159 sedan boot release not working - SOLVED

[Cool Jesus]

Well, there's not too much on the subject of when your rear badge button or the remote button to open the boot on the 159 does nothing, except for the remote blinking the indicators to show that the command was received from the remote. There's a little talk about reconnecting the remote to the car after a battery removal or changing the menu seetings for boot release, however these other issues would show differing symptoms.

So, if you press the badge button and don't hear your usual clicking release and popping up of the boot, either the badge button is broke or there's a wiring issue.

If your remote fob boot release also doesn't give you the clicking release and popping of the bonnet, you have either a remote battery problem or a remote to car communication problem. If the indicates blink on the car, then that rules out remote abttery and communication problem and indicates a lock mechanism problem.

When you add the badge button and remote issues together, I concluded an electrical issue with wirring to the boot lock. Thankfully, Alfa have provided a manual release cable for the boot. If only they bloody made the think just an inch longer. You'll find your manual release cable under the rear left passanger seat. If you lift the seat cushion you'll spot what resembles the a bicycle brake line (mine was balck in colour), the steel cable type with a plastic sleeve covering the cable. Flick around near the cable (which I think is cable tied in there for stability and you'll find the pulling loop. Well, mine only just exposes itself past the seat cushion and plastic floor fascia which made it quite difficult to get my fat finger in the loop. A light tug and the boot pops open.

To confirm I had a wiring issue (before I pulled the boot to bits) I disconnected the badge button connector, check the button was working properly with a multimeter. Chack passed. I then checked the connector plug that attached to the badge for any shorts and found that the ground cable was giving me an open circuit. Pulled the boot lid connector out (near the suspension tower) checked for continuity and again found the ground wire to have an open circuit. Connector at tower had graound.

Anyhow, I removed the card coverings on the boot lid and the left area of the boot. Only need enough liner removed to access a connector near the top of the rear left suspension tower. Carfully disconnected all the connector on the boot lid, slipped of the flexible boot between lid and car body and the wiring came out without any great hassle.

I immediately found that it wasn't the first time this issue has popped up and someon had hamfisted a repair by bloody simply twisting wires together and then taping it up!!! Arghh. It apears that the cabling that travelsm through that lit to body flexible boot cops a pounding over the years after being flexed back and fourth. The plastic coating around the cables break down and begin to expose the bare cables. If they don't short each other, they will continue to flex and eventually snap, as did my ground cable to power the lock solenoid.

Anyhow, I have a bunch of spare cabling from other car prject. Matched all 7 cables for size, and spliced in a 100mm section. Just in case, I also moved the main ground splice a little further away from the flex joint. Soldered it up, heat shrink, reinstall, test and all working like Alfa again. Fantastico!