Lift gate lock mechanism

Darin Vander Well

New Member
Jul 20, 2018
4
0
1
43
South Dakota
Howdy!

I'm looking for advice in how to free up a stuck/broken lock mechanism on my rear hatch/lift gate.

My old plastic handle gave way ~6 months ago, and I replaced it with a metal handle, which I've been very happy with. However, last week, the lock/unlock mechanism appears to have gotten stuck, so I can't open the rear hatch.

I took the interior panel off to confirm the handle/latch cable mechanism is still connected (it is) and that it seems to be working/pulling appropriately (it is). So, I'm left to assume the lock mechanism is stuck or broken.

Any suggestions on how I can free it up and open my rear hatch again?
 

Trideyota

Recognized Member
Dec 31, 2017
82
8
8
Telluride, CO
You may want to listen for the actuator . I had that go bad fixed it then 12 months later the latch finally failed. Works like a champ now! Just remove panel when you go in for the repair and pull the cable by hand.
 

Darin Vander Well

New Member
Jul 20, 2018
4
0
1
43
South Dakota
Remove the bottom actuator panel (the small black box at the base of the door cavity)?

Or which panel are you referring to?

I had the interior panel pulled off to confirm the handle and cable mechanism is working properly.
 

eaglerockdude

New Member
Jul 9, 2019
12
3
3
68
PART 1: Tailgate Issues:

I am posting my recent experience fixing this thing. I believe I know ALL of the details involved now after repairing this thing twice. I have probably watched every youtube video out there on this repair, and I may make comment or reference them. You can find them yourself, or maybe look for them after I speak to them. Again..I am not a pro mechanic or anything but I do like to try and fix simple things myself if i can, for the knowledge of understanding how and why it broke, and to save some bucks. I will present this as a story as it happened in real life.

This is about a 1st Gen Sequoia Limited. White with Tan leather. Bought with 105,000 miles, now has 125,000. Don't use it much but for camping and hauling, but I will be making some 7 hour one way trips this year.

1. First Issue I had. Pulled the handle, door would not open. Looked online for videos. Found several how to remove back panels so see that the small plastic piece that pulls the cable that goes to the latch had broken.

(Overview of tailgate system: The latch in the middle that pulls up. When its pulled up, it pulls on a metal cable that runs down against the door, and to the latch that is down at the bottom of the tailgate. It's the part that closes on the little metal hook on the bumper, that holds the door shut.

Now...this latch besides hooking and unhooking f rom that metal hook, also servers to lock the tailgate. It does this by means of an "actuator" which is a little black box that needs power from the system, of which there are two plugs. When you press your key FOB, the actuator which is hooked right on top of the latch, can move a little plastic piece that essentially prevents the latch from opening the door It works pretty simply and when you get your latch off and play with it, you will be able to see how it works.

That said, sometimes that part of the system gets stuck, and in that case you cannot open the door. Even if the latch and cable are good, Because the door stays locked, More on that later, First let's discuss the most common problem.

1. Back to one. Broken handle. You pulled off your panels(see youtube) and you can see part of the handle is broken. So your solution is...you search and probably buy one for $25 from Amazon, because the OEM is about $85. It seems better, because they all say "it has a metal part, not a plastic, so it won't break. Maybe. Mine was supposed to be "all metal" but the same part that broke was plastic on the new one.

My point is...you put a new latch, and the door opens. You are a happy camper, a DOYIR. One thing to note, the handle it hard to get it. You will be scraping your hands up, cursing, and sweating bullets on a hot day, cause you need the rear window up to work on it.

Anyway...a tip. The are 4 bolts that hold the frame that has the motor that moves the rear window up and down. If you loosen that, and just push it free, it will lower enough to get good access to working on the handle. Otherwise its' a bitch.

2. So one day, you go to open your tailgate, and nothing happens. What? I mean, how can it break...I just fixed it with an "all metal handle"....so here is the deal. The first mistake everyone makes I think. The whole system is so old..yeah the plastic part on the handle broke, BUT the cable probably has a little broken piece of plastic on it that helps it clip to the handle, and also as bad, its gotten stretched out a bit, which makes it easier for it to come loose.

The first time this happened, I pulled all the panels off, lowered the window motor frame..and...YES...the ball and cable had just some loose..thats it...hooked it back up and was good to go.

Until months later...when the thing would not open AGAIN. Now here is the deal, it could happen when the truck is in the driveway, but it could also happened at a bad time. The first time for me, I was on vacation in wine country, and the rest of the trip we had to pull our luggage out thru the window or side doors. How embarrassing. The 2nd time, I was preparing for a long trip, and again, put the luggage in thru the window.
 
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eaglerockdude

New Member
Jul 9, 2019
12
3
3
68
PART 2

Are you starting to get the moral to this wordy story? When I tell you, you will recognize the universal truth. It is this:

DON'T BE A CHEAP DUMB SHIT AND just FIX IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME. IT MIGHT SAVE YOU SOME GRIEF and bullets of sweat.

There..thats it..

Here is the process the FIRST time you have the issue.

Go to ebay or even the Toyota dealer, and pay whatever is costs to get as close to OEM as possible. And then buy the following. I will list what I paid recently June 2023 (Oh yes..did I forget to say...my door would not open for the THIRD TIME?)

1. Buy this kit. It includes a new handle, new latch and new cable, ($199 or more)
2. Buy a new actuator. ($80 or more)
3. Get some telescoping mirrors and offset screwdrivers. And a good small worklight.

So what you are going to do. Is REPLACE everything with OEM parts. Because no matter what they always promise, the as-good-as-OEM are never as good right? They just don't fit perfect as then need to.

Why telescoping mirrors? Because here is what happened to me the third time...Or was it the fourth I forget.

I pulled the panels off...BUT...I could NOT open the door...the cable had come loose from the handle, but in the past, I could just pull the cable manually and pop the door open. But no matter how many times I press the key FOB...and hear the click...the door would not open. It was locked, This is the infamous case where you see videos on the internet of guys using a sawzall and cutting the latch loop off from the back, or one guy used hits dremel and cut open the black plastic box that covers the actuator and latch. Because if you don't do that...get to the actuator knob that moves in and out and locks the latch...BUT is stuck from grime or age or who knows what...you cannot get your door open.

I knew I need to get my hands down there(or a tool) and move that actuator piece/hinge manually to unlock the latch. Because the FOB could not do it.

I did not want to dremel or sawZall my car or make a big hole in the back.. I found a youtube of a guy who showed that if you can pull the plastic cover off from over the actuator and latch, you should be able to use a tool or something, and unlock your door. Doing the same thing that the actuator and FOB normally are supposed to do.

The problem is...there are two little screws around the back, that you cannot see. And they are very small. And..if they are stripped,,,you will probably need to cut or sawZall I guess. But mine were not stripped, But being blind, I could not get them out by feel. Nor did I have the tools.

I purchased a telescoping mirror set($10 amazon) and some offset screwdrivers. I already had a good LED light. So I by feel put some WD-40 on those small screws, and waited for the Amazon.

Once it came, I was out there. With the light, and little mirrors, I could see the two little screws. My offset screw drivers did not work that great. The space is so tight..not much room there. I was finally able just to hold a small drill bit in my fingers, and get the screws out. The first one was easy. The 2nd one took trying over two different days, often almost giving in to the dremel or going to the body shop or mechanic. But I got the screws out.

Now..i never really got to pull the cover off. As I was wrestling with it, my door popped open. So somehow the jiggling allows the lock mechanism to move. But if that was not the case, once I got the cover off, in time I would have got the door open with the process described.

So...once the door is open. I have access to the latch from the bottom. I removed the latch and actuator. The cable comes out with it. You will need to uplug the actuator from the tailgate. There are two cables.

I attached my new actuator to the top of my new latch mechanism. I bought some Dupont Dry lube, and I sprayed all moving parts, and cleaned all others.

Now...before you put everything back in...you can actually TEST it. Here is how.

1. Connect your new Actuator/latch to the two wire cables with snaps that you disconnected to pull the latch and actuator out.
2. With a screw driver, and your fingers, play around manually to see how the actuator actually locks the latch, When in lock position, if you pull the cable manually, the door will not open. Watch how it does it. Then when in locked position, the cable till move some levers in the bottom of the latch, the ones that close on the metal loop at the tail gate base. To clasp the door shut.

As you observe that bottom opening and closing of the parts that will grab that metal tailgate loop, understand what is OPEN, and what is Closed. BECAUSE, in order to test the KEY FOB you will need to make sure that the latch is in the OPEN position. So use a screwdriver and make sure it is OPEN, not close.

Now...that being done. It's open . Press your key FOB. you will see the actuator do its thing, and move the piece that LOCKS the latch. Now if you pull the cable, you cannot open the latch. Now,...press the FOB again, and you should see the actuator move again it's thing, and unlock the latch...so now you know it works both ways.

SO...now you are ready to put everything back together.

3. Insert the actuator(after you disconnect from the test) into the plastic cover. There are you tube videos on it..It goes in at an angle...Makes sure the cover and all parts are washed and free of dirt. I think this cover is very important. It's a DUST cover..you don't want dirt collecting on the moving latch parts. What I did..DO NOT REPLACE THE TWO LITTLE SCREWS YOU WORKED SO HARD TO REMOVE. From what i can see, the whole cover is held in place fine. And if you ever have another issue, you won't have to struggle with removing those two little screws. If it bugs you, maybe put some electrical tape of something around the cover. But don't think it needs it.

Once you get everything back togethers, you will see the latch works smoothly. Because all the parts fit together as they should, and they are all dirt free.

The point of the story is. Replace everything the first time. Don't piecemeal it. Cause everything is getting old and ready to go.

If you are lucky, you won't have to deal with the lock being stuck. That is the nightmare scenario, although now that I know how it all fits together is really not a big deal.

Oh yes..some guys out there propose putting some sort of emergency latch down there at the bottom of the latch. If I have this issue again, which I don't expect..maybe I will consider that..BUT I do not like leaving openings down there for dirt and mud to get into the moving parts. I think that is what causes a lot of the issues, besides just general aging of the parts.
 

defecation

Active Member
May 4, 2023
21
6
3
39
I replaced the broken handle 2 years ago and EVERY time I opened it, I was expecting it to break. I went with the Aired down inner and outer latch/lanyard and have 0 worries. Only took about 30 minutes with no regrets.
 

Andrewr05

Active Member
Oct 14, 2022
36
13
8
35
New Hampshire, USA
I just modified mine with a piece of metal out the bottom and never have to worry about it again.

I'll occasionally lube up the mechanism, but literally unless the latch completely binds up I will never have to deal with it again.

I had my latch fail on a camping trip right after I fully loaded to the BRIM all of my gear.

My camping weekend was shitty because of that, but it would have been absolutely fucking miserable if the Sequoia didn't have a roll down liftgate window and folding seats.
That weekend had a tremendous amount of shuffling around just to get to things.

Video link of new latch mechanism...
 
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