Tailgate

[gub]

For some reason, my 86' ranger tailgate wont come down like normally. I was finally able to take it off after 10mins of pulling and using wd40. I see on one side, the thing that is holding it on is engaging half way when i pull the lever. What could i do to fix this because the gate doesnt come apart, its one peice.

 

[kunar]

it seems like it's a fairly common problem. i've had 3 that have done the same thing, but i have yet to cut one open to see what i can do. im pretty sure you'll have to cut a hole in the inside thats big enough to get to the rods inside and re-bend them so they pull the latch open farther. depending on what i find in there, i have thought about using cables and turnbuckles to replace the rods.

 

[kroed11581]

I think if you unbolt the latches on either end of the tailgate, you can pull the latch assembly out, then the rod will come with it, after you unhook it from the handle, of course. To unhook it from the handle, I think you can either pull the handle back to get up in there, or perhaps you can unbolt the handle from the back side of the tailgate, then pull the handle out enough to unhook the rods. It's been a while since I've done it, so if I'm incorrect, feel free to correct me. Check the plastic rod keepers too, those break or crack alot and won't allow full travel of the rod. Again, I know for fact the older F-150's disassemble that way, and I think the Rangers did too.

 

[RobbieD]

Take out the 3 Torx screws on the inside of the tailgate, and the latch assembly will drop enough to reach and unlatch the plastic keepers on the linkage rod. Once these are freed, each of the two latches can be unbolted and removed from the tailgate, along with the linkage rod. Like the previous poster says, look at the plastic keepers. They're available at parts stores, for a few bucks each if you find them pooched.