having some hatch issues
 

iv been having some hatch problems since i bought my car which is about 2 weeks ago...,the problem is that my hatch wouldnt lock so i figured it was my back hatch lock, well i was correct

i pulled off my inteior tail panel thats covering my hatch moter and right after i pulled the panel away my moter fell into my well, it wasnt bolted to anything so question number 1 where does this thing bolt in??? i cant seem to find the holes

well i followed the wires along the right side of my taillight only to find 2 plugs un plugged and i cant find out where they plug in at, im not finding anything they would go too

and i dont have a power hatch only a power assist hatch where the moter pulls the hatch tight against the weatherstripping

Re: having some hatch issues
 

hatch motor bolts into SQUARE holes in the rear - that's why your not finding the holes. they are square to allow for some adjustment before the bolts are torqued down tight. 1 or 2 of the connectors plug right into the hatch motor - so look in and around the motor for places to plug these loose connectors.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

ah,thank you

Re: having some hatch issues
 

The pull down motor housing is plastic and is very commonly smashed beyond repair. This is an unfortunate byproduct of slamming the 3rd gen hatch

Good news is several companies sell new housings and rebuilding them is simple

Post a pic of the connectors

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Do tell :cool:

Re: having some hatch issues
 

i will get those pictures tomorrow since its dark out and its snowing so its cold lol, and what is the housing? the tail peice or?

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Pull down motor and housing

Re: having some hatch issues
 

isnt that at the bottom of your lock?

Re: having some hatch issues
 

This is what is mounted to the body of the car. The clear plastic is known as the housing. Note that the other member stated that the housing always breaks because of slamming the hatch, well this is one the parts that breaks, other than the gears stripping. Yes, its just below that latch. If your going to fix the pull down hatch area, then you should get the whole kit which includes a re-inforced housing, plastic guide sliders, gear nut, everything bro. Let me help you look for it. hold on.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Here you go bro, just the website that you need. http://www.hawksthirdgenparts.com/ha...omponents.aspx :welcome:

Re: having some hatch issues
 

No, the lock itself is riveted to the body between the tailights

The latch is ontop of the motor and rides it up/down the tracks. The metal piece bolted to the latch with the cable is the remote release solenoid

Re: having some hatch issues
 

thank you!!

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yea thats what i ment :D

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I know what Im talking about. But, obviouly, I messed up. Anyway:yup: (pocket). I stand corrected (term wise).

Re: having some hatch issues
 

i still understood what you were trying to say

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those two pictures are of plug 1, the next are a totally different plug

Re: having some hatch issues
 

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Re: having some hatch issues
 

First connector goes to the hatch light in the large panel you removed to access the pull down motor

Second looks like the remote release solenoid wire. I cant tell exactly from the small pics. Try plugging it into the various places on the motor, it will only fit in one place

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Do you have any pictures of the entire pulldown assembly? That might help to locate where the damage is and the wiring. Also, the link above may only have the parts for early pulldowns... I believe yours is the newer version, the 90-92 assembly, but pics will confirm.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

ill get pictures of that assembly tomorrow, forgot to get that lol

how many pictures? one of the front and one of the back?

also my car is a 90 camaro rs so is it different or the same?

Re: having some hatch issues
 

One pic, as viewed from the front of the unit (back seat) will tell. You just need to make sure that it's close enough to tell what's going on back there.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

well since its not bolted on i can just pop my back hatch, take off that panel, then pull the moter up


so is my panel different because of its year, is does that plug run to my light like pocket said?

Re: having some hatch issues
 

The 2-wire plug DOES run to the light in the tail panel. Yes, your tail panel is slightly different, because it has only the light in the rear, where most earlier cars had the light controlled by its own switch right next to it. Other than that, it's not. It's the pulldown that IS different, I think.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

well i will look at that tomorrow and see if it fits, and i will get some pictures of the pulldown assembly aswell when i get up

Re: having some hatch issues
 

late but here are those pictures, my rear hatch compartment is ruined

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https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/pict...ictureid=11593 this is that plug no one was sure of, hope these two pictures help better

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Re: having some hatch issues
 

Ok. the housing fell because your either missing 3 bolts that hold the housing together with the sliding plate (also you'll need new nylon guide/sliding bars), or the bolts broke right at the yellow arrows thus having no support.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Probably a broken motor housing... Happens a lot. Look on the TDS site for one. Try to get a reinforced one if you can, and get the gear nut at the same time.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/pict...ictureid=11595

picture i forgot

Re: having some hatch issues
 

so what you guys are saying is that my hatch housing is gone right?

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Yes sir. you should be able to see any threads here that are exposed in the yellow area. The housing is broken here in the yellow. Thats the MAIN section that holds your motor housing to the slider base. Compare yours to the other. The number 3 means that here goes the 3 bolts that hold your housing to the large plate that allows the whole pull down assembly to slide up and down.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

okay, so is there any way to close my hatch so i atleast dont get any water in my hatch area anymore?

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Buy the parts and fix it....The repair dose not take rocket science skills. Three major parts:
1) Motor assembly
2) Dr gear
3) Nylon sildes
Also download the repair instuctions from Topdownsolutions....
:2cents:

Re: having some hatch issues
 

so i need to get a new moter housing?, and i plan on getting that part but right now im broke ( 15 remember guys) so i just need to temporarly close it till i get the part

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Poke around at some local junkyards... They might have a whole motor assembly that you can stick on there. I think there's 2 at the yard I usually go to, but I couldn't swear to it.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

I went to the junkyard and pulled a motor assembly out of a 93 Cadillac. Exact match, 12 bucks. My local junkyard has tons of caddys.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

Well, you could always close it the ******* way... Bungee cord! Hook one end of the cord between one of the metal loops at the bottom of the well that the rear panel hooks into, through the hatch loop, and hook the other end in the other loop at the bottom of the well. Just don't try to drive that way, it may not hold :eek: .

Re: having some hatch issues
 

dave you should know better than anyone that my car is in parts right now so i doubt ill be driving it for awhile, can anyone post a list of ALL the cars that have the same time of hatch moter assemblys as ours? and i have two junkyards that are close to me that have SEVERAL and i mean over 20 trans ams and camaros each but most of the hatchs are locked so its hard to pull the moter off like that lol

Re: having some hatch issues
 

also is there anyway i can push my moter up to latch it that push it down instead of a bungee cord? would be alot simpler i think

Re: having some hatch issues
 

All GM models from 1977 to 1991 used the same motor. As i said earlier though, the 93 Caddy motor and housing is exactly the same, even though it's not included in the list.

Re: having some hatch issues
 

okay, that helps alot thanks

Re: having some hatch issues
 

The motor won't stay down if the slider doesn't connect to the bracket through the motor housing, which is obviously broken to pieces.

If the hatches are locked, it's simple to get them open. Move any crap you have to to get the rear seat folded down, lay down and crawl into the hatch, pop the light out of the rear panel, insert a screwdriver into the slot that is exposed, and turn the screwdriver. Hatch will pop, and you have a motor assembly.

BTW, I know I was going to send you the stock intake air box, but I'm using it at the moment because I'd rather not damage my new MAF by knocking the elbow off of it. I'm going to try to get some more intake piping and fab something up, but my hours just got cut again and I have to watch my spending.