Rear blind cover appears loose
 

My S8 is on SORN and hasn't moved in ages, but today I was just checking the battery (still OK) and noticed through the back window....

http://forum.a8parts.co.uk/attachmen...1&d=1612278254

It looked like an unwanted gap at the rear edge of the blind cover; same both sides but larger in the centre near the rear light.
Going inside the car I could push the rear edge down easily, but it sprang back up.
Presumably this is supposed to be "down" not as in the photo?
How is it secured, and is it easy to remove and refix correctly? As ever I guess there's a trick to this as there are no obvious fixings. :tuttut:

Just checked mine and its clamped down tighter than a clams wotsit. Ive never played around with that piece of the car so cant offer any suggestions off the top of my head.

Did the blind retract fully? I've found that mine sometimes goes a little wrong and doesn't roll back up properly.

I have a very similar situation, where the parcel shelf is raised but closer to the right-hand side, when viewed the back of the car. I'd convinced myself that I'd managed to rattle it loose with that tiny speaker I have in my boot but now I'm not so sure. From what I understand, I think that the rear seats would have to be removed to be in a position to re-seat the parcel shelf. I recall from memory a post where someone was hooking up the aerial box for the rear window area and there were some pretty good photos of it.

My parcel shelf has been like that for around a year and I'm looking to get that issue sorted once the weather clears up a bit. I also have a bulb out in the high-level rear brake light cluster which I will attempt at the same time - I think that is accessed by some nuts/bolts in the boot area from memory so I will need to hoof out the sub box - groan...

http://forum.a8parts.co.uk/showpost....6&postcount=28

http://forum.a8parts.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1544&page=3

That, unfortunately, has succumbed to the effects of moisture and one of the flanges has come unstuck. The front of the cover is held in with poppers, and the rear has flanges which clip under the main shelf, allowing it to be attached separately following assembly.

The whole rear shelf is basically pieces of dense cardboard held together with a weird waxy glue, and unfortunately when it gets damp the glue lets go and it disintegrates. I have got used to repairing them with hot-melt glue which seems to work a bit better, although they do need drying out first.

You can lever the front of the cover up and then lift it out and forwards, but tbh its probably better to remove the whole shelf and bring it indoors to dry out before attempting to repair it.

This is where the flange should be:

http://forum.a8parts.co.uk/attachmen...1&d=1612343189

This is the piece which has fallen off

http://forum.a8parts.co.uk/attachmen...1&d=1612343446

Poppers at the leading edge of the cover

http://forum.a8parts.co.uk/attachmen...1&d=1612343040

General falling-apart-ness

http://forum.a8parts.co.uk/attachmen...1&d=1612343040

Thanks Michaela, that totally makes sense as the extremely likely cause. +++
Is that pathetic flange really expected to counterbalance the weight of the blind when raised?
It's certainly been damp in there, I noticed some condensation on the rear screen and have had some bags of silica gel sitting on the parcel shelf for the last few days.
Definitely a "round tuit" job...…. though I'm more into Evo-Stik contact adhesive than hot melt glue. :rolleyes:

How many poppers at the front and roughly where, or is it blatantly obvious when you start levering?

Its nothing to do with the blind mechanism itself - that is securely bolted through the rear deck. Its purely a cover for the mechanism.

There are three each side at roughly 8" spacing, with a larger gap in the middle. Start at the outer edge and once you've levered one up it should be possible to see the next. The cover is tucked in behind the top flange of the blind itself. I found it was easier to re-fit if the blind was lifted about an inch. They're not easy to get back in though and require an unpleasantly firm whack to re-seat.

Contact adhesive might work - I'd be interested to know actually, although it may not fill the gaps in the surface? There are indents in the cover showing where the flange should sit, and usually some remnants of the waxy stuff showing where it used to be.

Similar issue on door cards on my S4, gorilla glue was my answer - which activates with moisture +++

Moist
 

Well, there's my problem in a nutshell. Thanks MJ for the detailed photos and advice. I'm going to have to look at my number plate surround and seal that up first before tackling my loose rear shelf.