Tailgate stolen....FFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUU

yea...they bend easily if you put a bike in the bed, and they're very easy to take off and thus appealing to every halfway crook on the street....hell putting a hose clamp on the mounts is enough to deter probably 99% of would be thieves.

 

one trick for catching a theif on craigslist is putting some kind of distinguishing mark on it. the inside so its not noticeable but when you see it just take it and walk out.

 

This makes me scared about moving to Dallas soon. I did the hose clamp mod but i'm probably going to invest in a pop n lock soon.

 

When I got my truck 1st thing I did was put some of those bullet hole stickers on it and it seems no one wants it............

 

x2

 

There is a VIN sticker on one of the ends. I think mine is on the right (passenger's) end. It's the same type and style sticker that is on all the parts. Doors, hood, etc.

 

Our tailgates are popular because the are light weight and an easy way for people to make money. My friend has a big dodge truck and the tailgate weights 3-4 times as much as our tailgates so it would probably take two people to carry it away.

 

I just did the Pop-n-Lock

$122 PL8521 Pop & Lock – Power Tailgate Lock for Toyota Tacoma, Fits Models 2005 to 2015 (PL8521)

PL8521...was worried about the tail gate and the Extang Solid Fold Tonnau cover...now with the cover on and the tailgate locked...it's all good...

 

Sucks about your tailgate, check the link in my sig for a writeup about wiring up some electric tailgate locks for cheap

 

I was just going to mention a co-worker of mine just had the tailgate stolen from their Ram. I told them about the hose clamp mod but it's a little late now.

 

pwned.

 

jesus...my insurance just got a quote from the dealer to replace the tailgate for $2500! The dealerships are probably the ones stealing them!

 

I have a Pop N Lock as well as the hoseclamp incase I forget to lock the damned thing. That kind of shit just pisses me off. I always hope the od on the money they make on the sale of stolen stuff.

 

that is total bs....how did this number come up by the dealer? i can't believe they get away with that kind of shit....

 

$516 - tailgate shell
$92 - tailgate inner panel
$90 - tailgate handle
$76 - L/R tailgate latches
$20 - L/R latch strikers
$133 - tailgate protector (wtf is this?!)
$60 - L/R hinges
$24 - L/R cables
$116 - nameplates (who else is thinking twice about scrapping theirs....jesus!)
$132 - paint/materials
$790 - tailgate camera

includes 8.4 hours of labor to assemble the parts, prime, paint, and clear

 

Friggin crackheads! Did they cut the camera cord too or is there some kinda disconnect? $2500 from the dealer?! Dang a Pop & Lock investment is invaluable no doubt. Sorry to hear about that man.

 

everything is such a rip off! wow! name plates, and $790 for the camera, hell the aftermarket ones are ton better and hell of a lot cheaper!

i'm sorry you have to go through this shit. i think as soon as i get back home (hopefully it won't be too late), i'm gonna do the theft deterrent mods on my tailgate.

 

The dealer is a bigger thief than the crack head that stole your tailgate.

 

parts (as per trdparts4u aka toyota of dallas) total $1354. My dealer (toyota of irving) quoted my insurance compnay MSRP for all parts, and included two strikers when there is only one. The tailgate protector is the piece of plastic that runs across the top (i thought this was molded in with the inner panel, but I don't exactly have a tailgate I can go check!). Labor to paint is $176, assembly is $160, add in $132 for paint and materials (which I'm sure is overstated) and we get $1822.

...and we wonder why insurance is so expensive...these aren't even dealer invoice prices.

I've already ordered the EZ clamps, and am going to invest in a pop n loc.