it's up to you to get the RIGHT polarity, and work out if the effort/damage/ risk is worth it. Your car, your call.
After any work.... REMEMBER TO CHECK THE DOOR LOCKS AGAIN AFTER A MANUAL OPEN... you want your car secure, right?
You can also lock up this way by turning the key to the FRONT of the car 90 degrees if you've lost battery.
Deadlocking / resynch problems
The problem with a manually opened lock is that sometimes they refuse to re-lock. They are stuck in manual override mode, and won't re-lock with the rest of the car. The steps I've followed to sort this on my 735 (opened passenger door on override) were to lock the car to deadlock mode with the central locking (eg turn key in drivers' door to 90 degrees rearward) and then override-lock the passengers' door - then try a central-locking unlock of the whole car from the drivers' door - this then had the passengers' door operating as usual and locking/unlocking with the rest of the car.
Similar problem can happen with the trunk lock from memory - I think it's a variant of the main locks, and it can control the central locking (but not the deadlock feature) too...
Reply With Quote
