Hi all,

Sorry if anyone has posted similar to this in the past i did have a quick look but couldn't find exactly what I'm after.

My other half literally 30mins ago just reversed my beloved RRS 2012 (electronic tailgate) model into our garage with the tailgate open and i think it has bent the hinges as the the tailgate will not latch shut now. The tailgate locking mechanism now sits about an inch above latch / hook, that it uses to lock shut.

I can tie the boot shut from the inside, but i need to use the car Monday in central london and need to be able to lock it.

Can anyone please tell me how i can fool the tailgate sensor into thinking its locked, i used a screw driver to close the tailgate latch. But it still make the double bleep sound when i press lock on the key.

I have the IID tool, but i've not locked it to this car yet. Would be possible to use the IID tool to turn off the tail gate open warning. So i can at least lock the doors till i can take the car into the get the tailgate fixed?

Any help massively appreciated. 2012 RRS HSE 5.0 SUPERCHARGED Santorini Black

There are several options for the tailgate in the CCF files, but none appear to mention turning off any warnings, only a thought but could you loosen the hinges slightly and flex the tailgate enough to latch correctly, only thing is if that did work whether it would release again, if not would probably be in bigger mess than ever, could possibly remove the tailgate lower trim panel first which might allow you to get to the latch from inside the car if it did, as I say only a thought though.

Cheers
Col

Hey Col,

Thanks for replying, your incredible your always willing to give up your time to reply and to try and help.


I tried to put a load of washers underneath the strike plate / hook. To see if i could raise it enough to get it to connect with the latch. But then realised the screws were not long enough to connect with the holes with the added washers

But i'm quite glad it didn't work now though, as your right, i think it might not of re-opened.

Went to drive in it today got a load of warnings come up.

On the dash:

HDC Not Available System Fault
ABS Fault
Stability Control Not Available Drive With Care
EBD Fault
Emergency Brake Assist Not Available
Car will go into access high safety

On the IID Tool:

ABS-Brake Module
ADCM-Active Damping
CCM-Cruise Control
TCCM-Transfer Case

I tried to clear them a few times but they came back immediately but then after a longer drive turning the car clearing then back on again after a few minutes they have now gone away.

So i'm really hoping that its just the boot being open is draining the battery slightly and causing the these faults.

Do you think this is the case?

I just have to pray that if this is the case and it is a draining the battery that it doesn't drain it enough that i can't start it Monday morning, as i don't have jumper pack or jump leads and another car to jump it off.

Ps on a different note, has the insurance hike effected you col being out in NZ? and are you going to keep hold of yours for years to come? 2012 RRS HSE 5.0 SUPERCHARGED Santorini Black

I had this with my full size Range Rover, tried everything then thought it may be a sensor. Phoned Main dealer who said it would be £170 ish from memory for an "investigation". Booked it in, they phoned to say the striker needed repositioning. Charged £60 ish as it didn't take long Happy as they could easily charged the £170 Range Rover Sport (gone): Mercedes S63 AMG Coupe: 992 Porsche Carrera 4S: Range Rover Fifty P400e

Just thinking outside the box. To my mind the hinges are very strong and it would take a lot to bend them. Could it be that the actual plate area the hinges mount to are bent ? Bear in mind the hinges bolt into sheet metal, albeit probably with a reinforcing plate behind the panel that the bolt threads go into.

Have a look around the hinge area, both on the tailgate and on the body and see if there’s anything that looks as though it shouldn’t be there, such as indentations, cracked paint etc. if that’s the case, then the body needs bending back, not the hinges.

As for parking in London, find a body shop near where you’re going and ask them to identify the issue. Free secure parking, and you get it looked at.

drexal wrote:

Hey Col,

Ps on a different note, has the insurance hike effected you col being out in NZ? and are you going to keep hold of yours for years to come?

Hi guys,

Just a very quick one to update this. Sorry its months later.

@JonnyCJ you were right. Not quite sure how i missed this (must of been all the rushing around i was doing for that big job i had on). But you were correct the hinges were fine. But the boot was bent. But you could only really see it from the side when the boot was open. Please see images.

Also all the faults were 100% related to the battery getting low from the boot not closing tightly for over a week. As once it was fixed & driven around more the faults never came back. Until we just had a once again lowered battery because i was working in the garage all day with boot open (although no interior lights on) and it was enough to drain the battery to 9volts and all the same faults came back including when you check oil it says it low. I think the battery is on its way out though as its coming up to 5 years old and even after a long drive its only reading at 11.4 volts with-out engine running alternator if fien though thank god.

Managed to find a local body shop to replace the whole tail gate with a same year and same colour santorini black tail gate for £500 all in. But after a few weeks of it working fine, the tail gate now catches when trying to open it, you now basically have to press gate gate release button twice to get it open, but they said they will re-look at it. So the fun continues.

Thanks to everyone that replied with advice.





 2012 RRS HSE 5.0 SUPERCHARGED Santorini Black

Glad you got it sorted and thanks for the update and thanks !

Hey all,

I hope your all well.

Going back to this old thread with an update 8 months on.

The body shop who replaced the tailgate, wouldn't fix the issue for free and said they would charge us for an electrical engineer to try and diagnose the issue. So i sacked them off.

Tailgate was getting slowly worse over the last few months and catching every time you try and open it. Until it gave up the ghost a few days ago. It now won't latch shut when you hit the close button. It shuts, but when it tries to latch it can't do it.

Also if you hit the tailgate open button inside the car or the tailgate button above the number plate to try and open the tail gate, it makes an awful sound, like a rat-tat-tat sound.

So now can't lock the vehicle as it think the tail gate is open, which it is, as you can pull open, after you've hit the close button. And i now have to tie it shut when driving it.

Does any one know, if i remove the inside panel from the tail gate is there anyway to manually over ride the electronic latch and manualy latch it shut temporarily so i can at least lock the car again?

And has anyone experience this before and figured out if a latch or button replacement could fix it?

I've booked it in for an indy next week, but at £222 inc vat per hour i would obviously love to try and fix this myself. But i have a feeling i would prob drop a few hundred on a new latch and button/handle and it still not work.

I've just messaged @cardicowboy who seemed to solve the same issue in this thread for advice.
https://www.rrsport.co.uk/forum/topic59618...e+latching

But if anyone has experienced this, please do let me know.

Thanks again. 2012 RRS HSE 5.0 SUPERCHARGED Santorini Black

No longer an RRS owner as I'm now full
Fat, but for some reason i’d been watching this thread.

Popped your issue into CoPilot and it came up with the following.

Yes, Jonathan—you can manually override the tailgate latch on your 2010 Range Rover Sport L320 by removing the inner panel and rotating the latch closed. However, the root issue is almost certainly a failing latch motor or microswitch, and replacing the latch assembly is the long-term fix.

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🧠 Diagnosis Recap: L320 Tailgate Symptoms

Your description matches a common failure mode on the L320 Sport:

• Tailgate won’t latch shut: The latch motor tries to engage but fails, leaving the tailgate unlatched.
• Rat-tat-tat sound: Classic sign of a dying latch motor or stripped gear teeth.
• Can’t lock the car: Because the system thinks the tailgate is open, central locking is disabled.
• Progressive decline: These latches often degrade over months before total failure.


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🛠️ Temporary Manual Override

You can manually latch the tailgate to restore locking:

1. Remove the inner tailgate panel:• Use trim tools to carefully pop off the plastic cover.
• Disconnect wiring to the tailgate button if needed.

2. Locate the latch mechanism:• You’ll see a rotating claw or hook inside the latch.
• Use a flathead screwdriver to manually rotate the claw into the latched position.

3. Test lock status:• With the latch manually closed, the car should now register the tailgate as shut.
• Try locking the vehicle—if successful, this confirms the override worked.

4. Secure the tailgate:• Tie it gently or use a strap—don’t slam it shut while manually latched.



This trick won’t fix the latch, but it’ll let you lock the car until you replace the part.

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🔧 Permanent Fix: Replace the Upper Tailgate Latch

• Part needed: Upper tailgate latch assembly (Land Rover part #LR017470 or equivalent).
• DIY time: ~45 minutes with basic tools.
• Symptoms resolved: No more rat-tat-tat, tailgate latches properly, central locking restored.


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🔍 Additional Checks

• Tailgate button above number plate: If sticky or intermittent, it can send false signals—clean or replace if needed.
• Wiring loom: Inspect for corrosion or frayed wires, especially near the hinge area.
• Soft-close feature: If equipped, confirm the motor isn’t binding or misaligned.


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🧰 Resources

• Forum thread with user fix steps Range Rovers...
• Troubleshooting guide for tailgate issues rangeroverfa...
• Workshop manual for L320 ManualsBooks


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Let me know if you want help sourcing the part, choosing between OEM vs aftermarket, or designing a quick install checklist.

Hey JonnyCJ

Thanks so much for super fast reply.

I had never heard of CoPilot, but have just added it to my favorites now as that is the most amount of info i've been able to find on this. So thanks for much for sending.

I'm just trying to double check now if 2010 parts are the same as 2012 as i don't think the 2010 had electric soft close tail gates.

I'm going to go down in the garage and open up the back panel and try and find some part number or even have a go at trying to manually latch it at least for now.

Thanks again for the help, ps how you like the FF over the RRS? what year / model FF did you get? 2012 RRS HSE 5.0 SUPERCHARGED Santorini Black

Sorry - didn't realise what year yours was. Try popping your query into CoPilot and giving it as much info as you can (incl car year) and then asking it for a solution. You will be amazed at what it can do. It does come up with spurious answers sometimes, so always double check the sources it uses.

There's a CoPilot app for phones - similar to Google Gemini. Effectively AI which we will all be using in a year or so and wonder how we did without it.

Good luck !

Nb - Fatty is superb. It's a 2012 Vogue SE. I'd quite happily have another RRS, but would need to be 2012/2013 and probably Autobiography spec. Would use it for her indoors as I won't give up my fatty !