Hey guys, my lock button/knob broke on my tailgate on my last excursion and at first I was able to pull it up with a Gerber but now it does not unlock even when pulled up, and I can't open the tailgate. In not sure what the actual name for the lock is, but I'm not talking about the lock cylinder, but the inside plastic lock next to the handle lever.

Ive searched and found a bunch of stuff, read thru 4Crawlers site but haven't found any I got regarding a broken plastic lock.

There was some cloth material behind the plastic lock that I could pull and unlock the tailgate with, but that lasted about 3 pulls and then ripped off. Anyone know how to get this thing unlocked without the plastic? Or ang other solutions?

my key doesn't work in the rear lock cylinder, btw. It's either too worn or someone swapped out the cylinder. Pretty sure my key is just donzo cuz my key falls out of the ignition when I'm wheeling 🍻. My key only works on the drivers side door and ignition. The only way I can roll down my window is with the switch with the ignition on.

 

 

Is there any tension when you pull up on the handle to try to open the gate or is it loose and free moving when you try to open it? If you take the cover off, you'll see the guts of the window and have a better understanding of how everything works. There's also plenty of videos on youtube that explain components in detail.

 

Yes there is tension when the plastic is up in the open position, when it is in the lock position the handle moves freely.

 

I would just take the cover off and go from there. I had a similar issue and the fix was pretty apparent with the cover off. Sounds like the lock isn't sliding far enough upward maybe. You'll be able to see if the cables are pulling to release the gate and the engagement of the handle and lock. If there's tension, it sounds like at least one cable is pulling to release the gate.

 

I got a high-tech solution here - zip tied to the broken lock mechanism. Turns out the inner workings of the tailgate was seized up and I just used a hammer and a piece of wood to get that sum bish loosened up.

still have to figure out how to make my key work in the lock to lower the window.

 

 

Pull the hatch (tail gate) lock cylinder have it rekeyed to your key that works.

It pops out by removing the clip and pushing it to the outside

 

Not the prettiest thing....