my tailgate won't open. i have had problems with it in cold weather before, but just had to hit it and work it a bit to open it up. then one day (when it was still cold) it wouldn't open at all, and i haven't been able to open it since then.

anybody else had this problem?

ask me for specific details and i can let you know.

thanx,
jason

 

It most likely needs some PB Blast sprayed on the latch assembly & strikers. You should be able to shoot some down through the gap on both sides of the tailgate at the strikers. It will free up.

 

Living in Minnesota, this is good advise. I spray all of my lock tumblers and tailgate latch parts as well as the door stickers and all plates. These areas are the most overlooked as far as maintenance that there is and they get the worst of all natures elements.

 

It should be easy to fix. Infact it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to take the whole thing apart and give it a good cleaning/greasing.

I just did mine. First pull the "escutceon" (the plastic trim piece) from around the release handle. Simply pry upward from the bottom, then out. I used a paint mixer to aid in the removal. It should just pop out. Inside youll see the linkage rods hooked to handle mechanism, one from each side, and two small plastic clips holding them on. Push the clips off and pull the rods out of the holes. Then remove the handle chassis by unscrewing the three T30 (i think) bolts from the other side of the tailgate. You should be able to pull the handle out now. Give it a good cleaning with brake parts cleaner, then grease it up and move the linkages back and forth alot to loosen them up and let the rust powder out.

The latches are even easier. Prop up the tailgate a bit to give slack on the check cable. Remove the two (on each side) T45 torx bolts and the whole mechanism comes out with the long linkage rod and silencer. Give it a good cleaning and greasing too. Move all the parts around to loosen things up. Reassembly is just the opposite of the removal. Just make sure the linkage rods are near the middle handle hole in the tailgate so you can grab them and hook them onto the handle chassis.

Mine wouldn't close because the handle chassis was pretty rust and wouldn't return the "home" position. After doing all this I barely have to push and it closes smooth. Don't forget to grease up the strikers a bit too.

Man I should'a taken pics while I was doing it.

 

ok, i got it figured out. the plastic clip which holds the passenger rod linkage to the handle mechanism is broken.

i have since gone out and picked up the clips to replace the broken one and three others, just need some time to do the work. shouldn't be hard as per the previous post.

meanwhile i have just removed the pass side linkage so that the tailgate works (only latches on the dr side)

i will be taking everything apart, cleaning, and lubing with jig-a-loo before reassembling. i am also going to be installing jimmi jammers so will do the door mechanisms also.

any tips before i start are appreciated (if not mentioned previously).

thanx for the help guys.

later,
jason

 

Thanks; I'm heading out to get clips!

 

Didn't need clips. Had to soak handle assembly in PB Blaster!

 

I just dealt with one at work whose opening problem was grass wound tightly around the part of the latch that spins locking it up.
Wouldn't open at all till things thawed out this year.

 

Soaking didn't help. Soaking entire handle in diesel fuel now. If that doesn't free it up, I'll get a new handle off ebay.