Pop and Lock PL8521 Power Tailgate Install (2012 Tacoma)

i also installed mine using this write up... great job and thank you!!! i'll post a few pictures to help clear anything up with the wiring through the backup camera wire loom. Also i chose to strip some covering off the wires and solder them to the wires up front under the kick panel. I've never had any luck with those quick connectors. and for the plug under the cab i just poked a very small hole in it with a screw driver and ran the wires up though it then put the wire loom back on when i was finished.

*thanks for the sponge hint!*

this is how i wired it through the gate... i put the weather proof plug under the truck near the back up camera plug so removing the gate would be very easy.


i put the pop&lock wires in the back up camera wire loom and ran them the exact way the back up camera is ran.


underneath.. black is pop&lock white is back up camera


into the cab


in the cab


final soldering/taping


and put back together looks like it's completely factory.




thanks again for the write up! made it SO much easier then figuring it out myself (particularly what tires to tap into.)

 

Where did you run the wires into the cab? Under the back seat? There's large, very flexible, plugs under both front seats. Most use one of those, depending on which side of the truck (driver or passenger) they're connecting the wiring to. Both plugs easily stretch enough for the wires, along with the plastic protective sleeve, to fit into (in addition to the wire bundles already there).

 

the plug i used was under the front passenger seat. i wanted to keep it sealed as much as possible.

 

Just curious after seeing the images. I didn't see that plug under my front seats, but, of course, wasn't really looking for it. Instead, I ran my wiring (protective sleeve and all) through the large plug used by the existing wire bundle. It stretched easily with a screwdriver, closing to create a very effective seal afterwards. Anyway, your setup looks good, so certainly nothing wrong with it.

 

The plug I used was just to the outside of the frame and under the passenger seat. I'd guess it was between quarter and half-dollar sized.

 

I have not bought one of these yet, I'm not all that concerned about security. I figure a campershell is pretty easy to force open, with or without a tailgate lock, and glass is easy to smash. With that said, it seems to me that for maximum security with one of these, you would install an aftermarket alarm or keyless entry, with an available auxillary channel that can be connected to just the tailgate actuator. Less wear and tear on the actuator to wear it out and cause you grief when it fails locked, plus if someone smashes the cab windows and hits the unlock button, the tailgate stays locked, and there does not need to be an auxillary switch mounted anywhere, the remote could be the only way to unlock it. This has the potential to save you from having large, locked toolboxes, or large equipment from being stolen out of the back of your truck. Anything that would not be removable by simply forcing the shell lid open is that much safer. Something to think about anyway.

 

that is true.. the pop&lock doesnt make the truck bed fort knox but it does help ALOT with security. I have a soft tonneau cover so if someone really wants in all they have to do is cut it with a knife... however without the pop&lock all they have to do is open the tail gate... take whatever they want.. and close the tailgate (it would look like it was THEIR truck). Where if they are breaking windows or knifing my tonneau cover and someone saw it they would Know it was a thief. plus the pop&lock locks the gate so it cant be opened.. if it cant be opened the gate its self cant be taken. In my opinion the pop&lock is well worth the $94 shipped.

 

That's why I wound up with a hard campershell instead of a softtopper. No locks on the soft ones, so just unzip and look casual and nobody knows it's a thief.

I was just thinking of the guys who use their trucks for work and have expensive stuff back there under a shell. It's all about adding time for the thief.

 

FWIW, I got my powered PnL for like $65 shipped on Amazon a few months ago.

 

No tonneau cover or camper shell, so my lock was installed just to keep people honest when it comes to the tailgate itself (mostly for my own peace of mind). My tools and similar are stored in metal toolbox in the otherwise open bed.

 

do you need the pop tail gate lock handle for this or will the oem one will do?

 

If you are doing the

$105 PL8521 Pop & Lock – Power Tailgate Lock for Toyota Tacoma, Fits Models 2005 to 2015 (PL8521)

PL8521 power pop n lock, you keep your original tailgate handle.

 

JTyfz450 -
That was a great write up. I followed your directions to the letter, only found a way to avoid removing the plastic piece that holds the backup camera wires (I can send a pic of this if anyone wants) and did not use the Radio Shack squeeze connectors. Things work well, but I do have a question. When I use the FOB to unlock the doors, the tailgate unlocks as it should, but a few seconds later re-locks along with all the doors. Also, only pressing the fob one time to unlock the drivers door works, but again, a few seconds later everything locks back up. Electrical short possibly because I did not use the Radio Shack squeeze connectors? Any ideas would be helpful. Unlocking the doors by using the keys and turning them twice keeps them unlock, so something is amiss with the fob. Thanks for any help.

 

You are describing normal operation. Mine does the same thing when unlocked remotely. It's been discussed on here before, particularly in regard to power tailgate locks. So far nobody seems to have an answer, unless you were to install an aftermarket alarm or keyless entry. The stock system isn't programmable to turn off the auto relock.

 

The only option right now to keep it from relocking is to open one of the doors on the cab after unlocking the truck remotely. Our Highlander has the same feature. If you unlock the car via the remote but don't open a door within a short period of time the car will relock itself. Like the previous poster said, this is a normal operation and not a short.

 

It isn't an electrical short. If you don't open your doors (not the tailgate) after you unlock the truck the truck will lock automatically (safety feature). Unlike the passenger and driver doors the tailgate doesn't have a sensor that indicates if it is open or not. So if you unlock the truck as you would and only open up the tailgate a few seconds later the passenger and driver doors will lock along with the tailgate.

 

Also I didn't take the plastic piece off of where the backup camera exits the tailgate. I cut a piece of the plastic off to accommodation both of the wire bundles.

 

Wow, thanks for the quick responses, this forum is fantastic. Joes06Tacoma, Beers, TJYfz450, all of you - thanks for easing my mind. I am a retired biology instructor, this electrical stuff rather baffles me. Murphy's law seems to haunt me when I'm outside my normal comfort zone, nice to know that I didn't screw up this time.

 

Oh, by the way - I've ordered a BakFlip VP. The unit is suppose to arrive this coming Tuesday (that is why I installed the Pop & Lock

$105 PL8521 Pop & Lock – Power Tailgate Lock for Toyota Tacoma, Fits Models 2005 to 2015 (PL8521)

PL8521). Once installed and checked out, I'll post a review.

 

Thanks for the awesome picture guides. Much easier to follow than the instructions.

One hint, helpful to atleast me. Once you've made the final connections and are testing the lock / unlock, make sure the cab doors are shut. I thought I had a problem when the unlock function worked fine, but the lock function produced a steady beep and no movement. once the doors were shut, everything worked perfectly. It took several minutes longer than I'd like to admit to figure that it was not a wiring fail!