Left tailgate latch stuck

Weird thread title, I know.

My son can't get the tailgate on his '11 Tacoma. At my suggestion he took the inner tailgate panel off and checked the rod and handle to see if either was broken. No, not broken.

He sent pictures of both latches and the Left one is decidedly corroded or maybe just covered in crap. Either way, he can't get to to budge.

I've found a couple of articles on line from people who had the same problem. It's always the left side, the right is never the problem.

He's tried WD40 and PB Blaster to try to get it to loosen up and also tried prying on the mechanism as other people who were able to get it open dd.

Has anyone with a 2nd Gen run into this problem? Not the rod falling off or the handled breaking, but the latch itself sticking.

 

I've had the cheap plastic clips that hold the rods break. Depending on which crappy clip breaks, the rod stays in place but the pull angle is wrong and it won't release the latch (not the best way of describing it, but it's late ). You have to pull the panel and then pull the rods manually to get the latch to release. I keep the latches lubricated though so no corrosion issues. Lots of other parts are corroding though. If it's any of the clips, Toyota charges a lot for the little plastic piece but you might as well replace all of them since it's a PITA to deal with. While you're at the dealer, you might as well pick up new plastic pieces for the tailgate panel as those PoS plastic pieces strip out as well; they're not really designed for repeated use.

 

Thanks, but it's not a rod issue. He's pulled the inner cover and checked. It's the latch mechanism itself that is the issue. I will make sure that he removed the rod in case that is causing the jam.

It's hard to diagnose from 700 miles away. If I was down there, I could probably figure it out.

 

Always try to lube it down first.

 

Turns out the latch is broken. He took it to an independent shop nearby and they're going to replace it for about $150.00 including parts.