Tailgate Up Indicater

Well this is my version of a tailgate up indicator, no wires, switches, l.e.d., just simple stupid. well this is what I came up with after several attempts on paper. The body of the indicator is pressure treated decking scrap. It measures 3”x 1” x 1” sanded and stained black, then sealed with linseed oil. The reflector is from Amazon, two in a pack for $6.95, they measure 3” x 7/8” x 1/8”. It has a adhesive back, I used Gorilla heavy duty double sided tape to stick it to the tailgate. So that’s it, less than $15.00. Mounted dead center on the tailgate. The cover is a BakFlip, really low profile which helps.

 

If your tailgate is down and you put it into R, dont you just see the ground?

 

Now you're just using common sense for a solution that demands a problem....

 

Someone clearly failed at KISS

 

You beat me to it. You can check your infotainment screen as easily as you can look in your mirror at that indicator. No additional work required.

 

My logic...
only bad thing that can happen with the tailgate down is you back into something.
You have to put it in reverse to back into something.
You see the ground=tailgate down.
See where I am going?

 

If you don’t put it in reverse you’ll never know, I guess everyone is a critic, if you have a bed cover your in the blind. So keep it simple, stupid. KISS

 

looks good to me. i question if my tailgate is up or down by the time im on the interstate. id prefer to not throw it in r at 65 mph either.

 

I think it's clever. I've driven off accidentally with my tailgate down in my lifetime on older trucks that didn't have reverse cameras. Even with the Tacoma it could happen since 99% of the time I back into my space so it wouldn't be in reverse until I got to my destination.

 

This is another reason for having the Anytime Backup Camera mod. I can press a switch on the dash and see the rear view, without putting the truck into reverse. If I see the pavement, it means the tailgate is down.

 

That's very clever Tac2021, thanks for the tip. I think I'm going to do this to my truck, too. This is more convenient than stopping and putting the trans into reverse, which I have done a few times to check my tailgate.

 

Good idea, when I had my tri fold cover, I have second guessed myself and pulled over to put it in R in a parking lot.

 

My solution is simple. A constant thumping noise means my tailgate is up. Silence means that the tailgate is down and the cargo has escaped.

 

Don't want to shift into reverse to check the camera?

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/anytime-front-and-rear-camera-mod.542285/

(I almost did this when I had a tent on the truck and it completely blocked my rear view mirror)

 

You can throw it into R at speed and all it will do is turn on the reverse cam and go into neutral.

 

that is something i'll take your word for

 

This is one of the very useful things of the camera mod. I actually drove off in a hurry to the parts store and lost a socket rail of Snap On sockets. Pissed me off. Went back to the scene of the crime and they were gone. I had the camera mod installed a week later. I had thought about a switch with an indicator or maybe putting something in series with the hood switch or door switch to get the alert on the dash but I've trained myself to think about the tailgate whenever I get in and drive.

 

Is that Pressure treated?