Hi Everyone,

Probably another stupid question, so sorry if this has been asked before or if it is obvious, however I have tried searching all the 'terms' that I can think of; but still no helpful search results.

I have just got to the stage of installing my boot lock/latch (on my 65 mini deluxe) however it seems that the boot latch has 4 holes to attach onto the boot itself, however there are only 2 holes on the boot (for bolts to attach to). Whilst this itself is not much of a problem (as the 2 present holes match with the latch) it seems that when the boot is closed (and latched) it sticks out 1-2cm from the rest of the body. It is a loose fit and the boot can easily be pushed back (without any effort) to match the rest of the body contour, however then the latch obviously doesn't have anything to hold against, so it will just pop back out to the original position when it is let go.

From my understanding, this probably means that there is a different boot latch that I am missing (hence the story about the 2 vs. 4 hole latch), or perhaps I am some how missing a piece attached to the body where the latch sits, which holds it 1-2cm further back (and hence allows the boot to align with the body)?

Any help is appreciated.

If photos are required then I can get some, but it will take me a few days to get the chance.

Thanks in advance,
Richard

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borrowing a couple of pictures... this is a '70 model and has the same boot latch as you. Does your car have the tab that the latch goes behind? sounds like it's missing - should be spot welded on...

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Hi Simon,
Thanks for the reply.

I can't actually remember if it has a tab there, I will have to have a look tomorrow and get back to you.
If it is missing, the car is already painted, so welding a new one on will ruin that...I'll have to come up with a different way to work around it .

Thanks again,
Richard

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I've just spoken to a mate who helps me work on it, and we are both 95% sure that there is a tab on mine.
I can't see that tab on your photos particularly well, but from memory the one on mine isn't very thick...maybe its been squashed/altered somehow?? Although, from what I can remember it hasn't seemed squashed our out of place (that doesn't mean much with my memory though).

Thanks
Richard

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Richard,

When you say there is only two holes for the bolts, where are they? on the top edge or on the inside face of the boot lid?

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On the top edge, just like the one simon posted a pic of.

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Mine looks like this:


It has 2 screws in the top edge, and 2 in the back as well (though 1 is missing from mine at the moment due to a dodgy thread)

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My latch is the same as yours (with 4 screw holes), but the car only has the 2 holes (the 2 that both have screws in your photo).
The screws don't seem to be the problem though, as the 2 still line up propely, it is more that the boot latch doesn't line the boot up with the body when closed...

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The latch plate on the body looks like this:


That is looking up, so the RH end in the photo is spot welded to the underside of the parcel shelf.

This is on my '69.

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I'm pretty sure that mine has something very similar (if not the same).
I haven't actually looked up at it, I have only felt it to try and work out what it is supposed to latch onto, but from what I remember it would be nearly exactly the same.

Its weird, I would say that perhaps the boot or body is slightly bent out of shape (causing the boot to not fit properly) but it fits properly when you hold it (which I wouldn't expect if it was bent). It just seems that the latch or the tab isn't at the right depth for some reason.

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I'm not sure looking at my latch plate piccy where the blade of the latch actually rests when it is holding the boot closed against the seal. I'll have a look tomorrow night if you have not solved the mystery by then.

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Hey guys,

Thanks again for your help.
I had a look over the weekend and compared mine to the pictures.
I think the plate welded onto the boot has some how just been flattened against the shell itself.

I bent it out and the latch now seems to fit in place nearly perfectly.

Thanks for the help
Richard

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