I have a '99 Z24 that didn't come with a button or latch inside the car to make the trunk pop open. I had an aftermarket keyless entry system installed on the car, and my remote also has a button to pop the trunk. However, I was told that I need to get a solenoid installed before the remote can be programmed to open the trunk.
My eventual goal is to get the trunk keyhole shaved & have the trunk button on my remote working. Does anyone know the easiest method to accomplish this? Should I get a trunk from a junkyard from a Cav that already had keyless or a trunk release button in the interior? Or would it be cheaper to buy a solenoid?.....I think they told me it would be another $75 to $100 to have that added. Is it something I could easily do myself?
I would suggest going to a junkyard and getting the latch off of a newer car and screwing it into where yours is. I'm not sure where the solenoid (or whatever it is) is in the car but that'd prolly be the easiest way to do it IMO.
Other people should chime in pretty soon though.
-Seth
When you say latch, do you mean the assembly behind the keyhole? Also, would it be possible to buy a button or lever from the interior of a newer Cav at a junkyard and install that in my interior?.....I would have to run wires to something in the trunk, right?
^ I would want the interior button or lever in case my keyless ever goes out on me.
go on ebay and buy one of the kits on there. thats what i did and it cost me like 10 bucks i believe. After i got it i looked it over and found out its the excat same kit Autoloc sells. Works good too.
1998 Sunfire, 2.2L auto
Go to the junkyard and get the latch at the bottom of the trunk that holds the trunk shut...it has the solenoid in it. Then you need to run your 12V power wire and just use the bolt that holds that latch on as a power ground. 2 bolts hold it on and it pops off the back of the key switch.
So would I need to get the trunk latch from a Cav that had factory keyless or would the latch still have a solenoid if the Cav only had a manual trunk release from inside the car?
Does a latch with the solenoid look any different from one without it, or are they just different on the inside?
Ya, just go to the junkyard and grab the latch that holds the trunk down and all the wires and everything that go to the push button on the dash. Wire it all in and it should work fine.
-Seth
Is this a good buy to have as a backup in case the keyless ever goes out with a shaved trunk?
Trunk Release on eBay
^^^ Looks like it would work but i would still just go get one from the junkyard. It'd bolt right on.
-Seth
The junkyard sounds like the best bet......I never thought of buying everything including the wires that run all the way through to the interior button or latch. I'm assuming they will run under the carpet on the floor, right? Would I have to take the seats out & stuff from the car at the junkyard to be able to get all the wiring out?
They will prolly run under the carpet retainers in that giant mess of wires wrapped together. Unbolt the latch from the trunk and follow the wires thru the trunk into the interior of the car. Then you'll prolly have to cut the tape or unwrap it from that wire "chunk". Follow the wires to the dash and then take out the button on the dash. Take it to ur car, screw on the latch, route the wires, install the button and wire it up. A good place to put the button is in ur glove box so if you lock ur glovebox door, noone can get into ur trunk like if u have subs and such.
Search and you'll find a post on how other people did it. If u need more help just ask and i can offer more tomorrow. I'm going to bed now though.
-Seth
Sounds like he covered everything....
And, yeah, it does have to be from a cav w/power locks and such. Best bet is to find a Z.
open your trunk and see if it has a wire attached to a round cylinder that is part of the latch , it the part on the trunk lid itself
if there is a round cylinder there you have the power release already
as far as i know if there wasnt a pull inside the car , then the car had keyless(factory) and it had the power trunk
also if you pull the trunk carpet down on the driver side , look above the tire well there will be a box there that is the factory keyless module is
if yours doesnt have the power release , then the junk yard part would be a good idea , just cut the plug leaving about 5" of wire the shop will do the rest when hooking it up
since they have to use a relay either way
That kit you linked to on eBay is identical to the kits we stock & sell locally. I can match that eBay price of $20 shipped if you're interested.
I used this style solenoid "kit" on my Cavalier when I had it, and it worked great. The installation is pretty easy to do.
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Chris, if your 99Z did not come with a solinoid already on it, which I thought all Z's came with, just go to a junk yard and look for a Z with keyless entry. My Z has one. For an internal release, I just bought a push button from Radio Shack and connectec one end to a constant 12v than ran the other end to the solinoid. Most Z's did not come with internal trunk releases. Mine didn't. It's easy to do and cheap too.
98 Z24
RIP Specks
i was wondering how i would be able to do this to my 99 fire as well. I might be buying a shaved trunk soon from somone and in order to get in i would need a trunk release. So what parts would i need in order to use the shaved trunk? I dont have power locks either if that matters. Sorry to jack the thread but i didnt see the need to start a another post about the same thing
wizkiddrummer wrote:Ya, just go to the junkyard and grab the latch that holds the trunk down and all the wires and everything that go to the push button on the dash. Wire it all in and it should work fine.
-Seth
Easy as that. Should cost like 10-15 bucks from the junkyard.
-Seth
Thank you guys for all the info. I'm heading to the junkyard tomorrow morning because they have two Z's that just came in last week......hopefully at least one of them has factory keyless.
Would it be better to get the trunk release button/lever with wiring back to the trunk from a Cav w/o factory keyless since I already have an aftermarket keyless system?
I'm not sure but they should both be pretty easy. Im thinking if it had the button on the bottom dash then it has keyless.
-Seth
Ok, they had 2 Cavs at the yard, and both of them had the manual trunk release lever on the floor between the driver's seat & the door. I followed the wiring to where it goes behind the trunk latch, and it looked like it connected to a small black box. When I look at my car, there is a black cylinder that looks like it plugs in behind the trunk latch. The two Cavs at the yard did not have this black cylinder. I'm not sure if this cylinder is a stock piece or if this was something that the shop added when they installed my keyless/alarm system.
As far as I know, my car didn't come from the factory with keyless entry. I bought the car used, and they only gave me one key with no remote or anything. I looked all over the interior, and I do not have a trunk pull lever or trunk button. The shop that installed my aftermarket keyless entry/alarm system told me that since I did not have a lever or button in the interior of the car, I would have to pay them an extra $100 to have a solenoid added so they could program the trunk release button on my remote to work. Are they BS'ing me or are they correct? I think I'm gonna try to take a picture of my trunk latch, and maybe someone can tell me if I already have a solenoid.
Ya take a pic of the latch and it'll be a bunch easier to tell whats goin on.
-Seth
I'm not sure, but im thinking that isn't stock - idk though. But it does look like its a solenoid - or something that uses electricity. Follow that wire and see where it goes. Maybe its just 2 loose ends and u just have to wire a switch in and it'll work - idk. See where the wire goes and we can go from there.
-Seth
That is what it looks like. You need to get the whole latch and get the cable that goes up to the back of the lock cylinder too. Also, take the clip that plugs into the latch solenoid.
j
