My latch had a spring anchored to a plastic piece that had broken. So even though the actuator arms worked there was no spring tension to pull the latch open. I did notice that if I pushed on the tailgate while I squeezed the outside handle it took enough pressure off the latch to allow gravity to open it. When I realized the latch mechanism was a $190 part at the dealer, my push-squeeze procedure became a long-term solution. Being cheap (and owning a FWD Volvo) is a curse sometimes.
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Scott - '98 V70 T5M