My hatch motor just gets really hot to the touch. It works sometimes, but briefly. Other times I have to give it a little whack to make the latch come up. Ill try pushing the little tab to make the latch come up.. then all I hear is a little thump noise in the motor and gets really hot and nothing happens. Any ideas?

 

nvm

 

Did you figure this out? i had the same problem with mine and have not figured it out. i ended up un plugging it and using it that way.
one thing i noticed was that the housing was broken on it. but im not sure how to remove it to put a new one on.

 

Replace it. It's toast.

 

Motors that get hot and do nothing are toast and can start fires...

 

I took the entire thing apart and noticed this little black switch right above the motor. I guess it powers it and is supposed to tell the motor when to go up and down based on the latch "striker" whether the hatch it closed or open. Anyways, Im sure its malfunctioning because when I tap it with a screw driver a couple times it will work for second. The motor still gets hot though so im sure its on its way out, and the plastic housing is cracked. The gear inside was fine. Im getting another used hatch pull down motor/ housing and everything from a friend to save the trouble.


Heres a good video that helped me a lot if you havent seen it already

 

There's a good tech article on TGO about repairing and replacing this... it says pretty clearly don't take the cover off the motor :P

 

LOL believe me if I saw that, I wouldn't have done it. Such a PITA to get back together

 

Had the same problem with my 91 RS. Bought a deluxe rebuild kit from TDS (top-down solutions.com). Quality Kit with a new motor and reinforced motor housing. About $125, money well spent works great.