tacoma tailgate! (bending)

My tailgate easily held me + a 350 lbs engine, me + a 400lbs (at least) old 197X snowblower, and few friends drinking beer sat on it. No damage at all.

 

I voted never opened it, but in all seriousness I am very carful with the tailgate. My bed does not get used all that often for other then a bag or two from the market or a bag of seed from Home Depot. When I do load it up I am very mindful of the tailgate. I bought my taco because it is bitchin not because I needed a truck.

 

i normally dont like people who buy a truck and dont use it for a truck, but i respect that decision haha tacomas are deff nice trucks even if you use it to drive around town

 

Mine bent a little after loading a Honda 450 Dualsport on it...I jumped on it evenmore and bent it pretty good. Had it replaced under warranty and the TSB.

 

So on an 09 would it be okay for people to sit on it like at a tailgate?

 

I had an 03 and buckled the tailgate the first time I loaded my snowmobile aboard it. This 07 I just bought has a tailgate with no scratches or wear of any type...but I know the previous owner had a snowmobile as I can see the ski marks on the bed. I suspect my dealer replaced the tailgate before selling it, perhaps due to bending. There is no way the tailgate survived 3 years without a scratch. Either way, I will be more careful with this gate.

 

So this TSB doesn't really apply to '10 model trucks? I haven't really had anything super heavy on mine yet, but I do hear this concerning creaking noise when I sit on it (i'm only 185 lbs), but I think it might just be the little steel support wires.

 

IIRC, sometime in 09 they started having a reinforced one. Your 10 should be OK but don't hold me to it, lol.

 

According to the TSB the change was in 08. And it was soon after my truck was built.

 

You have to bend it to qualify

NOPE, not true!

Again, NOPE not true!



This is just like the rear spring TSB, you have to bitch and moan to get fixed. They will not replace or repair your tailgate unless you bend it. From what I can gather and have seen all 2nd gens have the SAME tailgates.

Now personally I load my 650lb quad with me 220lbs, so 870+ lbs up on the tailgate all the time. The weak point is the center..stay away from that and your ok. Even when I jump down from the tailgate from the center it flexs alittle bit. There are some nice tailgate mods to strenghten it, but what a pain in the ass for something that should come stronger from the factory IMHO.

 

Damn I thought I had the cool tough tailgate Where are these tailgate reinforcement mods you speak of?

 

One I really like
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/29117-weak-tailgate-reinforcement-solution.html

 

I think mine is just fine! After hauling this 500 # ATV on it for over 80 miles back and forth, everything was just fine with NO bending whatsoever. Mine obviously has the TSB on it.

 

when hauling atv's, all the load is out at the edges, close to the support. It is load in the center that cause's bending .

 

i havent had any problems with my 09 with me loading a 300 pound dual sport and me being 230 pounds.

 

2008 tacoma load a yz450 in center of the bed no problems so far

 

When I stood on the tailgate to hop off I heard these awful creaking/cracking noises Just yesterday I had my pop n lock tailgate handle installed which required the removal of the plastic and damn that thing is weak and flimsy on the inside!!!! Just a few thin metal supports but the rest is open space; so pretty much all you are stepping on is the plastic itself. Gee, can't imagine what the earlier model tailgates looked on the inside!

 

09 has the reinforcement in it.

sometime in 08 they added the reinforcement

The reinforcement is up high against the top of the gate, where the bending usually begins.

 

someone earlier had said that they hadnt changed it and the tailgates are all the same, im not sure if i believe that since the tsb isnt for the newer models

 

The TSB states that the tailgate was changed in 08. They even give the starting vin #s.