Body - Door(s) Won't Latch Properly
SI B 51 01 08Body Equipment
February 2008
Technical Service
SUBJECT
Door Does Not Latch Properly
MODEL
E65, 66 (7 Series) produced between 6/2005 and 11/2007 and equipped with both Comfort Access (option 322) and Soft Close Automatic (SCA) (option 323)
SITUATION
When closing one of the doors, the latch does not catch on the striker.
When this occurs, the door appears to bounce off the striker and will not stay in the latched position, even if the door is slammed shut.
This failure mode is often intermittent and does not store a fault code in the door module. However, it most often occurs after heavy rain and with low ambient temperatures.
In very isolated cases after the door will not latch, if the customer were to hold the door in the fully closed position until the SCA motor times out, a pseudo-latched condition could result, allowing the door to open shortly thereafter without the handle being pulled.
CAUSE
One or more of the following:
^ Door latch
^ Door handle electronics (TAGE)
^ Software in the Door Module
CORRECTION
Only on the door(s) with the complaint:
^ Inspect the door latch and TAGE, replacing them if necessary, based on each part's date code.
^ Inspect the door latch operation and program and code the vehicle if the operation is not correct.
PROCEDURE
1. Conduct a diagnostic session and check for faults stored in any of the door modules.
^ If any faults are stored, continue with the normal diagnostic process.
^ If no faults are stored, continue with the following procedure:
2. On the affected door, inspect the latch date code (1), using the template provided in the attachment, B510108_Door_Latch_Template
NOTE:
The date code can be viewed with the door open and without removing any parts.
^ If the door latch was produced prior to August 10, 2007 (the date code of 09L7/x or earlier), it should be replaced per Repair Instruction RA 51 21 090 (front door) or RA 51 22 090 (rear door).
3. On the affected door, remove the door handle electronics (TAGE) per Repair Instruction RA 51 21 170 (front) or RA 51 22 170 (rear), and inspect the date code (1) on the back of the part.
^ The date code is of the format YYDDD; therefore, a part with the date code 07300 would be produced on the 300th day of 2007, or on November 29, 2007.
^ If the TAGE was produced before November 29, 2007 (the date code of 07299 or earlier), it should be replaced per Repair Instruction RA 51 21 170 (front door) or RA 51 22 170 (rear door).
4. Inspect the door operation to determine whether or not a software update needs to be performed.
^ Open one of the doors and close it gently, so that the latch only goes to the first detent. The soft close function can be observed as the door is pulled to the fully closed position.
^ Open the door again, and use moderate force to slam the door shut. This will allow the latch to immediately go to the second detent (fully closed).
a. If the door simply latches and does not visibly activate the soft close motor, no further changes are necessary.
b. If the door still exhibits the soft close feature, the door will be visibly pulled in further and then let out slightly to the fully closed position. If this occurs, continue with step c to update the vehicles software.
c. Program and code the vehicle with the most recent Progman version (target data status E065-07-09-515 or later). Refer to SI B09 05 01 (Coding, Individualization and Programming), Procedure B.
^ Progman will automatically reprogram all programmable control modules that do not have the latest software.
^ This vehicle update should include a "complete encoding" as outlined in Procedure B.
5. Inspect the door operation again to ensure that the SCA function has changed, as described below.
^ After programming and coding, if the door is fully closed using moderate force (when the latch goes to the second detent), the SCA drive will NOT operate as it did previously. The door will simply latch closed, just as if the car were not equipped with SCA.
^ NOTE:
The SCA function, using light closing forces (when the latch goes only to the first detent), remains unchanged.
PARTS INFORMATION
NOTE:
The door handles are coded parts and therefore are not in inventory in the Parts Distribution Centers. Orders for these parts must include the VIN number and could take up to a few weeks to be received from Germany.
WARRANTY INFORMATION
Covered under the terms of the BMW New Vehicle Limited Warranty.
ATTACHMENTS
view PDF attachment B510108Door_Latch_Template.
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