My buddy has Honda Ridgeline and his tailgate opens like a regular tailgate or you can swing it out of the way like a door. So nice not having to lift over tailgate. Why would ford waste all that time and money putting a tiny door that opens instead of doing it like Honda.

 

The PAT is designed to work with a trailer attached as it doesn't reach as far out as a full width door when open. It's actually a very good idea. I had a '21 Lariat with the fold out tailgate step and was initially disappointed that the step wasn't available on the '24 Lariat but now that I have the PAT I love it. I hardly ever have to drop the tailgate any more whereas with the '21 I had to drop it every time I wanted to access the bed and had to lean over the tailgate to reach into the bed. There is also no need, as far as I can tell, for the optional attachable step because the integrated bumper step is exactly the right height and width to allow easy entry through the PAT door. The whole design is really a very good feature and I'm glad I have it.

 

Take pics. We like pics, like a lot.