Accessing car with a flat battery

Toledo TSI

Active Member
Sep 20, 2017
44
1
My brothers car has been laid up for two or three months and the car battery has now gone flat. how do you open the car with the key as there doesn't appear to be a lock?
 

RUM4MO

Active Member
Jun 4, 2008
7,784
983
South Scotland
I would have thought that the driver's door lock would have a mechanical lock cylinder that the key would fit into, but to get access to it, you would need to lever off the plastic dress cover over that lock.

If I was correct there, the driver's door should now be able to be opened, but none of the other doors will as they will still be deadlocked.

So your next plan will be to open the bonnet, but you will find that the passenger's side front door will be blocking the bonnet release, so, and this is something that I have read elsewhere and not personally experienced, you need to sit in the passenger's seat and get a bit rough/tough with the bonnet release, it seems that you should be able to pull it back and out to get the lever to ride over the area of trim that is meant to block its while that door is closed - this is the way, it seems that recovery teams use to get out of this situation.
 
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Toledo TSI

Active Member
Sep 20, 2017
44
1
I would have thought that the driver's door lock would have a mechanical lock cylinder that the key would fit into, but to get access to it, you would need to lever off the plastic dress cover over that lock.

If I was correct there, the driver's door should now be able to be opened, but none of the other doors will as they will still be deadlocked.

So your next plan will be to open the bonnet, but you will find that the passenger's side front door will be blocking the bonnet release, so, and this is something that I have read elsewhere and not personally experienced, you need to sit in the passenger's seat and get a bit rough/tough with the bonnet release, it seems that you should be able to pull it back and out to get the lever to ride over the area of trim that is meant to block its while that door is closed - this is the way, it seems that recovery teams use to get out of this situation.
Thanks for the reply.
 
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