Hyundai Sonata trunk opens and battery dies

[child of wonder]

Somehow as I sit in my home office with my keys in my pocket, the trunk release button manages to get depressed, the trunk pops open on my 2013 Hyundai Sonata, the trunk light comes on, and a couple days later when I go to drive the car the battery is dead.

Anyone else have this problem with their Sonata? I'm considering disconnecting the light in the trunk to prevent this but the trunk will still be open. What would be ideal is if the key required pressing the button twice to open the trunk vs holding it for half a second.

I'm halfway considering selling the car simply because I can't be stranded at home if I have to get to a client. I've had several cars with remote trunk release and this is the first one ever that opens itself with the keys in my pocket.

 

[PottedMeat]

I'm considering disconnecting the light in the trunk to prevent this but the trunk will still be open.

do it. throw a LED flashlight in there too.

 

[rh71]

no such problem with our '13 Sonata. The range on the remote trunk release isn't that great - are you sitting that close to the car while inside the house? Are you for certain pushing it accidentally? Where's the other remote? We've never hit it accidentally.

 

[someone16]

Put your keys in front of whatever else is also in your pocket so the button doesn't get depressed when you sit/move around.

Don't most cars also do the same "hold for half a second" to open the trunk release?

 

[phucheneh]

I don't see how you're accidentally pressing the trunk button. Those usually require holding or double-tapping...I'd think you'd be locking/unlocking constantly before you'd be accidentally opening the trunk.

You may have a bad remote. I've seen ones with moisture in them trigger the buttons at random. If the lid is opening randomly, it's probably either that or a sticky release button inside the car.

It's not hard to disconnect the light. I wouldn't want my trunk sitting open all the time, though, so I would rather go the route of disconnecting the latch, assuming there is mechanical release that you don't mind using. IIRC those have a button on the dash, not a lever on the floor, right? Lever is cable-operated. If you don't have that or a key hole in the lid, you're kinda stuck with the electric release.

I'd also wonder if the lid is even shutting correctly. Check the struts that go between the lid and body. The ends cracking or breaking off is a super-common issue, and that can jam the lid up.

 

[LTC8K6]

Most modern cars have a battery saver function to turn off those accessory lights after 30 or 45 minutes.

It looks like you can lock your trunk and it won't respond to the transmitter?

http://www.hsguide.net/trunk_lid_control_switch-732.html

 

[nedfunnell]

Pop one of these suckers in:
http://www.polytron-corp.com/products/standard/automotive/dome-light-timers/dl-10-dl-20.html

 

[LTC8K6]

Pop one of these suckers in:
http://www.polytron-corp.com/products/standard/automotive/dome-light-timers/dl-10-dl-20.html

The trunk would still be open.

 

[CrackRabbit]

I've done that before, something with the way the keyless entry fobs are designed makes it easy activate the trunk switch and panic buttons in your pocket.
I just got in the habit of taking my keys out of my pocket.

 

[NutBucket]

You could also swap out the trunk bulb for an LED. Might help the battery from draining as quickly.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

I'm halfway considering selling the car simply because I can't be stranded at home if I have to get to a client. I've had several cars with remote trunk release and this is the first one ever that opens itself with the keys in my pocket.

Sell that defective POS. I had a cellphone that used to butt dial all the time. I threw it on the ground.

 

[Kaido]

I don't see how you're accidentally pressing the trunk button. Those usually require holding or double-tapping...I'd think you'd be locking/unlocking constantly before you'd be accidentally opening the trunk.

I really appreciate this on my Volvo, the double-click to open the trunk. On my other car, I sometimes pop the trunk on accident because it requires a single long press, so if it hits another key in my pocket it can pop.

 

[child of wonder]

You could also swap out the trunk bulb for an LED. Might help the battery from draining as quickly.

Thought of that and am about to purchase one. Sometimes we don't drive the Sonata for a week at a time so having an LED draw 0.5W vs the OEM bulb drawing 5W wouldn't solve the trunk from opening but it would stop the battery from draining so fast.

The trunk isn't the only problem with the FOB since the damn alarm loves to go off on its own as well. I have 3 large key/FOBs on my keychain between our 3 cars and where I sit in my office is only about 25' from the car so I'm well within range.

 

[NutBucket]

So the solution is take the keys out of your pocket. Its the first thing I do when I walk in the door.

 

[LTC8K6]

The switch in the trunk will solve the problem. Only the key will open the trunk if you flip the switch on the trunk latch.