HDJeff

I took my truck in this morning for a warranty repair. This is my 4th Ford truck, and first warranty issue with any of them. The tailgate developed a loud snapping sound while closing it, near the top of the travel. The sound started out fairly quiet, which I assumed was the tailgate step somehow shifting inside the tailgate while closing. At 1400 miles, it was VERY noticeable, like a ballpeen hammer striking metal. WTF?

The fix literally took 5 minutes, including the time to drive it in and out of the service bay. The technician was familiar with the symptoms. He explained that a "torsion rod" inside the tailgate was added to offset some of the weight of the tailgate. A mounting bolt was not torqued sufficiently at the factory, and the torsion rod worked itself loose in the mounting bracket. The mounting bolt is accessible along the bottom edge of the tailgate, so It didn't require any disassembly. Problem resolved.

It is not clear to me if ALL 2018s have this torsion rod, or if it is unique to the tailgate step, which apparently adds noticeable weight to the tailgate. Note that this has nothing to do with the tailgate dampener, which my XLT does not have.

Regards,
HDJeff

johninwi

Thanks! Damn - this is exactly what I have - developed loud in the first 500 miles. But my dealer had no clue. So they replaced the whole rod inside the tailgate. And now they messed it up because the tailgate doesn't slow open all the way - it opens about halfway and then drops hard the rest of the way.

So more hassle and yet another trip to the dealer for them to guess at what is wrong next.

icantdrive55

Hmmm. Not sure my XL has the bar. Not experiencing anything like you describe, but the tailgate sure is one heavy mother!

StonedFX4

My TG is heavy as I have the hide away step, one reason I got the damper for lowering it. It's a heavy summmabeach putting it back up tho.

Scott2373

I don't know if I'd call it a "torsion rod", it's basically a gas strut like what you find on the rear glass of an SUV. It's what helps the tailgate down gently, instead of freefalling. Here is a link to it: https://www.cjponyparts.com/ford-tai...SABEgJaQ_D_BwE

21RRF150

iTrader: (1)

Yup. Fixed this on many f150s when I worked at Ford. All f150s have had that torsion rod since 09 at least. My 2010 has is, and I don't have a step

msgtord

Two different animals. The torsion bar, which is on the inside and can't be seen, is there to help with lifting and closing the tailgate . The gas strut is there to slowly lower the tailgate when opening.

Scott2373

Ok, thanks.

elptxjc

Hey, where is this 'rod' you guys are talking about? A picture would be nice, so all of us can check it . Or at least its precise location. Thanks.

scottmoyer

We keep hearing about these issues coming out of the factory, like this bolt not torqued, the sun roof drain not hooked up, etc. How can Ford claim Quality is job 1 with basic and simple issues like this going undone?