Am I insane or is this normal?

It really annoys me when people don't use the interior 'pull' to close the boot of my car. I've trained all my family and workmates. They know the drill.

I really hate dirty hand prints on the boot... plus I spend a lot of time making sure my car's paintwork is swirl free, I've polished out the swirl marks on the boot lid far too often.

So today I went to get 4 wheel alignment done at a very well respected specialist locally. In order to check I had nothing heavy in my boot, the guy opened it and then closed it with his hand on the boot lid. I managed to bite my lip and not say anything, but inside I was raging...

To be honest, I can't fault their work otherwise - very professional actually. But I'm still annoyed.

Yep, I hear you!

Most general motorists probably won't see what the issue is, but I find it really annoying, especially on a black car....

HAHA.....you're both wrong!!!!...best thing is to start with the strap...then when you can reach, push the boot firmly closed with one hand on the centre badge...this puts the force loading in the centre of the hatch! There have been problems on some cars (other than Skoda) where people just use one side of the hatch to close it by...this results in it twisting and the glass cracking!!

After chucking that grenade in the room, I'm now retreating to a safe distance!!

Twisting of the tailgate? From using the handle?

Skodas are pretty well made you know! And I've never had an issue with 5 Skodas so far and a fair few boot closures during that time....

Twisting of the tailgate? From using the handle?

Skodas are pretty well made you know! And I've never had an issue with 5 Skodas so far and a fair few boot closures during that time....

Like I said other makes.......but it can happen if you use just the left or right edge over time...and if the struts get a bit stiff...makes it worse.

Problem is...that the glass is glued (bonded) to the hatch...so no nice flexi rubber seal/interface between glass and metal like you used to get..so any twisting of the metal gets to the glass....over time a stress/fatigue fracture develops!! Some hatches are more prone to this!!! (mainly crap French cars......or those with big glass windows in the hatch!)

Like I said other makes.......but it can happen if you use just the left or right edge over time...and if the struts get a bit stiff...makes it worse.

Problem is...that the glass is glued (bonded) to the hatch...so no nice flexi rubber seal/interface between glass and metal like you used to get..so any twisting of the metal gets to the glass....over time a stress/fatigue fracture develops!! Some hatches are more prone to this!!! (mainly crap French cars......or those with big glass windows in the hatch!)

Yep I can imagine it happening with French crud, but I've never had it happen, or known of it to happen, on any of the cars I've had (but then again I've never been stupid enough to buy French).

I find with just the right tug on the inner-boot pull, the hatch will just make it past the mid-point and slam closed with just the right force. Get it wrong though and the boot lid doesn't get past the mid-point and goes back up again lol.

HAHA.....you're both wrong!!!!...best thing is to start with the strap...then when you can reach, push the boot firmly closed with one hand on the centre badge..

What do you do if you have De-badged the tail gate

Another grenade thrown, I'll stand back as well....................................

I doubt the strap is for actually closing it properly

Just an addition to accomodate for all the short arses out there i'd say who cant reach an open boot

Bugs my happiness too or when someone is standing a bit too close and rubs the back bumper a bugger to get the mark off if the bumper is reeky!

What do you do if you have De-badged the tail gate

Another grenade thrown, I'll stand back as well....................................

Touché!!!!

Put it back on and use it to close the hatch with!!!

I doubt the strap is for actually closing it properly

Just an addition to accomodate for all the short arses out there i'd say who cant reach an open boot

Dual use then! This is what the Octy2 manual says anyway:

Closing the boot lid

– Pull the boot lid down and close it with a slight swing.

A handle which makes the closing easier is located on the inner panelling of the boot lid.

I find with just the right tug on the inner-boot pull, the hatch will just make it past the mid-point and slam closed with just the right force. Get it wrong though and the boot lid doesn't get past the mid-point and goes back up again lol.

it annoys me when people yank down on the stap and the boot lids slams shut. it only needs a slight tug. lol

I've only had mine a week and I'm the same ....

I feel the same about users touching my monitor when pointing at things at work :no:

In the words of Michael Jackson: you are not alone.

I feel your pain; particularly when the motor is in need of a little cleaning action and you are left with a paw print on the back.

Perhaps worse still, strangely enough, as armstrong21490 said- is when someone closing the tailgate in what I deem to be the correct way yanks the bugger down so hard the glass almost shatters. Then they look at you all weird when you vent at them with a few choice words about how the boot is certainly shut.

Problem is...that the glass is glued (bonded) to the hatch...so no nice flexi rubber seal/interface between glass and metal like you used to get..so any twisting of the metal gets to the glass....over time a stress/fatigue fracture develops!!

The metal is less likely to twist if the screen is bonded, torsional rigidity figures for bodies in white unglazed and glazed would support that. I've seen plenty of laminated screens develop cracks, but the rear screen is toughened, they don't crack, just shatter.

I think that the Citroen AX had a two piece tailgate held together by a bonded screen, when the screen shattered the bottom part of the tailagte fell off.

I feel your pain!

I hate it when passengers slam my doors!

I hate it when people slam your door when the windows down. God damn that noise!

My dad always uses the strap to shut the tailgate on my car but always seems to use the strap to get maximum pull and shut the boot with as much force as possible. Previously he managed to dislodge the switch in the lock mechanism so that the boot lights were permanently on...

Also if you are sitting in the car when he does it, it's not actually very pleasant.

Imagine how I felt tonight when I gave a lad from work a lift home.

"Look, your car's covered in condensation" he said, then drew a little squiggle in the roof. If looks could kill. The other lad with us told him he'd made a mistake touching my car lol.

its not just the dirty finger prints you also get little dents and ripples in your bootlid when people use it to shut the boot especially on black ones mine was full of them. smart repair guy had them all out in under 30mins luckily. i was told to use either the strap or the badge as that is what it is there for.

totally off topic has anyone else noticed the two little dents you get in your roof from the boot hinges opening and closing. smart repair guy pointed them out to me and he said it happens on virtually every car

I too hate people slamming doors/bonnets/boots. :(

What do you do if you have De-badged the tail gate

Apply downward force on the numberplate with one hand, with your other hand holding the boot release to control the speed of closure.

Personally, I tweaked my boot (and bonnet) so they only need a light touch to close them - I can "drop" (let go of) my boot lid when it's open ~1" and that's enough force for it to shut properly.

I took my inner tailgate panel off ages ago and forgot to pull the strap through

again when refitting it. so I don't have the use of mine.

I tend to use the badge nowadays but my tailgate does require a good shove

to close it properly as my Stealth shelf is a tight fit. :yes:

^^^^^^^^^^^ More people like me who use the badge to close the hatch with!!

NEW OFFER FOR THOSE PEOPLE WITH A DE-BADGED HATCH.

THE LATEST SKODA TWEEK.......AN OEM BOOT ASSISTANCE CLOSING DEVICE.....STOP THOSE FINGER PRINTS ON YOUR SHINY PAINTWORK!!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=380308005367

:rofl:

^^^^^^^^^^^ More people like me who use the badge to close the hatch with!!

NEW OFFER FOR THOSE PEOPLE WITH A DE-BADGED HATCH.

THE LATEST SKODA TWEEK.......AN OEM BOOT ASSISTANCE CLOSING DEVICE.....STOP THOSE FINGER PRINTS ON YOUR SHINY PAINTWORK!!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=380308005367

:rofl:

Looks like a good mod to me, :rofl:

My bug is people writing in the dirt on the car. It took 3 tries with the polishing mop to get rid of them!!