[SeaRay310DA]

My wife yelled to me from the garage last weekend. "You have to come down here right now." Went down there, and she explained that she went to open the garage door and didn't realize my rear lift gate was open. The way I was parked, the gate was in contact with the garage door as it operated. It left a nasty dent in the bottom of the lift gate.

I took it in for an estimate this morning, and I was told they probably couldn't remove the dent and would have to completely replace the lift gate (which I assume means just the bare metal part or however basic the assembly gets sold as a part). Guy told me it would probably run north of $1500 to replace, depending on the part cost. Ouch. I would up filing a claim, etc, and won't know the total cost for a few days.

What's kind of annoying is that this is the second time my lift gate has been open for no apparent reason in the garage. Last summer when it happened I noticed it before I opened the garage door, but I also assumed the keyfob in my pocket had opened the door.

This time, I'm not so sure. I keep my keys in my coat pocket in the winter, which hangs on the coat hook. Based on actually trying to "accidentally" open the lift gate with the fob in my coat pocket, I couldn't make it happen by random pressure. You kind of do need to really push and hold that button. Now I'm left wondering how the heck the lift gate opened and if I can expect to happen again. I actually rerarranged the garage a bit so I can pull in far enough to not worry so much about my own garage, but now I'm kind of wondering -- what if this happened in a parking lot or on the street? It'd be a clusterf--- for sure.

 

[xydadx3]

Pretty sure you’re not the first to mention a seemingly random lift gate opening. If I recall correctly they all seem to have garages in common....

 

[packout]

Pretty sure you’re not the first to mention a seemingly random lift gate opening. If I recall correctly they all seem to have garages in common....

My experience had nothing to do with a garage. I too assumed it was the fob in my pants pocket. Fortunately even with exposed thousands of dollars.

 

[Robert.Mauro]

I've unlocked the doors, opened the liftgate, and set off the alarm on various occasions. I bought this, which stopped it from happening.

 

[GaryInMI]

That has happened twice with my Limited, once at a Residence Inn in LA which was embarrassing but luckily someone noticed it and someone else from the office came down and told me. The second time was in the garage and it was open over night, luckily, I have enough clearance so mine doesn't hit the door but the battery was pretty much drained.

Sorry you had damage, that stinks.

My solution was the same FOB Robert, plus a cut out for the hatch button plus a zip tie guard. No problems since,

Apologies for the pocket link...

 

[Luis Padilla]

That zip tie is hilarious but must’ve been an effective temp solution at the time.^^^^

 

[RobertD]

I had mine open overnight in the rain. Surprised there was only a tiny bit of water in the car.

Being new to lift gates I have been wondering why it goes out so far and why it opens with such force that it would damage it instead of stopping. I am almost afraid to back into parking spaces.

 

[Trey T]

OP: that’s exactly my fear. Our forester is shorter so keeping it in the short garage isn’t a fear to me but I bet it’s gonna happen to my Ascent

 

[GaryInMI]

That zip tie is hilarious but must’ve been an effective temp solution at the time.^^^^

Yes, crude but effective and still on there because these two don't play nice together:

 

[Robert.Mauro]

You all gave me a different idea that I think you will all like. It is an adaptation of your idea. I will post pictures and videos soon.

 

[SeaRay310DA]

I've unlocked the doors, opened the liftgate, and set off the alarm on various occasions. I bought this, which stopped it from happening.

View attachment 2541

That's clever, where did you buy it?

Many moons ago, I had a keyfob garage door opener that I swear was so sensitive you could open the garage door by just looking at it.

I wound up using a bead of Sugru silicone putty to put a ridge around the button to diminish the chances of opening the garage door accidentally.

 

[Robert.Mauro]

That's clever, where did you buy it?

Many moons ago, I had a keyfob garage door opener that I swear was so sensitive you could open the garage door by just looking at it.

I wound up using a bead of Sugru silicone putty to put a ridge around the button to diminish the chances of opening the garage door accidentally.

Amazon, two pack:

• https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B072JJD3WC/

There's different color combinations available than the blue and black I chose. I found getting two different colors meant I wouldn't mix up key fobs associated with my driver profile.

 

[SeaRay310DA]

Pretty sure you’re not the first to mention a seemingly random lift gate opening. If I recall correctly they all seem to have garages in common....

I thought I had read about it here, too. Occam's Razor would suggest it is the keyfob being accidentally pressed, but I guess I wonder if there's some other explanation, like an internal electronics malfunction.

The other thought that occurred to me was potentially a side effect of advanced car theft. A couple years ago we had a rash of car break-ins in m neighborhood which included cars known to be locked but which had keyless drive setups. From what I've read, thieves have used sophisticated dual radio setups to re-transmit keyfob radio pings to trick the car into believing the keyfob was near, and unlock the doors. This seemed to be the thing in this case.

Maybe some similar is hack is happening at night in my neighborhood, with thieves driving down the block with some kind of radio system hoping to see car lights blink and move in for the score.

After posting, there was one other time where it happened and it was when I was at the marina. When we came back from a day out on the water, a marine employee said the lift gate was open on my car and they eventually closed it. It's most likely in the bustle of unloading the car it got left open, but I kind of believe I made sure it got closed. And in that instance, we were gone too far away for the fob to have done anything. Even in the slip, we're a good hundred yards away from the parking lot.

I know there's been gripes about the battery draining when the lift gate is left open on purpose; maybe some compromise solution would be the lift gate automatically closing after a period of inactivity.

 

[scooby]

@GaryInMI That is brilliant!

My experience came from hitting the button in my pocket while the garage door was already closed. The lift gate hits the garage door right at one of the hinges and chipped away at the paint.

 

[GaryInMI]

@GaryInMI That is brilliant!

My experience came from hitting the button in my pocket while the garage door was already closed. The lift gate hits the garage door right at one of the hinges and chipped away at the paint.

I can see how that can happen. And without checking first you'd never know and raise the door like normal.

Even though I didn't have any damage because I built my garage 26' deep, I was not a happy camper to come out and find the hatch open and the battery nearly drained.

I told my wife that I was going to fix that sucker so it never happened again!

I know that this was self inflicted because of my folding knife. I use that thing all the time because my hands and especially my thumbs are pretty deformed from arthritis. Any kind of plastic packaging or zip lock bags are impossible to open, not to mention all of the Amazon and Zulily boxes. Don't ever say the word Zulily to your wife, it's like a virus!

 

[scooby]

I can see how that can happen. And without checking first you'd never know and raise the door like normal.

Even though I didn't have any damage because I built my garage 26' deep, I was not a happy camper to come out and find the hatch open and the battery nearly drained.

I told my wife that I was going to fix that sucker so it never happened again!

I know that this was self inflicted because of my folding knife. I use that thing all the time because my hands and especially my thumbs are pretty deformed from arthritis. Any kind of plastic packaging or zip lock bags are impossible to open, not to mention all of the Amazon and Zulily boxes. Don't ever say the word Zulily to your wife, it's like a virus!

Oh mine was unintentional as well. And more than likely it was also my pocket knife that hit the button in my pocket. I was pretty annoyed at the situation but laugh at it now.

 

[dkdk]

I have a tiny clip that put your keys on and hook on the top of your pocket. It keeps them higher in your pocket and away from anything else in there. It seems to help with accidental button presses. Amazon has a two pack for 20 something, search for TEC Accessories P-7 (I'd post a link, but apparently I'm not trustworthy yet).

 

[GaryInMI]

I have a tiny clip that put your keys on and hook on the top of your pocket. It keeps them higher in your pocket and away from anything else in there. It seems to help with accidental button presses. Amazon has a two pack for 20 something, search for TEC Accessories P-7 (I'd post a link, but apparently I'm not trustworthy yet).

Thanks!

TEC Accessories P-7 Keychain Suspension Clip - Stainless Steel (1-Pack) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L75GRX6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_6R69DbKF5W1E7

 

[RobertD]

Yes, crude but effective and still on there because these two don't play nice together:
View attachment 2555

This sure sounds like a good reason to get another pocket knife to me. Can never have too many...

 

[scooby]

good reason to get another pocket knife to me. Can never have too many...

So true!