MINI tailgate hinge replacement
I replaced the snapped tailgate hinge on t'old MINI today, and it wasn't too bad a job. The design is a bit crap and they tend to seize, and then break and attempt to bonk you on the head with the tailgate. Didn't like that.
The hinge is held on by a single nut but you need to partially drop the headlining to reach it. To do this you need to:
This is all covered by some helpful folks in this YouTube video. After this, you need to remove the white C-pillar trim; it's held in by 4 plastic tabs (2 top, 2 bottom), which fit into metal clips in the body. It needs a sharp tug but there is a fair risk of breaking the tabs, but I got away with it.
Now you should be able to gently pull down the headlining, to release the clip in the centre:
That should give just enough clearance to get a 13mm socket onto the nut securing the hinge. There is quite a lot of scope for adjustment in the hinge position, so I used the witness marks from the old one when installing the new.
New hinge was £19 from BMW (which I noticed is less than some Mini-specialist breakers are asking for a used one).
- remove the tailgate seal
- remove the rear seats
- remove the rear side panel trim on the affected side
This is all covered by some helpful folks in this YouTube video. After this, you need to remove the white C-pillar trim; it's held in by 4 plastic tabs (2 top, 2 bottom), which fit into metal clips in the body. It needs a sharp tug but there is a fair risk of breaking the tabs, but I got away with it.
Now you should be able to gently pull down the headlining, to release the clip in the centre:
That should give just enough clearance to get a 13mm socket onto the nut securing the hinge. There is quite a lot of scope for adjustment in the hinge position, so I used the witness marks from the old one when installing the new.
New hinge was £19 from BMW (which I noticed is less than some Mini-specialist breakers are asking for a used one).
