Charging Door Won't Open

2016 eGolf, went to charge this morning and I could not get the charging door (i.e. the "fuel door") to open. So I won't make it back home after work if I don't get it to open. I tried unlocking several times with no luck. I drove around and no luck. It seems like the lock won't disengage. I'll call roadside assistance and will have it towed as a last resort.

Any suggestions?

You used to be able to go in right side panel over the fender, pop off the panel, and manually release the door latch. I'd check to see and open and close all your doors and hatchback first, then relock with key fob, then grab the passengers side door handle to see if that undoes the door lock. Its up to you to notice these latches and locks and keep them clean and dirt and dust free so that they function properly and don't jam up or end up sticking. If you notice they get the slightest bit sticky, address the problem immediately, don't let it go on.

I tried to pry the interior panel, but you have to take apart all of the trim surrounding the panel, and I don't have any tools. Any other tips?

I had mine freeze - rain to below zero - took the hair dryer to defrost the push latch on the fuel door

You’re not gonna like this.

Lock car
Pound fist on left side of fuel door
Unlock car, and fuel door pops open.

Had to do this with mine for almost two weeks. I’m in CA so it was not frozen.
After two weeks it went back to normal operation.

Found it annoying, replaced whole car

End of my lease


Barry

Haha Barry. I had enough juice to make it to the stealership. They knew right away what the issue was - the actuator went bad. It's a "common" problem among MK7 Golfs.

eegolf said:

Haha Barry. I had enough juice to make it to the stealership. They knew right away what the issue was - the actuator went bad. It's a "common" problem among MK7 Golfs.

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Which dealership did you go to, and name of service writer? Part number they replaced on your invoice?

JoulesThief said:

eegolf said:

Haha Barry. I had enough juice to make it to the stealership. They knew right away what the issue was - the actuator went bad. It's a "common" problem among MK7 Golfs.

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Which dealership did you go to, and name of service writer? Part number they replaced on your invoice?

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Volkswagen Pasadena (California). Service writer was C.S. (I won't call out the person's name). Here are the parts replaced:

1 5GE-809-857 Retainer
1 5C6-810-773-H Actuator
They also replaced the fuel filler door because they had to break it off to replace the parts. No P/N listed.

It took 2 days to get the parts. It works fine, but it looks like they forgot to reconnect the charge indicator button, so I have to go back

well my 2015 e-golf is having the same problem too, thank god for coming here I now know what the problem is, but in the mean time what you can do is to pry the fuel cap with your key ever so slightly and you'll hear a clicking sound then just unlock the car with your remote and then you can push to open like you'd normally do.

I had the same issue about 2 years into ownership. The dealer ended up having to replace the door as they broke it trying to open it.

eegolf said:

I tried to pry the interior panel, but you have to take apart all of the trim surrounding the panel, and I don't have any tools. Any other tips?

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Don't waste time like I did on the interior panels, there is NO access there.

Access is via the wheel-well liner. It has 7 Torx-head screws. An Allen key fits, & is required for clearance if you don't remove the wheel to allow space for a Torx screwdriver handle. HOWEVER, I could still see NO way to open the charging door, even though I'm quite mechanical (I once built a Ford 5L from scratch & installed it in a 240z with a 5-speed & Torsen diff).

If I had been able to, I would have tried to remove the lock, leaving it unlockable, but it's not as if anybody can steal the electrons!

FYI, my FIAT 500e has an emergency release inside the hatch. It's just a little pull-cord, but maybe that's why the car's the same price, even though it's inferior in nearly every other way. LOL!

Now it's my turn for this issue.

Banging the car (as mentioned above) hasn't helped.
I don't think it's frozen, because a) I just had it opened an hour before, and b) I can 'wiggle' it - it's just latched shut.
Lubricant sprayed inside.

I need to charge in order to get home, let alone to my dealership.

What are the chances VW pays for a new panel when I have to pry this one open? Do you think Guaranteed Mobility would pre-auth it?

jasonfearon said:

What are the chances VW pays for a new panel when I have to pry this one open? Do you think Guaranteed Mobility would pre-auth it?

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Somewhere between zero and Buckley's. They'll say you should have towed it to the dealer. On the plus side, the charge door is not unique to e-Golf, so they've probably dealt with a lot of stuck Mk7 fuel doors =/

For any Egolf over 3 years old ( out of warranty), you should have replaced the solenoid lock of the charger door, because sure you will be get it stuck unable to open soon, special if you part out side a lot of time ( on work or home). The part and labor to replace it : part $30, labor 1 hour, even you can DIY, easy IF it open. When it stuck, you have to pry to break the door and change new door, no other way .
The very stupid design of this part & car is: No manual release inside the car ( as BMW had), NO way to access to the lock ( even inside or from the wheel's well), only way if it won't open is breaking the door.).
Bad design : The lack pin ( turns & pushes in-out to lock the door ) did not seal inside ( by O ring ) or out side by cover ( BMW did), then water ( rain) can leaks thru in side, corrodes the motor, then stuck, specially when the temperature down below freezing point ( 0 oC /32 0F).
My Egolf had this after 6 months, I parked out side, Canada winter freezing. Bring to warm indoor, it can open, so I remove the lock, de-assembly , clean, lubricated & it works, not bother bring to dealer for warranty.
So if your Egolf out of warranty, replace it NOW before you have to break the door & pay hundred. ( will be good for 3 years more )
Part # Lock Actuator - Volkswagen (5C6-810-773-K) ( OEM -VW less $30)
I had pictures but don't know how to post here.

Strangely enough, the lock on my car's charge port door doesn't lock. I don't hear any sound (indicating solenoid operation) from the charge port door. I actually would like it to lock to prevent vandalism in public parking lots.

Charge door stuck closed on ours and figured it was the issue described here with the bad actuator, and the local dealer confirmed it. Timing sucks since I recently extended the 36 month lease and it is no longer under warranty, so they quoted us just under $500 to fix the actuator, pin, and door. We asked if something could be done for us given the situation, and were pleasantly surprised to hear that they would only charge us about $100.

Had the same thing happen 2 weeks after we extended our leases. Dealer wanted $700 to break the door, change the actuator, and then repaint the door. VW Corp ended up paying for this, so that was nice.

But right after they fixed this, the dealer told me how to open it without actually fixing. I lost all trust at that point. Aparently, if you keep hitting unlock, while pressing the door, it opens.

Happened to me last night. 2016 e-Golf. After far-driving day in New England, got home 1:30 am, very cold, tired, a couple of drinks in me, couldn't open the charger door. Presumed it was me, not the door. So frustrating. Found the tips here. Was going to try to push the door in while unlocking, but when I went out this morning, the door opened fine.

petjal said:

Happened to me last night. 2016 e-Golf. After far-driving day in New England, got home 1:30 am, very cold, tired, a couple of drinks in me, couldn't open the charger door. Presumed it was me, not the door. So frustrating. Found the tips here. Was going to try to push the door in while unlocking, but when I went out this morning, the door opened fine.

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Presumed it was you? LOL, that's the power of German Engineering!

egolfEr said:

Had the same thing happen 2 weeks after we extended our leases. Dealer wanted $700 to break the door, change the actuator, and then repaint the door. VW Corp ended up paying for this, so that was nice.

But right after they fixed this, the dealer told me how to open it without actually fixing. I lost all trust at that point. Aparently, if you keep hitting unlock, while pressing the door, it opens.

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its a really stupid design. They really should've kept it like the MK6 with the emergency cable release.

There are two weak points in the actuator, there's a little piece of plastic that gets misaligned and needs to be shaved down, usually banging on the door it will eventually open and you can shave it down. The second is when the actuator itself shorts out and wont "unlock" when hitting the unlock button on the key fob. When that happens no amount of banging will open it up; the best thing to do is hit lock/unlock multiple times. In my case it finally unlocked after 10 or so presses.

Once you get it open just duct tape it to prevent it from closing until you get it fixed.

If you want to DIY the repair here's a link: https://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?9280639-DIY-Fuel-Door-Actuator-(fuel-flap-lock)-replacement