My dad called me since the glove box on their Volvo was stuck. He phoned the auto repair shop and they wanted $200 to repair it.
Searching the internet, the best site to fix this problem is here http://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/fix-a-stuck-glove-box-tutorial.html I followed their procedure and found it was missing a few steps.
I drilled a very small hole following the instructions there and managed to open the glove box door after a few attempts. You need to push into the hole and lift up to release the latch. I used the end of a smaller drill bit.
Once opened, the glove box panel needs to be removed to work on it. First remove the seven philips screws. Removing the plastic supports on the sides first will make it easier. From the back of that panel, insert a flat blade screwdriver into the slot where the support attaches and pry it to release the support. I would also put some tape on the ends so they don’t fall back into the dashboard. This did happen to me on one side so I had to remove the bottom panel held by three Torx T-25 screws to retrieve the support and push it back through the opening.
Once you have the door removed, you can see how it works. Lifting the handle rotates the bar which connects to a piece with a nub that pushes the latch open. This nub breaks off and can be replaced by drilling a hole and inserting a small machine screw. The metal is soft enough that you don’t need to tap it. You can also replace the whole piece by searching for the part on ebay. I found a kit that included the latch hook and retaining clip.
To get at the assembly you will have to remove the three screws. Before this step, make note of the spring that will pop out. It pushes the door away from the latch once opened.
I didn’t need to disassemble the piece that broke off to drill a hole to insert a screw. Just find a screw approximately the same diameter as the piece that broke off and use a drill bit slightly smaller.
I have a vinyl repair kit that I can use to fill in the hole I drilled to complete the repair.
