Tailgate theft....How to prevent it....

I've already hose clamped mine. Great thread and idea.

 

Good question, I just picked up regular washers Lowes. Not really concerned about the washer rusting, if it became an issue you could use galvanized washers.

 

Just did the washer right now. Perfect set-up with the hoseclamp.

$3 to save a couple hundo

 

Didn't take the time to wade through the hundreds of replies so sorry if this is a duplicate. Just did the washer thing to my 2010 tailgate. I used 7/16" heat-treated washers. The bolt fits very snuggly and I even had to tap in one of them but it works great. I bought a Husky brand Torx wrench for about $9 at the orange box store and the washers were $0.91. So for under $10 I have extra peace of mind in addition to the pipe clamps.

 

I'd go with a 15/32 washer. i just measured it and a 7/16 was more than snug, it didn't even fit. going to home depot now.

 

how can i do this mod? video's dont show anymore.

 

It is great advice to fallow.

 

Hey JasoTaco: i tried the washer mod today and i have a question (i think i already know the answer), when you installed the washer, did you screw the bolt all the way back in or did you leave it a bit loose to accomodate the extra width of the washer and bed cable? i got a washer that was 1/2in dia center. the thickness is only 1/16. but when i installed it and screwed the bolt back it was tight to where the bed cable did not have any room to move free when i shut the tailgate. i didn't want to leave the bolt loose just so the bed cable and washer could both fit.

 

I tightened the bolt all the way, it did make the cable/tailgate stiff to close but I've noticed it has loosened up a little bit over the last couple weeks.

So my vote would be to make it make it nice and tight because you don't want that bolt coming loose.

If you want to try it loose and you find the bolt keeps getting looser and looser you could try some LocTite Thread Locker Tape.

 

thanks for the tip jasotaco, I'll give it a shot.

 

My First mod used the ez clamps, will do the washer mod next!

 

Saw this and ordered it. I think I prefer this over the hose clamps. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

I did read through all the posts, and am grateful for the great ideas.

 

Thank's for this write up.. first thing i did you my truck

 

Yep, me too. I also locked up the spare tire with a cable and padlock.

 

I know I live in extreme unsafe place (Sonora, Mexico), but don't know if someone might find this either funny or useful: I had a small piece of steel (1/4" thick) soldered to the right part of my tailgate to prevent theft. It is a solution like the hose clamp, tailgate keeper, etc but 100 times more durable and hard to remove. Of course it hurts to scrape the paint off a small area of the tailgate to do the soldering, but I did it all for peace of mind. I did that 2 weeks after my Taco rolled off the dealer back in May. So guess what? Truck parked outside a restaurant, having lunch, then surprise!... Tailgate gone! What the 2 legged rats did is use a crowbar or something like that to (be prepared) open the bed's pillar (where the tail light are, actually they broke the rear right light assembly), that way the tailgate came off complete with the soldered ring I put.

My wife said to use a net instead of the tailgate, but I'm not willing to let my new truck loose 3K in value (that's how much the new tailgate is in Mexico, from the dealer) after 3 months of use, plus I want the cam

So what I'll do is get the tailgate, solder the ring (instead of the clamp), put the washers PLUS disable the latch that opens the tailgate (though of the pop&lock but they'll find the way to pin the lock in seconds). Lucky me (yea right!, lucky) I bought the truck mainly because of looks and to do light off-roading (live at the beach), so the things I carry in the bed are light, so no REAL need to open the tailgate. The heaviest thing so far to get into the bed would be my mountain bike. So we'll see how it goes.

--By the way, they didn't steal the spare tire, I have a chain and paddlock plus the dealer's lock

 

I have the hose clamps and the pop and lock manual lock. Have you looked into the electric lock? Perhaps it might be a bit more secure than the manual lock.

 

I thought of it but ended in a loop: Is it safer the manual lock so the thief sees it has a lock (manual pop&lock) or is it safer to use the electronic? The electronic will be definitely safer, but the scum bag maybe don't even know why the door doesn't open and make even more damage to the truck.

You know, with what we face here in mexico, if they have an eye set on something they want, they'll get it. Period. All I can do is put obstacles so it takes more time to steal the tailgate or if I'm lucky they'll just move to the next truck. So i'll try tome it hard to open the door, then make it hard to release the tailgate from the bed... and pray

 

I think the best deterrent is for potential thieves not being able to get the tailgate open in order to tinker with the clamps or whatever other security measures you have employed. A lock may slow them down enough that they might not want to mess with it. The best I can recall from one of the Pop & Lock threads is that the PL5300 is designed so that even if excessive force is applied to the locked handle, the handle will break but it will not engage the rods to release the tailgate for lowering. Seeing the lock cylinder in the handle may be just enough deterrent.