Gnarly tailgate rattle

[Robb]

Update…dealer still has it, initially claimed hey didn’t hear it so I rode with the service manager, they now hear it and agree it’s not normal and shouldn’t be there.

left it with them and they call me Friday, new tailgate coming.

my question to others who have had their tailgate replaced.
did anyone buy a tailgate support for the new tailgate and if so did the noise still comeback?

thanks!

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[charkey18]

To anyone who added the rough country tailgate reinforcement and is still experiencing a rattle. Make sure you are torquing all bolts to the correct spec, especially the supplied allen bolts that fasten the hinges. This has fixed my pop/rattle over bumps thus far. I will keep you posted on if this issue comes back, but so far so good.

 

[breezyxm]

Fix the problem instead of masking it. Yall are just spraying lube everywhere. https://www.roughcountry.com/ford-bronco-tailgate-reinforcement-51052c.html

This issue is fixable, but not with lube. YOU CAN'T FIX EVERYTHING WITH LUBE(believe me, I've tried). You are still left with a weak tailgate that is flexing.
Not even going to argue if you don't believe me. Its not worth my time. But seriously, a tailgate reinforcement is needed on all Broncos BEFORE you develop issues. And if you already have issues, i would say "more" issues. But hey, you do you

had that exact reinforcement on mine and it just started

 

[Hashlak]

So I have had these same issues unfortunately on my car and it has really been driving me nuts.

I was fed up yesterday and decided to go to the hardware store and not leave until I have all tools to get rid of the sounds.

First item was the spare tire bump stops as I have -15 offset wheels so the spare sticks out and does not have any support to stop it flexing. I managed to find some rubber table/chair feet caps. Seemed to fit perfectly and extended my bumpstop to fit snug with the tire.

Next was to get a soft rubber adhesive window seal that also aligned up and fit perfectly on the upper edge of the tailgate that touches the rear glass piece.

Lastly as most have recommended, I got some WD40 with the straw and just hit every nut I could find inside the tailgate.

Drove the car to work this morning and went a little off the parth on some offroad sandy areas with akward bumps. I have no words to say how quiet and amazing it felt. I could actually hear the suspension and sounds ive never even heard before . Its totally quiet inside, as good as a range rover or other SUV. The metalic tick sound is still kinda there, but its very very quiet now, you can barely here it even with no music on.. I think im gonna spray down some more lube in a day or two so it gets time to sink in and should be totally gone.

Anyways, just wanted to share that this worked for me and just a total game changer.

 

[los7883]

So I have had these same issues unfortunately on my car and it has really been driving me nuts.

I was fed up yesterday and decided to go to the hardware store and not leave until I have all tools to get rid of the sounds.

First item was the spare tire bump stops as I have -15 offset wheels so the spare sticks out and does not have any support to stop it flexing. I managed to find some rubber table/chair feet caps. Seemed to fit perfectly and extended my bumpstop to fit snug with the tire.

Next was to get a soft rubber adhesive window seal that also aligned up and fit perfectly on the upper edge of the tailgate that touches the rear glass piece.

Lastly as most have recommended, I got some WD40 with the straw and just hit every nut I could find inside the tailgate.

Drove the car to work this morning and went a little off the parth on some offroad sandy areas with akward bumps. I have no words to say how quiet and amazing it felt. I could actually hear the suspension and sounds ive never even heard before . Its totally quiet inside, as good as a range rover or other SUV. The metalic tick sound is still kinda there, but its very very quiet now, you can barely here it even with no music on.. I think im gonna spray down some more lube in a day or two so it gets time to sink in and should be totally gone.

Anyways, just wanted to share that this worked for me and just a total game changer.

It was the silicone spray inside the tailgate on the hinges that did it for me. No more ticking/tapping at all over here.

 

[ToddGreen]

It was the silicone spray inside the tailgate on the hinges that did it for me. No more ticking/tapping at all over here.

So did you remove the black plastic panels from inside the tailgate and spray into them? Or just in the hinges themselves?

 

[los7883]

So did you remove the black plastic panels from inside the tailgate and spray into them? Or just in the hinges themselves?

Yea the top one you have to remove to see the hinge. The bottom hinge you can see no problem.

 

[ToddGreen]

Yea the top one you have to remove to see the hinge. The bottom hinge you can see no problem.

Thanks for taking the time to post these pictures.

I can track what the last two photos are showing, but the first two are harder for me to orient to. (Admittedly, I haven't taken off the black plastic panel yet.)

I assume the first two photos show what's behind the black plastic panel?

Is the grey tube you are holding in your hand the "straw" you used to spray in the silicon?

And in the first photo, what is that behind the circular opening in the middle of the picture?

Thanks for any info you can provide.

 

[RustysBronco]

At around 300 miles in, my Bronco has developed a pretty gnarly rattle from the tailgate.

I will try to get a recording, but it is very loud and easily reproducible by driving basically any distance.

I had someone ride in the cargo area and they said it’s coming from within the tailgate itself, like metal pinging against metal. Not near hinges, latches, or where the tailgate interacts with the hard top window seal. I popped the accessory ready cover off on the inside of the tailgate and there are only some small holes into the interior of the tailgate, so no way to reach your hand in there or anything and it’s unclear how it could be disassembled any further, given it’s metal sandwiched together.

Ford dealership service departments around here aren’t rated well at all, and since they likely haven’t troubleshot many/any Broncos yet, I’m thinking about waiting and continuing to see if I can remediate before asking them to deal with it. Not sure how long I can go though, because it’s VERY loud!

Anyone with service manuals able to provide any insight? Is there better access from behind the spare tire? Not sure I would feel comfortable doing much more myself, but if there’s a quick and easy way in I may give it a shot..:

If you have a soft top it's probably that. Had the same issue with mine. Wasn't the tailgate.

 

[Ksjrb03]

So I have had these same issues unfortunately on my car and it has really been driving me nuts.

I was fed up yesterday and decided to go to the hardware store and not leave until I have all tools to get rid of the sounds.

First item was the spare tire bump stops as I have -15 offset wheels so the spare sticks out and does not have any support to stop it flexing. I managed to find some rubber table/chair feet caps. Seemed to fit perfectly and extended my bumpstop to fit snug with the tire.

Next was to get a soft rubber adhesive window seal that also aligned up and fit perfectly on the upper edge of the tailgate that touches the rear glass piece.

Lastly as most have recommended, I got some WD40 with the straw and just hit every nut I could find inside the tailgate.

Drove the car to work this morning and went a little off the parth on some offroad sandy areas with akward bumps. I have no words to say how quiet and amazing it felt. I could actually hear the suspension and sounds ive never even heard before . Its totally quiet inside, as good as a range rover or other SUV. The metalic tick sound is still kinda there, but its very very quiet now, you can barely here it even with no music on.. I think im gonna spray down some more lube in a day or two so it gets time to sink in and should be totally gone.

Anyways, just wanted to share that this worked for me and just a total game changer.

Did you use regular WD-40 or the white lithium version? You want to use the lithium. And go absolutely ape shit with it in there. I posted pics in this thread of all the locations I could find, and then after that I emptied half the bottle in every direction I could. Still blissfully noise free now.

And in case you aren’t aware, there is now a TSB for this tick noise from the tailgate. The dealer will replace if you want to go that direction.

 

[los7883]

Thanks for taking the time to post these pictures.

I can track what the last two photos are showing, but the first two are harder for me to orient to. (Admittedly, I haven't taken off the black plastic panel yet.)

I assume the first two photos show what's behind the black plastic panel?

Is the grey tube you are holding in your hand the "straw" you used to spray in the silicon?

And in the first photo, what is that behind the circular opening in the middle of the picture?

Thanks for any info you can provide.

In the first pic I’m holding a flashlight and shining it from the backside. Your seeing the nuts on the backside of the hinges, inside the tailgate.

The last two are the lower hinge. You cant see the nut or backing plate for the lower hinge so you have to aim your straw in the direction you think i it is and just spray away.

 

[ToddGreen]

In the first pic I’m holding a flashlight and shining it from the backside. Your seeing the nuts on the backside of the hinges, inside the tailgate.

The last two are the lower hinge. You cant see the nut or backing plate for the lower hinge so you have to aim your straw in the direction you think i it is and just spray away.

Got it. Thanks.

Any issues with removing the black plastic cover?

 

[ToddGreen]

Did you use regular WD-40 or the white lithium version? You want to use the lithium. And go absolutely ape shit with it in there. I posted pics in this thread of all the locations I could find, and then after that I emptied half the bottle in every direction I could. Still blissfully noise free now.

And in case you aren’t aware, there is now a TSB for this tick noise from the tailgate. The dealer will replace if you want to go that direction.

Yeah, I’m debating whether to spray the lithium in there or hold off so my dealership can confirm the tick noise for the TSB. I’d rather not go through the TSB replacement process, but I also don’t want to temporarily mask an ongoing issue with the tailgate only to have it rear its head later. I’m weighing the options …

 

[Ksjrb03]

Yeah, I’m debating whether to spray the lithium in there or hold off so my dealership can confirm the tick noise for the TSB. I’d rather not go through the TSB replacement process, but I also don’t want to temporarily mask an ongoing issue with the tailgate only to have it rear its head later. I’m weighing the options …

If mine comes back TSB for sure. That noise almost made me dump the bronco.

 

[Robb]

I had railgate replaced by the dealer before the TSB was issued. Was also going to make me dump my bronco and I wasn’t looking for a temp fix or to spray a bunch of stuff inside the tailgate.

The process was pretty seamless, dealer confirmed the problem, ordered the tailgate, had it painted (at an outside paint shop) and installed without any issues.

I put on a RCI support after the new tailgate was installed to hopefully help the issue not come back. If it does I’ll go through the process again.

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