Reposting this here in the year specific forums in hopes to get more attention. I'm new here and jumped the gun a bit in the general discussion. If the mods need to remove that one, please do.

I have a 2021 Lariat with a power tailgate. When towing (for obvious reasons) I select "manual" for the tailgate mode. Except it doesn't actually put the tailgate into "manual" mode. When I try to stop the tailgate before it hits the trailer jack, it goes back up on me. I barely have enough time to grab the release for the tonneau cover before the tailgate closes on my hands. The dealership says this is normal and reffered me to the owners manual where it said "manual close" which I don't think applies to this situation as it is a feature of the "power mode". I find this to be ABSOLUTELY INSANE!!! Either the tailgate doesnt work the way it is supposed to and they are misreading the owners guide, or it does work as it is supposed to and some engineer at Ford overlooked this.

Can anyone confirm who has a power up power down tailgate (I believe the power up feature only became available on the 2021's) if theirs works this way in "MANUAL" mode. All I care about is what it does in manual mode. The dealership doesn't have any trucks in stock to even test it out for me.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Ford customer care and the dealership have been completely useless.

 

My tailgate does this as well. It concerned me enough where I modified my jack (major PIA, but doable on my trailer) so that the tailgate clears when down. I felt for sure that even if I was able to operate it differently I would someday forget and inadvertently hit the tailgate release. I was surprised that I did not see more posts about this.

 

Sounds like another whizz-bang feature that looked good in the boardroom but is impractical in the real world. It is 'funny' how many trucks you see with the tell-tale dent in them from hitting trailer jacks.

 

Mine operates the same and my belief is that it does so because the engineer thought no one would want a tailgate that flops/slams down. Since it is a motor that operates the soft opening and closing function, the only way to make it soft opening is to keep that motor engaged and that requires a safety feature to reverse it if something interferes with the motor's opening function.

 

Unless I’m reading this wrong this has been addressed in the 22. Mine works like a manual in manual mode both up an down. However the key fob and I’d imagine the tailgate button still operate the actuator to open the tailgate. So, when towing I leave mine in automatic as, should I mistakenly hit the button it will open under control. I’m lucky that my tailgate will only strike the propane cover and only where the plastic is on the tailgate. I’m curious. If the tailgate lowers under control will it go back up with the slightest resistance? Will it prevent even minor damage? I know it would certainly
be less then manual mode.

FWIW my truck has switched over to manual once already without my input. As has the auto fold mirror, amongst other smaller important things.

 

I have a 22 Lariat with power tail gate. I decided to check if it would go in reverse direction if met by resistance. It does in both directions. Opening and closing. Not sure if it would prevent damage though.

i just used my hand for testing it.

 

Mine is a 2022 as well and it operates as described by the OP. In manual mode while opening, if I stop it before it reaches the fully down condition, it will automatically close. Once fully open, it will not automatically close and I have to lift it manually.

 

Luckily I have clearance for full tail gate open with both my trailers. But I have had an occasion where I was backed up against a wall and needed into the bed. I had to arm wrestle against the tail gate motor to prevent contact with the parking garage wall. And after winning, I got to watch the darn tailgate shut itself. I said something out loud to the truck at this point and immediately heard some stranger laughing at me. Occasionally, technology gets in the way. LOL

It seems like a value could be added to the trailer record to indicate desired tailgate operation. Ex.. If my 'Bassboat' is selected, then tailgate = manual, tailgate open remote = false, tailgate motor soft open = false. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

So in manual mode is it still soft opening and just manual close. Or manual fall like a 70’s tailgate manual mode with heavy lift.

 

It remains soft opening in manual mode so it is technically only a manual closing tailgate when "Manual" mode is selected.