"Tailgate open" message

[Raynald]

Well, it started with the tailgate refusing to open. It was unlocked allright, but the darn lock wouldn't let go and the door wouldn't move. After pushing the tailagate down and pulling on the handle many times, it finally opened. I put some lubricant (WD-40 to be exact...) on the lock, closed the gate, locked and unlocked it a few times and voilà, back to life!

Since then (or was it before, I can't figure...), I get the "Tailgate open" message and althought the alarm is on, the lights won't blink when I lock the car. Any tips from you guys?

And one more thing: there's a little lever of some kind near the lock mechanism. I played with it a few times with no apparent result. Does somebody know what it is for? Can't find anything in the user's manual.



Gee, even after three years of ownership, I still find new things

Happy New Year!

[River Runner]

I had the same thing a couple of months back. After crawling into the back of the car to figure out how to open the gate, I realized the carpet pad had slid back a little and was wedging under the door. I slid it out from underneath and everything works fine.

As for the lights flashing when you lock the doors, it appears that they won't flash until all the doors are closed. If you lock the doors with the tailgate open, the doors will lock, and the lights will flash when the gate is closed.

[Dani K.]

i had the same problem when I reversed the rugged mat in the back. Although the tailgate looked closed, I had the Tailgate Open message on. All I had to do is slip the mat a little to the back (towards the front of the car) and the message was gone.

[Raynald]

Everything is back to normal...

I've checked the lining, but it wasn't that. Then, I figured that we had a pretty windy and icy conditions during the holidays and since the tailgate was locking properly, I first wondered where the sensor is located. Still don't have the awnser, but I realized there were some icy snow (believe me, just very little...) accumulation around the hindges and on the top inside portion of the tailgate. I swept carefully all around the gate, rubber and all, closed it, locked the car and voilà!

As for the little lever, I've learned from another forum that it's the child security lock that prevent opening the gate from the inside when the inside open handle is installed for the occupants of the third row seat.

Another solved mystery! Thanks guys!

[surfsailor]

While trying to attach one of those magnetic signs that you see a lot of these days, I made a discovery.... The Tailgate is not magnetic. I couldn't tell if it is Aluminum or plastic What's the lowdown on that?

[ChuckK]

Last year I was returning from a kayak/raft trip in Utah with the trunk completely loaded. We stopped in Moab for a meal and I couldn't get the hatch lid open no matter what I did. I believe the carpeted trunk mat had slid back just a little and interfered with the mechanism. But with the storage area completely filled with gear (including a dry box too big to pull out through the front), I couldn't get at the mat. So I gave up and waited till we got home to take most of the gear out the front. I don't believe the mat could have been out of place by more than a half inch or so. That hatch mechanism appears to be VERY sensitive to any interference. I'm inclined to go on river trips now without the extra carpeted mat, but my wife won't tolerate that for fear of ruining the regular carpet.

[Art]

While trying to attach one of those magnetic signs that you see a lot of these days, I made a discovery.... The Tailgate is not magnetic. I couldn't tell if it is Aluminum or plastic What's the lowdown on that?

Yep, it’s definitely non-metallic.

More detail about this here.