A3 (2006) bonnet release cable broken/unhitched

[SME]

Hi, my A3 bonnet release cable has either snapped at the front of the car or has come unhitched, any suggestions for opening the bonnet would be greatly appreciated.

When you pull the lever inside the car you can hear movement at the front of the bonnet near the catch but does not open the bonnet.

I've tried looking on google, most say to push bonnet down while trying to release, that won't work as the cable is not connected.

Any ideas?

[Magnet]

Hello Sarah,

Sounds like you have tried the obvious ‘tried and tested’ method and failed. Strange since you say you can hear cable movement around the bonnet catch. 

As you are probably now aware, getting anywhere near the the bonnet catch is a right headache - easy if you can remove the grille/ whole front bumper, but....

We have the same model year so will have a look at the what can be removed ‘from the outside’ with the bonnet locked. Will attempt to do this over the weekend if the weather improves. 

If it were mine, I would be nipping it around to a helpful local garage and asking them to get it on the ramp and see how accessible the catch may be once the undertray is removed. 

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[SME]

Thanks Gareth, due to work being hectic at the moment havent had time to take it anywhere yet, I've got it booked in for a service at the end of the month so hoping to get it done myself before then to keep the cost down!

Sarah.

[cliffcoggin]

I looked under the bonnet of my 2007 model and can see no way to release the catch from below unfortunately.

I wonder if it is possible for the secondary catch, (the one you release from under the bonnet lip,) to be jamming. Normally, releasing the primary catch allows the bonnet to jump up half an inch on its spring until the secondary catch holds it. However if that secondary catch is jammed or its spring is broken it may give the false impression of the primary cable being broken. Sarah can you get somebody to operate the secondary lever and pull upwards on the bonnet while you simultaneously pull the primary lever?

[Magnet]

Hello Sarah,

To me, it looks promising that you may be able to get at the bonnet catch mechanism if the plastic undertray is removed and the car is raised on a lift to allow a long firm stick - or whatever to be poked up on the fan side of the radiator. I would not like to attempt this on my back, so it looked old like it’s best left to a trusted local garage. 

We are assuming that the bonnet bouncing while attempting to pull the bonnet release has been attempted by the two person method, and you have checked that the problem is not at the release pull end.

Kind regards,

Gareth.

[SME]

Thanks for the advice all, car has been in the garage since yesterday, they are also stumped, so will show them the suggestions in the morning, if they cant do it, looks like I will be heading to local Audi to get it sorted 🙈

[SME]

Update

Took it to Audi......it had snapped the cable at the front of the bonnet where it connects to the catch.

The mechanic unscrewed number plate then unclipped the grill at the bottom (top is held in by screws at the top under the lip of the bonnet) pulled it forward and wedged it with a block of wood, reached up and managed to locate the catch and used a hook to slide open the lock. Took him about 3 hours to figure it out.

I had to go back to the garage today as the cable had become unclipped again and was on my way after less than 20 minutes.

My advice to anyone in this situation is to cable tie the box that covers the join in the wire, as the wire is tight when new and forces itself out of the housing when tight.

Thanks for the advice guys x

 

[cliffcoggin]

Glad to hear the problem is solved, Sarah, and thanks for letting us know, though a little worrying that the new cable disconnected so quickly. It makes me wonder if the cable route is not right, leading to a sharp radius or a misalignment.