This has been a concern of mine for some time and rather than continue to accidentally hijack this thread I thought I'd start a new one.
The problem
The short summary is that I have an electric powered tailgate on my T6.1 and, as can be seen in my avatar, I also have a rear kitchen and rig windbreakers on the tailgate and in future I am potentially going to have a tailgate awning. My issue is that my tailgate is configured to auto close when enough pressure is put on it, and that's really bad if it closes on the deployed kitchen or when things are rigged.
Other references
This has been asked, but no real solution found, in a couple of other threads:
www.t6forum.com
www.t6forum.com
In that last one there is a tantalising clue from @Robert that there may be settings reachable in VCDS, but not really enough for me to invest in a cable (yet)
Ideal Solution
In an idea world I would like to just disable the auto close. Close via the button is fine as very unlikely it will be triggered by accident.
I am baffled as to why there are switches for the side doors to do exactly this as standard, but not the tailgate.
Things tried
I've been tinkering with virtual trailers as part of trying to charge the van when it sits on the drive. This does seem to block opening from the remote but nothing else, manual opening is fine and when open the auto close still triggers.
I have tried forcing the tailgate to stop by hand on the assumption this may lock out the system. It takes two hands to do that as there is quite some force with the weight of the tailgate. It does lock it out for a short while but a few minutes later everything, including auto close, re enables.
Propping the tailgate. I had wondered about getting some DIY props (the kind that hold plasterboard up) to brace the tailgate. I'm a bit concerned about the forces involved but the bigger issue is I don't want to have to carry 1 or 2 big props around all the time just in case. I think it might work for others in a camping use case, but the stop in a car park on a day out and have the kettle on, probably not.
Current Plan
Unfortunately when you have the powered tailgate it's not an additional module to the soft close but a whole new all in module. I had hoped to be able to put a switch in to just disable the powered element but it seems the only option is to disable everything, powered open and close, soft close and (I think) the electric latch release.
So far I have tested this by pulling the 30amp fuse. This certainly works but I haven't yet risked seeing what happens if the tailgate is mechanically latched or turned the ignition on. It's a bit tricky as the fuse is one of those with additional clips at the side to hold it in.
So my plan at the minute is to intercept that power line either at the fuse or the harness coupling block and switch it so I can make the tailgate safe when needed.
I plan to just depin the fuse feed or connection block and make connections in such a way I can quickly return to stock rather than cutting cables
It's a 30amp fused circuit so switches to do this are quite big. Instead I have some spare 646 relays and may use a smaller switch and one of those wired NC so there is only a power draw when disabled.
It's a bit less convenient than a switch at the rear but removing the rear side panels in the 6.1 Caravelle looks like an absolute mission and I don't want the parasitic draw of an RF type switch.
Conclusion
So, anyone got any other thoughts about something a bit less crude?
The problem
The short summary is that I have an electric powered tailgate on my T6.1 and, as can be seen in my avatar, I also have a rear kitchen and rig windbreakers on the tailgate and in future I am potentially going to have a tailgate awning. My issue is that my tailgate is configured to auto close when enough pressure is put on it, and that's really bad if it closes on the deployed kitchen or when things are rigged.
Other references
This has been asked, but no real solution found, in a couple of other threads:
Electric Tailgate Sensitivity
My tailgate electric tailgate seems to want to auto close on its own even in the slightest breeze or when someone moves around in the van. Is there a way of adjusting the sensitivity to stop it auto closing and scaring the life out of my Wife. nevertheless, It is funny to watch.
Disable Electric Tailgate
Hi I'm looking to disable the electric tailgate. just when camping I find if its left open and the van is rocked it can trigger an auto close, I have a rear tailgate tent and wouldn't want it coming down during the night. I thought that a 13 pin plug fitted in the Tow electrics socket might do...
In that last one there is a tantalising clue from @Robert that there may be settings reachable in VCDS, but not really enough for me to invest in a cable (yet)
Ideal Solution
In an idea world I would like to just disable the auto close. Close via the button is fine as very unlikely it will be triggered by accident.
I am baffled as to why there are switches for the side doors to do exactly this as standard, but not the tailgate.
Things tried
I've been tinkering with virtual trailers as part of trying to charge the van when it sits on the drive. This does seem to block opening from the remote but nothing else, manual opening is fine and when open the auto close still triggers.
I have tried forcing the tailgate to stop by hand on the assumption this may lock out the system. It takes two hands to do that as there is quite some force with the weight of the tailgate. It does lock it out for a short while but a few minutes later everything, including auto close, re enables.
Propping the tailgate. I had wondered about getting some DIY props (the kind that hold plasterboard up) to brace the tailgate. I'm a bit concerned about the forces involved but the bigger issue is I don't want to have to carry 1 or 2 big props around all the time just in case. I think it might work for others in a camping use case, but the stop in a car park on a day out and have the kettle on, probably not.
Current Plan
Unfortunately when you have the powered tailgate it's not an additional module to the soft close but a whole new all in module. I had hoped to be able to put a switch in to just disable the powered element but it seems the only option is to disable everything, powered open and close, soft close and (I think) the electric latch release.
So far I have tested this by pulling the 30amp fuse. This certainly works but I haven't yet risked seeing what happens if the tailgate is mechanically latched or turned the ignition on. It's a bit tricky as the fuse is one of those with additional clips at the side to hold it in.
So my plan at the minute is to intercept that power line either at the fuse or the harness coupling block and switch it so I can make the tailgate safe when needed.
I plan to just depin the fuse feed or connection block and make connections in such a way I can quickly return to stock rather than cutting cables
It's a 30amp fused circuit so switches to do this are quite big. Instead I have some spare 646 relays and may use a smaller switch and one of those wired NC so there is only a power draw when disabled.
It's a bit less convenient than a switch at the rear but removing the rear side panels in the 6.1 Caravelle looks like an absolute mission and I don't want the parasitic draw of an RF type switch.
Conclusion
So, anyone got any other thoughts about something a bit less crude?
