Front trunk/frunk stuck

[McHoffa]

Today I went to open the frunk to get my laptop out before I had to leave, and I heard the latch release, but the hood was flush with the car still. The screen showed the frunk open. I opened the app, and it also showed it open. I hit it again just in case and I hear the little motor spin, but the frunk is still closed.

I did a soft reboot, nothing
I did a hard reboot, nothing
I tried the battery trick on the front bumper tow hitch hole, nothing

Putting it in drive brings up a big warning about driving with the front trunk open

I powered down the car, and when it powers back up, it says the frunk is closed, but when I hit the button it says it's open, but it's still flush with the car.

I tried using credit cards to pry gently upward and the frunk is definitely latched.

Tesla says mobile service can get here in 24-48 hours. I'm 3 hours from service center, so driving it in in the middle of the week isn't exactly an option.

Meanwhile, my laptop is in the frunk still.... awesome.

 

[Pkmmte]

Wow, and just as I started using the frunk today for my work laptop during my commute.

Have you tried letting it go to sleep and then opening the frunk from the app to wake it up? Or opening and closing the rear trunk and seeing if that somehow resets the software's state for the front? Just taking guesses here...

 

[voip-ninja]

Today I went to open the frunk to get my laptop out before I had to leave, and I heard the latch release, but the hood was flush with the car still. The screen showed the frunk open. I opened the app, and it also showed it open. I hit it again just in case and I hear the little motor spin, but the frunk is still closed.

I did a soft reboot, nothing
I did a hard reboot, nothing
I tried the battery trick on the front bumper tow hitch hole, nothing

Putting it in drive brings up a big warning about driving with the front trunk open

I powered down the car, and when it powers back up, it says the frunk is closed, but when I hit the button it says it's open, but it's still flush with the car.

I tried using credit cards to pry gently upward and the frunk is definitely latched.

Tesla says mobile service can get here in 24-48 hours. I'm 3 hours from service center, so driving it in in the middle of the week isn't exactly an option.

Meanwhile, my laptop is in the frunk still.... awesome.

Sounds like the latch/release failed. I'm curious how they are going to open it without damaging it. On a conventional car you can get to the trunk by taking the rear seats out in these situations.

 

[Tdriver]

Try some upward pressure on the hood while someone hits the release button. The release spring that allows it to pop up maybe stuck somehow.

 

[Scrutmonkey]

Do a video first just so you have some documentation and you can probably forward to tesla. maybe they can get a Ranger out to help get it open for now, but like mentioned before, sounds like a failed latch release.

i second Tdriver, a little "jiggle jiggle" never hurt anything.

 

[davedavedave]

Maybe get some big suction cups?

 

[Cirrus MS100D]

Since it sounds like it may not be moving at all, this may be irrelevant, but we were warned that one could cause the frunk to jam of there is a LOT of stuff in there putting pressure on the latch. One possible fix is to hold some light pressure DOWN on the frunk (in the proper location so you don’t dent the hood!) and have somebody try and release.

It’s likely that something else is wrong and this won’t help at all, but worth a shot if you haven’t tried it yet.

 

[McHoffa]

Since it sounds like it may not be moving at all, this may be irrelevant, but we were warned that one could cause the frunk to jam of there is a LOT of stuff in there putting pressure on the latch. One possible fix is to hold some light pressure DOWN on the frunk (in the proper location so you don’t dent the hood!) and have somebody try and release.

It’s likely that something else is wrong and this won’t help at all, but worth a shot if you haven’t tried it yet.

I tried that a few times, but it didn't budge at all. I am pretty sure it's actually latched, even though the motor tried to move and the car thinks it's open.

If I do a complete power down, wait, then power up, it shows it as closed again, until I hit the button on the screen or phone, or using the battery trick, and the motor makes its sound.

Also, the only thing in there right now is my laptop bag, which is thin... and has my laptop in it!

 

[McHoffa]

Try some upward pressure on the hood while someone hits the release button. The release spring that allows it to pop up maybe stuck somehow.

not sure how I could get upward pressure if I wanted to, but pretty sure it's actually latched

 

[SMAlset]

Do you have a 9 v battery handy: Video: Standard 9V Battery vs Model 3 Frunk Watch the video in @MarkS22's first post.

 

[McHoffa]

Do you have a 9 v battery handy: Video: Standard 9V Battery vs Model 3 Frunk Watch the video in @MarkS22's first post.

yeah, I tried that... just like when I hit the button, I hear the motor sound, but the latch doesn't release

 

[K-MTG]

Suction cup?

 

[gregd]

Perhaps press down over the latch to remove some of the pressure on the internal mechanism, while someone else hits the unlock button?

 

[barjohn]

You could also put some gentle but firm upward pressure with a teflon coated spatula and a cloth between it and any metal (top and bottom) and pry up while releasing the latch. If you have nylon panel removal tools (they are not expensive) you could use a wide one for the same purpose or glass type suction cups on a handle.

 

[fseir]

Hmmm, my frunk does something similar, the first time I try to open it using the app. I hear the motor whir, and something release, but it stays flush with the hood. Then, when I hit the open button again, it pops up. I wonder if my mechanism is on the same path to failure?

 

[McHoffa]

I’ve tried every combination of everything but I’m still 99% sure it’s actually never disengaging the latch. If I power down the car completely and then start it back up it shows it as closed again.

 

[trmmcd]

I’ve tried every combination of everything but I’m still 99% sure it’s actually never disengaging the latch. If I power down the car completely and then start it back up it shows it as closed again.

I just had this exact problem on my Model X. They had to replace the latch mechanism.

I was able to get it open by sitting gently on the hood as I pressed the release on my key Fob. I created enough downward pressure while trying to open it. Sitting on it was the only way I was able to get the right pressure while simultaneously hitting open.

 

[voip-ninja]

I’ve tried every combination of everything but I’m still 99% sure it’s actually never disengaging the latch. If I power down the car completely and then start it back up it shows it as closed again.

Yeah that's kind of what I suspected.... the latch motor no longer has a connection to the latch so the motor running can't disengage the latch.

This is going to be a tricky one. I'm not sure how they are going to get it open without damaging it but the engineers who designed it might have some input for the ranger who gets this fun job.

Depending on how thick the metal is they might try to have him use a plastic pry tool to apply pressure to separate it enough that he can manually release it.

Another possibility is that there's a special access point somewhere in the front of the car under the bumper or something that allows for a manual release.

I'm interested in finding out what they do to rescue it... also kind of disappointing that the design itself is fragile enough that this can happen.

 

[Skidmark]

I believe that applying power to the wires under the tow hook cover is exactly the same as pressing the frunk open button, so there's not much point trying that if you already have access to the app or touchscreen.

I do find it strange that the car thinks the frunk is open if the latch doesn't actually release it though.

 

[SMAlset]

Bad enough you have a laptop, maybe for work, that you need to retrieve but imagine if you had some raw chicken from the grocery store meant for dinner that night. Now I would really feel sorry for that ranger who has to open that up after 36-48 hours!

I don't know if you'd ever get that odor out...sort of like a dead body in the car.