I picked up a Select Products linear actuator from Brian at Liqued Trends. I had never done one of these actuator installs. It was pretty easy. The linear actuator works with a electronic control box that makes the actuator go up and down. It's a simple install. You figure out how much throw you need the actuators come in assorted lengths. All I had to do was make a mount for the bottom of the actuator to mount to the bottom of the trunk and then mount the top of the actuator to the stock gas shock mount on the trunk. I want to find the Dash mounted button wires (first photo)that I can tie into the controller so I can open &amp; close the trunk from the dash.(So if you know what wires I need to tap into please let me know) Right now it works from the stock trunk release. <BR><img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/692457.jpg" alt="Upload"> <BR><img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/692458.jpg" alt="Upload"> <BR><img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/692459.jpg" alt="Upload"> <BR><img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/692460.jpg" alt="Upload"> <BR><img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/692461.jpg" alt="Upload"> <BR>Here is a Video of it in action <BR><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9t2vStGuGA" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9t2vStGuGA</a>

Your work is amazing Grant, Nice! <BR> <BR>T

The real amazement is the 7 year old carpet that looks brand new. Nice work as always.

Did you have to tie in with a relay, or were you able to wire it right to the battery? What about fuses? Also, do you have a way of opening it if you have no power?

Thanks homies: <BR>Cole. I do have a battery up front if all things went to hell I could charge from the front of the boat and open the tunk fi some how i went completley dead. Thats not what has me worryed. I am wondering what Im gonna do if some how this thing breaks. I was trying to figure out some sort of emergency way I could open the trunk. Like a "pull pin" that I could have a small cable attached to a pin that in the event the actuator broke I could pull the cable and it would remove a pin and allow me to open the trunk

I love this sort of thing but the speed would bug me some.

Definately cool, but I guess my only question is why? Did you just have an actuater laying around lol? The speed would drive me nuts i think. That actuater kind of looks overkill for that little trunk lid, but overkill isnt always a bad thing. <img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/clipart/happy.gif" border=0>

Grant - Great work! I love it. <BR> <BR>Can't you just grab the multimeter and test the wires out the back of the gauge until you find the correct one? <BR> <BR>When are you gonna put one on the engine hatch too?! haha. <BR> <BR>Would be pretty pimp to be able to just hit a switch that raises the trunk, engine hatch and observer seat all simultaneously. <BR> <BR>For an emergency release, the pull pin sounds like the best idea... you could grab a bicycle gear/brake cable and rig up a mechanism that releases when the cables pulled. then just hide the front of the cable in the engine bay up up inside the gunnels etc. <BR> <BR>Mike

came stock on my 96 VLX, couldn't take it off fast enough.

Brit: Im not sure there is even wires back there. <BR>The dash switch in the first pick has like 4 or 5 wires comming off of it. It plugs into a harness that plugs into somthing else. Thats where the wire I need is located just of the plug. <BR> <BR>I have some Ideas for a Hybrid style opener. So if you wanna wait for the actuator to open it you can, if not you can just pull up on the trunk like you normally do. That would solve the problem if some how the actuator stopped working. <BR> <BR>The way I see how this thing will work better than stock is when you are sitting in the back seet and you want to get into the trunk it's so hard to open in the seated position It's real hard. If you are right over the trunk standing it's easy to pull up on it and open it but you have to get up. So if your seated you can just push the button and get what you want.

Anyone know where I can get another stainless waterproof button to match the stock button. I wanna put another button on the passenger side of the trunk

Grant, the keypads essentially just communicate with the PME box which actually does the switching(the box with the pop-out circuit breakers located near the steering column). <BR> <BR>There is a 40 pin plug that comes out of the PME box with individual wires that go to each accessory. I'm sure your familiar with what I'm saying up to this point. I haven't found any wiring diagrams for a 2003 boat....only a 2001. <BR> <BR>There's a wiring diagram for a 2001 in the downloads section of planetnautique.com <BR> <BR>I don't even see wires for the trunk lid and I know they have the actuators on the 2001 model boat so i'm kind of stumped. Hopefully that diagram at least gives you a starting point.

My boat has an actuator that opens the rear hatch, it is attached to a hinge so if the batteries go dead you can still lift the hatch manually (no pins to remove or anything like that). It's kind of hard to explain exactly how it works but next time I open it up I'll snap a picture for you. It would work perfectly for what you want to do. You would probably have to build the the hinge but I'm pretty certain you could handle that...

It reminds me of my old Maristar 225. How cool would that look if the hatch was 2-piece and lifted like a gullwing? If I had kept my boat, I would have split the hatch into two or three sections. <BR>Nice work!