Bootlid/Tailgate replacement

[lloydy2007]

Hello, I am new here and am seeking advice from anyone who may be able to offer some. .

I was reversing my girlfriend's car out of the drive today when I hit the corner of a pick up truck that had parked at the bottom of my drive. This smashed the window & damaged the bodywork. Also, the boot will not open because the handle and parts are damaged. She is requiring a bootlid/tailgate replacement. I imagine this may be a job too far for the average Joe.

Her car is a 2015 Acenta Premium. I've found a few replacements on ebay that are like for like.

I have attached a photo to show the damage. I am just seeking advice as to what my possibilities are. Failing anything else, I will call the dealer on Monday and ask them if they can do the repair.. though, I'm not sure whether these are considered 'parts' or how obtainable they will be.

Would a regular mechanic have an easy enough time replacing it, considering the electrical parts involved?

Thanks.

[MikeGC]

Welcome to the forum
Sorry, I can’t answer your question

[gloucester]

Welcome to this forum.

Oh dear.....

I presume you don't want to make an insurance claim because of the effect on your future premium(s), or because you're not actually insured to drive the car, or because you're driving on your policy and hence not covered for damage.

You mention "dealer" - I certainly wouldn't take the car to a Nissan dealer to get it repaired - that would likely be a very expensive option. You need a car repair bodyshop if you're not going to do it yourself.

It depends somewhat on how time-critical repairing it is - getting secondhand parts might take some time. And you'd need to get the correct options possibly. But replacing a tailgate shouldn't be too difficult a task because it just bolts on.

I'm having trouble finding a "2015 Acenta Premium" in my catalogue archive. The July 2014 brochure includes an "Acenta Premium" but the October 2014 brochure shows it replaced with the "n-tec", and by February 2016 that's been replaced by the N-Connecta.

The earlier brochure suggests it has "privacy glass" so that limits your options if you're looking for a complete tailgate. And you need one with the reversing camera - though possibly you could transfer that across?

And once you get the hatch open, you'll need to check for possible deformation in the cill which would I'd have thought make a bodyshop visit imperative.

Good luck!

[lloydy2007]

Hello, thanks for the reply. I am insured to drive this car as I am a named driver, there would be no issues with me making an insurance claim other than increased premiums in future. I have spare cash lying around though, and as there was no damage to the third party I imagine it would be cheaper for me to deal with myself (long term).

It is a 64 plate and yes, it has the privacy glass. The camera is damaged but I think these are pretty common so will not be an issue buying.

[gloucester]

Might be worth getting a bodyshop to quote just so you can assess the implications of making a claim.

When I was last in a similar situation - pay or claim - about 15 years ago, I worked out the break even point would be about £1000. But costs were lower then. I haven't had a claim for about ten years so don't know what the effects on premiums might be nowadays.

[lloydy2007]

Well I got the boot open, and after a closer inspection changing the tailgate doesn't appear to be a massive job at all as said, just a few bits. I have an old friend who works at a local garage and says if I get the replacement he will sort it for me tomorrow.

I guess the only question I have now is this. I have seen a few replacement tailgates, fully in tact, but these are for the Tekna rather than the Acenta Premium, which I assume was a more rare model. Does anyone know if this would be a like for like swap? I'd guess the chasis are the same, and the read camera etc, but maybe there is something I am missing?

If anyone has any ideas in this regard, I would appreciate the advice.

[Fujikun]

Hi, the tailgate itself will be identical, the wiring loom will be different, but you should be able to remove the acenta wiring loom and feed that into the new tailgate. Then again the loom might be the same with the extra tekna connections not plugged in. But any j11/j11b tailgate will fit. Forgot to say, the tekna should have tinted glass, don't know your acenta, so you might need one that has non tinted glass.

[lloydy2007]

Thanks. I did find a compatibility table and they seem to match up. One concern I had was with the devices attached to the rear window, I'm guessing they're something to do with de icing or something temperature related.

Hopefully I can pick the new one up tomorrow and have a go at switching.

[andy2019]

rear heated screen and wiper arm/blade are on the rear screen, but your current boot lid should have all that anyway. wouldn`t imagine it`s a big job to replace maybe 2hrs max. hope all goes well and car looks new again soon

[lloydy2007]

Just an update. All is sorted. The Tekna tailgate fitted perfectly. A few things different, like the number of water tubes for the Tekna.. There are alot compared to just one for the Acenta. Everything is in fine working order now.

the worst part was driving 120 miles to pick the part up