20 replies to this topic

[rsykes41]

Hi everyone I am new to the forum and wondered if anyone knew of problems with the bonnet latch on a S-max. I have a 07 1.8 diesel S-max and when I refilled the screen washer reservoir I found I could'nt shut the bonnet fully. I will obviously need to take the car to the gargage to be repaired but wanted to know the likely cost and if the bonnet might fly up if the car is driven. many thanks.

[artscot79]

Hi everyone I am new to the forum and wondered if anyone knew of problems with the bonnet latch on a S-max. I have a 07 1.8 diesel S-max and when I refilled the screen washer reservoir I found I could'nt shut the bonnet fully. I will obviously need to take the car to the gargage to be repaired but wanted to know the likely cost and if the bonnet might fly up if the car is driven. many thanks.

if its not shut properly then yes there is the risk it could fly up while being driven so ide be carefull and if necessary tie the thing down

[rsykes41]

if its not shut properly then yes there is the risk it could fly up while being driven so ide be carefull and if necessary tie the thing down

[rsykes41]

many thanks for this advice. In the end I took the car to the garage and had the bonnet release cable replaced.

[Coggers]

Hiya

Having exactly the same bonnet issue - and it was after filling up with screen wash too! I have found another forum which suggested applying WD40 but this has not worked. The lever in the footwell feels "dead" but it is still attached to the cable so appears to be doing its job. Is replacing the cable the only solution? And how much did that cost?

Thanks

Coggers

[warboys]

I had the same issue today, again when filling up the washer fluid. Ifixed mine temporarily, but it does need a new cable. Basically the cable corrodes and as a result it expand preventing it from returning to its original position after the bonnet has been released. Its a common fault that is normally repaired under warranty.

[warboys]

Had my cable replaced foc under warranty today. The dealer noticed the car was a due a service (24k), i told them I had it booked in elsewhere, which i did. They said they could do it today and match the price, total bill was £127.94, the odd £2.94 was for a new wheel centre as I had lost one. Ford ownership is already a pleasure over previous main dealer experience with many other marques.

[ChrisAng7]

Care!!
I had my bonnet catch replaced twice in 2009 under warranty but I now see that the bonnet is cracked just above the Ford grill badge.
Have spoken to dealer and entered into correspondece with Ford CRC but they will not pay for bonnet damage and have no record of similar incidents............but I have seen anoth S Max with same problem.
Anyone else with similar problem

[jmurray01]

Must be a common S-Max problem... If the car was newer Ford might have re-called them!

[S Max driver]

Had my cable replaced foc under warranty today. The dealer noticed the car was a due a service (24k), i told them I had it booked in elsewhere, which i did. They said they could do it today and match the price, total bill was £127.94, the odd £2.94 was for a new wheel centre as I had lost one. Ford ownership is already a pleasure over previous main dealer experience with many other marques.

I had this problem just as my 56 Zetec 1.8 TDCI was coming up to 60,000 miles. I took it to the Fleet workshop for the company I worked for before I retired. After 10 mins fiddling, they were able to get it shut perfectly, but advised taking it to the Ford dealer and registering the fault. I did and was without the car for 2 days only to be told that they couldn't replicate the fault but would put a note in my records.

3 months later it came back. I poked the catch with a screwdriver, removed the long plastic strip covering up access at the front of the enging, and tried to use a mirror to see how the cable attached to the bonnet catch. There is nothing useful to see. I wiggled the cable and the problem went away.

The next time it struck was the most most inconvenient possible time imaginable - but I beat it. I was about to go to the continent for a week so thought that it would be good to top up my washer. Then the bonnet would not shut, so I tried wiggling the outer of the cable - no hope. I had less than an hour left before I had to set off for the boat so hadn't got 3 or 4 days to stay at home while I got a slot with the local dealer to diagnose the fault then wait a day or so for the part and then hope that there was a slot available to have it fitted. Once I was about an hour too late for the sailing I lost patience, got out my small socket set, and removed the catch. The cable had somehow caught where it enteded the catch and just by unscrewing the thing it all freed up instantly. There was no sign of corrosion. I just re-assembled it and it has been perfect. Having developed the 'crazy wipers/crazy alarm fault' since then, the bonnet has been opened and closed around 100 times with no problem so it has had a good test.

It seems that the fault is neither in the cable nor the catch, but in how they fit together. This is likely to be because the tolerances on the dimensions are pretty lax. Replacing either will achieve just the same result (loosen up the caught cable and move the catch around a little so that it all aligns better and doesn't sieze up again) but you will have to pay for a part you don't need.

Once I had decided to dive in, it took no more than 20 minutes to take off the plastic cover, release the screws holding the catch and put it all back together just like new, but working perfectly!

[warboys]

I now see that the bonnet is cracked just above the Ford grill badge

Mine too

[All new Shmoo]

I had this issue - car was out of warranty and cost me £130 to get fixed. Have had several problems with my smax (barely 3 years old) including: air con leaking water into driver footwell, heated windscreen failed, door and windscreen plastic mouldings fell off, exhaust prematurely failed at 60000 miles and it eats tyres 'like a fat kid eats cake'. Great car to drive (2L diesel with IVDC) and looks good for an MPV but won't be getting a new one in Nov - it's just too annoying, inconvenient and expensive having to get these niggles fixed.

[craftsman]

Also had this problem and the answer is fairly simple. remove the plastic cover around the latch. feel along the cable until you find a peg holding the cable to the fan housing. Loosen the peg, and the cable will operate freely. it appears to pull the cable out of line,causing the inner wire to bind. I left the peg loose,it does not cause any problems and no more trouble for past two years.

[fedupwithjunk]

My bonnet latch problem was a 15 minute fix. Unclip the plastic cover and undo the 2 10mm bolts holding the catch. At this point you might hear/feel the catch click back into position. My catch had a very small amout of corrosion just where the cable emmerges from the nipple, which a bit of 3 in 1 oil and wiggling soon eliminated. Douse the whole thing in oil and re-attach and hey presto it even has a nicer sounding "thunk" when closing now. There are several stories on the internet - the same fix done a couple of years ago and still works.

I hope all these mechanics who are charging £125 are doing a bit more than this.....?

The problem is the usual poor engineering design in non critical components. The cable has to pass through an unecessary tight 90degree turn and then is exposed to the elements just where condensation with drip onto it. (I hope the designer has since realised he is crap and got a less demanding job)

[Jonc]

Thanks for the above advice. I've just fixed mine in about half an hour having read the above postings. I unclipped the cover, removed the backplate behind the catch, extracting the mechanism and then worked the part where the wire comes in at the bottom a few times. Gave it a good spray of some high quality winter cycle oil (beats WD40 any day as it repels water far better). I didn't hear a click or any thing, but when I shut the lid it worked - so I'm not quite sure what fixed it - but I'm just happy to have saved myself some money!

Not good design on Ford's part as the wire seems very exposed. Perhaps something that needs a quick spray every feww months as a preventative.