tailgate handle

so over the weekend, something came disconnected or got jammed up with my tailgate handle. now it wont stay closed and is held up with a ratchet strap. i noticed there is a bunch of torx head screws in the plastic cover on the backside of the tail gate. if i remove those will it give me access to the inside of the gate so i can figure out what happened?

 

Yes, take the torx things loose and pull up on the edge of the top strip to get the big tailgate piece off then you can see if the linkages came loose or the plastic clippy things holding the rods came undone or broke. It's a flimsy thing and I could see it coming undone with some quick repeated openings.

 

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t178961.html

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t170754.html

might help you see how to get started

 

I recently added the power door lock solenoid to mine. It's easy, but I actually thought the latches on the edges of the tailgate were spring loaded. It sounds to me like maybe a rock or debris got caught in the latches. It should be easy enough to take apart and clean. Tell us what you find.

RZ Rob

 

Dynolock or PopnLock? Just installed my PopnLock and lock it!

 

nothing broke, the linkage had some rust on it and wasnt returning to its point. i put a good coat of white lithium grease on all the moving parts. i;m going to try the stuff in those links this weekend i think.