What The Hell Was That?

[teksavy]

So as I was coming back from lunch today with fellow co-workers riding comfortably in my AV and as we were coming up to speed on the on-ramp, a REALLY LOUD, DEEP THUNK was coming from my new rig! Three loud bangs in rapid sucession. At first I thought it was the transmission, but quickly realized that it was the tailgate.

I guess I didn't slam the tailgate hard enough and it came crashing down.

I pulled over immediately and got out and closed it. (Since my cover bag was in there- didn't want it to fly out.)

Had me worried for a sec- but was quickly relieved. I hope the tailgate doesn't suffer any ill-effects. I'm sure this sort of thing is designed for.

Has anyone else had that happen to them? Its a first for me on any truck I've driven.

-Ed

 

[MacMan]

YEP!!!! Scared the pi** out of me!

Fortunately I was by myself! Now I just give a tug on it after slamming it shut to be sure it won't happen again!

 

[justhrowit]

I think the tailgates, because they are so heavy, really have to be slammed pretty hard. The silverado will latch with a light little push. AV gate is much more solid and heavy. Needs a little more elbow grease. I've never had this happen, but I imagine it would scare the crap out of me.

 

[wonder91178]

We've had it happen to members on cruises, luckily with FRS radios, the person behind them can let'em know their tail gate has dropped!

I always make sure to slam mine pretty hard so it'll lock on the first try....



Kim

 

[AtankZ71]

I don't slam mine hard at all. I did have it drop on me once and I had it get stuck locked. Both times it was because I didn't shut it properly. In the manual it says make sure you use both hands to close. It needs shut properly for the water management system. I learned the hard way by shutting it & locking it (even though when I locked it the lock gave me a lot of resistance) - then I couldn't get the darn thing open. I ended up banging on both sides of the tailgate so they would catch. Once they did I could open it. I think the tailgate just like the midgate is just touchy and you need to hit it right for it to close properly. just my 2 cents.

 

[MrFish]

I had that happen a while back. I thought I'd run over a log or rock, so kept driving the 12 miles home. When I got there I realized what it was. Luckily, the cardboard box full of papers and $1500 worth of camera gear that Teresa had put in was still there. One of the few times I was thankful for that rubber mat.

 

[endeavorc]

If when locking your tailgate the key is hard to run, that means the tailgate is not shut all the way. This is a very common problem and has been discussed many times. I keep my tailgate locked at all times. The way I check to make sure it is closed all the way is to check the "fit" or alignment of the tailgate with the taillights. I make sure the tailgate is near flush with the lights, if it sticks out any further than 1/8 to 1/4" that gate is not shut.

Hope this helps

 

[MissAV]

So as I was coming back from lunch today with fellow co-workers riding comfortably in my AV and as we were coming up to speed on the on-ramp, a REALLY LOUD, DEEP THUNK was coming from my new rig! Three loud bangs in rapid sucession. At first I thought it was the transmission, but quickly realized that it was the tailgate.

I guess I didn't slam the tailgate hard enough and it came crashing down.

I pulled over immediately and got out and closed it. (Since my cover bag was in there- didn't want it to fly out.)

Had me worried for a sec- but was quickly relieved. I hope the tailgate doesn't suffer any ill-effects. I'm sure this sort of thing is designed for.

Has anyone else had that happen to them? Its a first for me on any truck I've driven.

-Ed

Happened to me 3 times in the last year of owning my AV. First time it happened it scared the ____ out of me, I couldn't figure out what it was until I pulled into the dealer, that was where I was headed, and one of the sales guys said why are you riding with the tail gate open? Duh I said that was the noise I heard. I then slammed it shut and it didn't close with the first try. On the second try it finally shut.


The second time it fell open while I was going over railroad tracks, scared the _____ out of me again, its such a loud thud makes one think you ran over a barrel or something. I got to work and saw that it was open and was furious, I called the dealer and their explanation was that since I am a woman I probably didn't close it hard enough to lock it into place. Whatever...

The third time it fell open was about 2 weeks ago, I was on my way back to work from my lunch break and thud there it went again and it again scared the ____ out of me! I didn't think anything of it, I again thought I ran over something and must have bounced up and hit the undercarriage of my AV, well I made a right turn and low and behold San Antonio Police car with lights on. I pull to the right and figure he is going to pass me up, since I was obeying the law and he then pulls over behind my AV He is walking up to me while checking out my AV . He gets to my window and says, "ma'am were you aware that your tail gate is open?" I said no I wasn't, he offered to close it for me, I told him to slam it shut very hard, he did so but the damn thing didn't close by the third close the gate finally stayed closed.

When I got back to my office and called my service techninian at my dealer and told him of the problem and that I wanted it corrected. He says there is a "bulletin" out on this problem but since it does not affect the mechanical part of the vehicle GM won't do a recall. That is BS I say, just fix the damn thing.
Well 45 minutes later, "with some minor adjustments to the latches" my AV was brought out to me and I immediately opened the tailgate to see for myself and the problem was corrected I didn't have to slam the thing shut just a sturdy close and it stayed put. I purposely went over the same set of rail road tracks and went down the same streets as before when the gate fell and the tailgate stayed closed.

 

[Chief]

Welcome to the club! Yup, I think just about all of us have had this experience. The weight, size, height of the tailgate combined with the somewhat air tight quarters of the cargo area requires a hefty slam, doesn't it.

Two ways to be sure it's closed properly. One - close it and then grab the lip and try to open it. Two - try and lock it. If the key binds in the locks one or none of the latches are engaged.

It sure does make a ton of noise when it comes down!

 

[Beaverton]

The heavy tailgate and the interference and backpressure from the covers means a little more oomph is needed to close.

been there, too.

 

[MissAV]

Two - try and lock it. If the key binds in the locks one or none of the latches are engaged.

Chief,

my tailgate was in the "locked" position all three times that it fell open. That was even after pulling on it to make sure it was securely latched, then I locked it with no problem at all, the key went in with out a hitch.

I am just glad my dealer was able to fix it for me.

Miss Avalanche

 

[pktwatch]

Yea, mine fell one time and now I really slam it! No after affects from the fall.

 

[GPM1972]

The first time it happened to me, I was backing what was to be my AV out of it's parking spot on the dealer's lot to take it for a test drive. I initially thought I had backed into a post or something below the line of site. I was much relieved to find it was just the tailgate falling down. As the dealer explained, the water management system creates a bit of a positive pressure when you close the tailgate so it's always a good idea to give it a tug after you close it to make sure the it has positively latched.

Second time it happened just as I pulled onto the main road out of our subdivision. This happened to coincide with the exact same place that my fuel pump died just a week earlier. So it was like, SOB, now I just blew the driveshaft out. Over the months of ownership, it's become a second habit of tugging on the tailgate after I close it.

 

[redspook]

I had this happen the first night I had my av. I almost had a heartattack, and even took it back to the dealer. They told me to make sure that the tailgate was seated properly (you know how it is removable and all), and to make sure you slam it hard. I always keep mine locked now, and give it a good pull to make sure it closes.

 

[Reidan]

Luckily mine has never fallen open, but I have only had it one month as of tomorrow. My old 93 Chevy Silverado tailgate had gotten pretty abused over the years and required a hefty slam to close it. I have just naturally continued that with the AV.

I do give it a solid tug to make sure it has closed good and a few times it has not been and had to slam it again.

As to the backpressure. I would think that the water drain holes in the bottom of the bed would allow air to escape to avoid any backpressure problems when closing the bed?

If the problem is that the holes are not large enough to quickly vent the volume of air collected by the closing tailgate, I would think that bringing the tailgate up to about a 75 degree angle from the bed, hesitate for a second to allow air to equalize, and then give it a firm push to close would eliminate a backpressure problem.


Reidan

 

[MrJim]

"Mine" hasen't fallen, yet (knock on wood). But the gate dropped during my first test drive. Boy, it'll get your attention!

So now, I always firmly close, tug and lock the the tailgate.

 

[new2Chevy]

Happened to me in my Supercrew. I had a dog carrier in the back (no dog inside). I turned the corner to get on highway, tailgate fell down and carrier went flying out. Scared the crap out of me. I am lucky no cars where coming up behind me or they would have had a carrier in the windshield.

 

[powersurg]

Happened to me once and scared me to death. That was when I learned you had to slam the tailgate shut. I sometimes forget to lock the tailgate. I now have my tools in there and I am afraid that I am going to loose them. I think its time to take them out!!!

 

[redaval]

WOW what a sound!!!!! thought I blew tire or ran over a bike rider.....you dont forget that sound

 

[conwayavalancher]

It has never happened to me b/c when I shut my tailgate I lock it. If it doesnt lock that tells me that the tailgate is not shut all the way.

 

[02-Z66]

it happened to me once as well. i did what one of the guys mentioned earlier... adjust the strikes inside the tailgate area. before i did it though i closed the tailgate normally. then i pulled on the upper left and right corners. the right side was not latched at all. once i did the adjustment to the strike i had no more problems.
if you slam the gate it will shut tight. i have also had good luck with just raising the gate with a hand on both corners. once in the full up position just give it a good shove on both sides. you should hear/feel the latches lock. give it a tug. you should be shut nice and tight.
you will need a torx to adjust the strikes. i'm pretty sure i used a torx. you may have to remove the taillight to tighten the strike after adjusting the position. move it a little bit at a time. making sure both sides line up.

 

[Avrunner]

Hmm....either GM should make it better or the other trucks have to adapt... J/K

You know, I always slam the door in my minivan hard...just to make sure. It was when the door opened in the middle of the road one day that persuades me to do that. Taht never happened again.

 

[karen0220]

thank god it's not just me, i thought i was loosing my mind because the stupid thing kept on falling open!!!

 

[Backroads2]

I couldn't begin to tell the stories of the stuff I have lost and the embarassment of that tailgate..
Ok, I can.
I transport live animals, one day about 3 cages jumped out of my bed when I tried to jump into traffic, yes, empty.
Two days ago I pulled into a performance shop and was inquiring about a chip, when I pointed to the Av in the parking lot I couldn't hide the panic in my face when I seen the tailgate once again laying open. There was a void in my cargo that I have yet to figure out what it was. I always tell myself I check it each time I close it, but yet it still manages to be open at the most inconvienient times.
Perhaps a nice mod would be a dummy light to tell me it is open..And a siren and a paper bag for my head when im gathering my cargo from the intersection..

Pydpiper

 

[RedAllison]

Hell mine fell open 3 or 4 xs when I first got it. My dealer buddy told me to SLAM it when I first got but didnt tell me the proper way. You gotta put one hand on each end (near the top corners which are right over the locks). A simple hand in the middle and a hardslam might not do it. With all the rubber seals and stuff one side MIGHT latch and the other dont. KAWHAM! It sounds like your rearend just fell out along with the tranny. One hand on the left corner, one hand on the right corner and SLAM and you aint gotta worry no more! Even yank it back a time or two to make sure. If one sides not engaged it will move a lil bit. If BOTH sides are good to go, it wont budge.

locked or otherwise,
RA