Topic

Might be a stupid question but......

Does/will I he quality of the switch affect operation of the solenoid?

Reason I ask is I've got the same kit but I trial fitted it and used the relay and tiny switch that came with it but, although it worked when not connected to the lock it wouldn't pull the catch when connected.

A fatter switch won’t work any better than the relay system it’s just less complex, in fact the switch you have will work without the relay. If you were to strip your lock motor you will find a small motor operating the actuator via a gear train & if your motor isn’t poping your mec’ it could be too little current supply to the motor, although that is very unlikely as the motor draws so little.
Try clacking the system with 12v, plus to blue & green negative, if the motor runs with purpose, then that should be OK & it could be the setting of the unit. With the actuator fully withdrawn adjust your link rod with a bit of slack, by doing this when the motor runs the actuator has chance to build up a bit of momentum, knocking the link & opening the mec’. Mike.

Another thought, if you look at my gigantic picture & you make a short bar, similar to my brown bit, measure from the centre of the actuator end eye to centre line of the plate where the ball lodges, make that distance the hole centres. The top fixing is an old bike mudguard rod fixing & I use a tiewrap from the ball plate & through the rod hole which allows adjustment. However I guessed the throw, nutted everything up & it’s not been touched since.
Bloody hell this has been a bit of an epic from a simple question of a day or so.
I’m out!

o m g you are a master.

If you have gone to all the trouble of wiring up an electric boot release and are still worried about access to press it, why not wire it up to a GSM switch (£25 on ebay) so you can call it from your mobile? You could do your whole central locking too whilst you were there. Text the car and it opens.

Personally, a waterproof magnetic key box seemed like the easiest idea

Ooooo, that sounds like fun, ‘phone your car & tell that you’re on your way, I might have a bit of that. Thanks.

There is a popular mod for MGBs here in north America to open the bonnet in a lock out.
You simply use a length of aircraft/bicycle cable attached to the bonnet catch with a loop on the other end f the cable in the wheelwell.
Give it a pull and you're in. The same system could be used on the front of an MGF where it would be easy too hide a spare key.
(In the old days we would drop the spare key into the windscreen washer bottle tied to a length of fishing line.)
There is a fellow in the USA who sells the cables as a hobby business but the components are available at any building centre.

can you add any please,

I will try to find a link to the MGB bonnet release kits but in the meantime here is my take on the electric boot release.

I used an MG Motor boot release solenoid from Rimmers. (As used on the Chinese TFs apparently) It is made by Rockwell International
which gives me a bit more confidence in it's operation than the no-name ones in the E-bay kits. It is powered from one of the extra power points in the fuse box.
I used the one controlled by the ignition but it could also be wired to the always live terminal. I used a Rover 75 boot switch mounted on the driver's side footwell panel
next to the footwell light. It isn't visible from outside the car and is clear of the driver's knee.


Here are the bits I used. The part number for the solenoid is on the box.
The plug and wire on the solenoid isn't included. The one I used is from a Freelander engine harness.

I just searched the American fellow who was selling MGB Emergency bonnet release kits and he is no longer doing it.
It is a very simple unit though.
You use a length of aircraft or bicycle cable, probably about a metre long. Attach it to the bonnet release along with the stock cable.
Run the cable through a hole in the driver's side wheelarch and make a loop on the end to pull on to release the bonnet.
(I haven't done this on an MGF so you will want to make sure that it will work. Bear in mind that the wing liner will have to be dealt with as well.)

I actually make an emergency bonnet release cable; been selling it on eBay for over a year now. It's really easy to install and is hidden from site behind the front bumper.

How can I buy one, can you give me a reference number for it on eBay thank you