The electrical harness on my intake air temperature sensor was stuck in the unlocked position, and no matter how hard I tried to push the connector on, it wouldn't pop up and lock into place. I searched for how to fix this but didn't see anything. I played around with the connector for a bit until I figured out how it works and found an easy solution, so I wanted to post this in case it might help others.



Waterproof slide-locking harness connector. It has seen better days.



The gray tab in the middle holds the green piece in place and prevents it from sliding in.



Use a small flathead to move the gray tab out of the way, and use another tool to push the green piece in. I used a small allen wrench, but anything long and thin should work. It requires very little force to slide in.

The green piece should be fully out now, and you can just push the connector back on and it will be locked in place. Done!

The connector still releases like it normally should, i.e., I didn't break it by doing this.

 

They're always filled with sand/dirt when I see them. I spray em with lube and they loosen up, so I can actually get them off. Never had one stay unlocked. Are you in opposite world? :P

 

You know... that might make sense. Over the years, there have been countless times when I'm following instructions from here, and a bunch of people will say step X is easy and step Y is hard. Then I'll proceed to have the most stupidly difficult time with X and no problem with Y. So yeah, I just might be.

 

some of these connectors have small springs that can get rusted and become difficult to push. small amounts of di-electric grease is probably the best choice to lube it up.
If it's already cracked the best solution is electrical tape it together.