I have 93 CTD, will a tailgate from earlier model year fit and latch?

 

how much earlier?

 

Anything from the eighties should fit.

 

1985 is the oldest that still has our body style. we had a 77 here and the tailgate was TOTALLY different. 85-93 is what most of our body parts are.

 

81-93 will work.

 

Thanks for the feedback, I don't know what year tailgate I have, it was just at the junkyard for 50 bucks. Looks like I am missing some parts for the Latch assembly, I'll have to study on it a little more.

 

The tailgate from a dually I understand will have a different pivot hinge on it, it is supposed to make it more difficult to remove.

If you remove a tailgate from a Dually it is illegal to drive on the highway because it will not have the required ICC regulation lighting.

I betcha didn’t know that..

Jim

 

The hinge is the same, there's just a wiring harness to the ID lights. Mine lost the dually tailgate somewhere along the line, so I added an ID light bar between the bumper and the tailgate. Lets me take the tailgate off easily and keeps me legal.

 

I picked up a tailgate from a dually and I see the light wiring harness comes out where the tailgate is supposed to slip onto the bed. My question is the wiring harness supposed to be there because I cannot get the tailgate on because of the wiring harness, it is in the way. I hope this made sense its late

 

does you truck have a place to plug it in? if not remove it because you don't need it.

 

Dumb question, I've never looked but is there a plug for the tailgate lights, so in the event that the gate did need to be removed you don't have to cut wires? And I'm assuming that you have to cut the rivet on the hinge to take off the gate? Do you need to re-rivet it when you put it back on?

The truck isn't here right now for me to look.

Mike

 

Yes, the plug is under the bed just left of center.

Rivet has to be removed and replaced.

 

Rivet? Where? Besides on the tailgate, I mean

DP

 

It you remove the driver’s side tail lamp assembly you will see where the wiring harness will pass through the hollow pivot, so it would seem the left side of the tailgate is installed first installing the wiring first and then installing it onto the bed from the right hand side down the edge of the box.

The tailgate wiring will be connected by 2 bullet type connectors just inside the drivers side tail lamp housing visible from both the top and from underneath as well where it will connect into the factory harness.

This harness however might be only installed on dually models because the harness also has the connectors for the side marker lights as well.

This dually harness plugs into the wiring harness at the rear of the chassis above the spare tire in the drivers side frame rail.
Jim

Quote:
does you truck have a place to plug it in? if not remove it because you don't need it.

Out here a nasty CHP could cite you for this as Non-Operable Lighting System if the lights were there but not connected and operation correctly even though they were not required.

 

Thanks Jim,
I was stumped so that is why I asked the 1ton guys about this. I planned on the factory plugs not being there, I figured I would make my own. Any specific place I should connect my wiring harness into the factory one for the running lights?

I will let you know how it goes