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Swing Gate Strut gives up the ghost

DWood

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Update: 9/7 service department documented and ordered a new strut assembly.

Did a search and came up with nothing similar so decided to make a post. Yesterday morning the wife and I took our Black Diamond out to the beach. Upon arrival and opening of the swing gate I was greeted with a pop quickly followed by a metallic ting. Investigation revealed a previous single part now in two pieces.

I’ll be headed to the dealer service center shortly to document but I do believe this will be a common issue. The swivel “ cap end” of the attachment point on the gate side is a plastic/polymer construction. The steel treads from the strut simply decided to check out along with some plastic. 9/16 will be 2 months of ownership and I currently have 3800 miles. Now I will say I’ve opened and been into the rear a lot over this period of time however I do not see this design holding up over extended use regardless of how easy you open or close the swing gate. Pics below, I will update future developments. For the record I did not snatch or heavily force it open.

also it is kinda nice without the strut if only it had a limiting strap to avoid any possible damage at full open.



Ford Bronco Swing Gate Strut gives up the ghost 3EEDB62E-D404-48D3-9A94-437B527F3B72


Ford Bronco Swing Gate Strut gives up the ghost 94D0665A-FD89-40C2-99C0-891281727CAC


Ford Bronco Swing Gate Strut gives up the ghost 31FAF0C6-3E4C-4525-BFC0-7685E2AA2FE3
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NC_Pinz

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That stinks. Thanks for documenting and keep up updated on what you encounter on the repair. I agree that a limiting strap would be handy to avoid opening it too far with the strut damaged.
 

Carolina Jim

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The steel treads from the strut simply decided to check out along with some plastic
So....are you saying the threaded male end stripped the female threads?....or was there a bolt of some kind that came off?
 

GaryB2220

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Unfortunate. Hope the engineers add this to the fix list for 2022
 

jay-rod427

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A limit strap would keep this from snapping off. It broke when it hits the end of it's travel trying to stop all that momentum.
 

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Lab00Rat

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Was it a pull strip or a push strip?
Like, did you open too fast and pull the strut out, or did you open to slow and it pushed it self out?
 

ReimundKrohn

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I really questioned this design aspect - the hydraulic strut on the swing gate. A strut aligned horizontally doesn’t add rigidity or strength to the gates travel; in other words, hydraulic or pneumatic struts are intended to bear a (compression, not extension) load at their end points, and not along the length of the shaft.

I presume Ford added the strut so that they could still mount larger tires on the swing gate without having to add hardware secured to the frame or modular bumper, as Jeep does if you opt to go up in tire size. Another short-sighted “innovation” in cost cutting, I suppose.
 
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broadicustomworks

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Hmm. Very, very interesting, and now explains what I saw on a dealer demo last weekend (or the weekend prior).
When we were looking at it I noticed the strut was just lying there, unattached.
I assumed they removed it by threading off that end, and simply reaffixed the end back to the gate (to keep it from getting lost) for whatever reason.
But it was an identical look to what you have.
So apparently that's two we know of with the same fail.

Good to know, as now I'll treat my gate with extra care once I get mine, and until they come out with a recall/replacement.
 

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DWood

DWood

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So....are you saying the threaded male end stripped the female threads?....or was there a bolt of some kind that came off?
Correct, female threads are merely polymer. there doesn’t appear to be any metal reinforcement within the end swivel cap as far as threading goes. If you zoom in on the first pic you can see the plastic within the male style threads

Was it a pull strip or a push strip?
Like, did you open too fast and pull the strut out, or did you open to slow and it pushed it self out?
it was about 1/4 of the way open right where you meet the first bit of resistance when it gave way.

Hmm. Very, very interesting, and now explains what I saw on a dealer demo last weekend (or the weekend prior).
When we were looking at it I noticed the strut was just lying there, unattached.
I assumed they removed it by threading off that end, and simply reaffixed the end back to the gate (to keep it from getting lost) for whatever reason.
But it was an identical look to what you have.
So apparently that's two we know of with the same fail.

Good to know, as now I'll treat my gate with extra care once I get mine, and until they come out with a recall/replacement.
Sounds familiar, every time the gate is opened the threads are being pulled on. Only a matter of time
 

Carolina Jim

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every time the gate is opened the threads are being pulled on. Only a matter of time
All I can say is WOW. If Walmart started making cars, this is about what you'd expect.

Th is tells me Ford has exited the car business & believes they're now just selling electronic toys.
 

da_jokker

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I wonder if there is enough meat to put a helicoil in there...of course I guess that could just strip out as well.

Too bad you couldn't drill a hole through it and put a cotter pin through the whole setup.
 

Bikeric

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Curious...Does your hinge have the updated travel stop?

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broadicustomworks

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I wonder if there is enough meat to put a helicoil in there...of course I guess that could just strip out as well.

Too bad you couldn't drill a hole through it and put a cotter pin through the whole setup.
I'll bet ya could, just have to be precise and a bit gentle. Good thought.

I'll bet the first company to come out with non-plastic end struts will make $$$.
Might have to just measure it and get a replacement off the rack at the auto parts store. One with metal ends.
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