On 1-Oct, 2010, at 08:09 , Jim Zito wrote:
> Tailgate on the Dakota doesn't like to play anymore, I open it and generally
> the handle stays up...I can deal with that but often times, even with the
> handle "re-cocked" it still won't close.
Brian and Don are off.
I've never had the newer style side latches not reset. you can test them by actuating them with the little lever you're pushing to see if they're sticky.
The issue is the scissor mechanism in the handle. I had my cables fail and smashed my handle to bits just after diagnosing this myself so I never got a chance to try fixing it, but lots of light oil to free it up and some white lithium to keep it free may do the trick.
the three T45 (give or take 5) screws allow the handle to be removed. There is no access panel. There should be enough room to remove the linkage rods from the handle without pulling the latches. The bezel around the handle just snaps in and out.
Hope you can get it freed up, it's an expensive part even from RockAuto (like $75, compared to $30 for other models). Or at least it was 3 years ago or so when I shopped it.
Mike
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Mon Nov 01 2010 - 10:47:34 EDT