Looks like I'm going to be installing my THIRD trunk lock actuator assembly on my 2004 XJ8. When I bought the car in 2015 the motor was making a grinding noise, but having replaced this on my previous car (An X308) If figured it was a cheap easy fix which it was. Called the Jaguar Graveyard guys and got a replacement assembly for $75. Installation was a little fiddly but took less than 20 minutes. It worked great up until a few days ago when the motor stopped drawing down the trunk lid in soft touch mode. I got the TRUNK OPEN warning on the dash and the key fob wouldn't lock the car or set the alarm. It could only be done with the key in the driver's door and then I'd hear the 2 beeps indicating a security system fault. Fast forward to yesterday and neither the fob, trunk release on the dash, button on the lid nor the key under the license plate well would open the trunk. I was 100% locked out of the trunk. Luckily there were no groceries back there to spoil! Being the kind of person that refuses to be beaten by some good-fer-nuthin British car, I devised a solution and found the problem. If this ever happens to you, remove the license plate and drill a hole dead center of the plastic plate recess area (I used a 13/16" drill) and through the outer aluminum skin. Once this is done, you will see the emergency release cable inside the hole. Grab it with a pair of thin needle-nosed pliers and pull upward which will open the trunk. The mistake I made when I installed the actuator the last time is that I in correctly routed the cable which connects the lock cylinder to the latch which made the cable too long disabling the manual unlock function. I pulled out the actuator assembly and reinstalled it correctly so the key now unlocks the trunk but the lid still won't draw down completely. It's most likely that the actuator has again gone bad and will require replacement. I'm going new this time. The part is C2C1740 and is available from the usual suspects for around $200. Cost to get into the trunk - $0, and since the access hole I drilled is hidden under the license plate (I plugged it with a rubber grommet from my local ACE hardware) he intrusion is invisible. Problem solved and lesson learned. I'm sure I'm not the 1st person that this has happened to so I hope that if you're in the same predicament my misfortune will at least help out.

 

Thanks. Not that it's happened yet but I sleep better now knowing I have to drill a big hole in the body ;-)

 

I heard of a guy that had the same thing happen to him on Christmas eve. The trunk was full of presents that were supposed to go under the tree. Talk about the Grinch who stole Christmas!
These cars certainly have the desire to throw a tantrum at the worst opportune time! Good thing I hadn't been to the fish market!

 

Here's another thing: Make sure the glow-in-the-dark escape pull is routed 100% correctly, even the slightest bit of tension pulling on the latch mechanism will disable the soft close feature and you'll get the "TRUNK OPEN" warning on the panel.

 

Of course there's always the Redneck method if you so prefer. Talk about a nightmare!

 

Holy moly! I dont want to see the redneck who tries the sawzall on an X350 with the fuel tank residing right behind that seat!

 

Jeez. "The Shining" has nothing on this.
I was forced to watch the entire video in horror.

 

Guess only thing to say would be;
He got'er done.
He just might want to consider the vocation of a butcher, at a slaughter house.

 

Or a XJ-40. Would be a shorter video.....BOOM

 

Oops. Freud must be at work (me being already familiar with this thread, not to mention plain dumb.)
Today, whilst playing around with battery chargers and cables small enough to close the boot/trunk on, I managed to lock my keys in the trunk. I did!

Several minutes of panic. I do have a chainsaw in the garage. Fortunately I found the spare key after settling down to a thinking state.
True. Today.

 

Depending on the price, a locksmiths service, or a key from any dealer would be what one might consider.

 

I think the cheapest option would be another key cut (without the transponder) to
manually open the cabin and the boot.

 

Locksmith involved

 

How did you manage to do that? The doors won't lock with the trunk open nor can you lock the vehicle without the key or remote. At least you chose the thought process to solve your dilemma rather than a shortcut to thinking - also known as the Redneck method :-)

 

Start with car locked. Unlock boot. Throw keys in boot. Close boot. Mutter "why did I get up this morning?"
Obviously there were other distractions, but I'm really good at testing "idiot-proofness".
Not to mention another momentary panic...the spare valet key doesn't open the boot. i.e. not directly