6 inch tailgate lift

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Erebus
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6 inch tailgate lift

Post by Erebus »

I was going to give a subject line of 6" lift for $10.00, but decided to use a more searchable subject.

Some one has posted somewhere a tailgate mod of swapping the struts left/right. This raises the tailgate quite significantly. On mine it opened to 5'9" before, 6'3.5" after.

Although it can be done for free, when we did Green1's Delica a couple of weeks ago, he sheared off one bolt when re-installing, and almost sheared off another. Both were bottom bolts, so obviously there is a huge shear-strain on them.

Learning from someone else's mistake is always less painful, so I figured I'd get replacement bolts before doing mine. Took way too much work to get stainless steel bolts (6mm x 12 mm), lock washers and flat washers. But today we did the mod on mine, then swapped the bolts on Green1's. The geometry on the struts is amazing in that the swap from side to side raises the lower pivot point by about one inch, but that gives a 6.5 inch increase in how high the tailgate opens.

No more bashed heads! (until I get a ladder and the struts aren't strong enough)
Image "I could be just around the corner from heaven, or a mile from hell." -- Jackson Browne, "The road and the sky".
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torchard
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by torchard »

Yup, did the swap after seeing it on the site. Great cheap mod which leaves you with an awesome awning and much reduced risk of scalp lacerations. I did the job w/o assistance, which I wouldn't recommend, however it became a learning opportunity for my nine year-old, who observed the process and came away acquainted with a new vocabulary of compound curses.

Delica's - wholesome family fun!

--Todd
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DelicaMark
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by DelicaMark »

Just to be sure I understand this. I swap and flip both sides. That is, top left becomes bottom right and top right becomes bottom left. Or are you guys just swapping the bottom brackets on each? If the end result is that the struts are upside down and on opposite sides compared to stock then I think i get it, if not then I don't.

Only slightly confused....
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Erebus
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by Erebus »

DelicaMark wrote:Just to be sure I understand this. I swap and flip both sides. That is, top left becomes bottom right and top right becomes bottom left. Or are you guys just swapping the bottom brackets on each? If the end result is that the struts are upside down and on opposite sides compared to stock then I think i get it, if not then I don't.

Only slightly confused....
Nope, top left becomes top right. All the ways the struts attach stay the same, i.e., the bottom bracket's pivot point is still on the outside, the upper pivot is still on the inside. The difference comes from the fact that the lower mounting bracket's pivot point is raised almost an inch.

Oh, and torchard mentions this is very much a 2-person job, because you will have both struts removed, so someone has to hold up the tailgate while the other person puts the bolts back in. STRONGLY recommend you replace the bolts, lock and flat washers. Green1 sheared off one, and had to drill it out. Not fun. Better to spend $2.00 on zinc coated or $10.00 on stainless steel and be sure they are okay.

Sorry I didn't take photos, I thought there was a previous post either here or on the UK site with details.
Image "I could be just around the corner from heaven, or a mile from hell." -- Jackson Browne, "The road and the sky".
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Schwa
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by Schwa »

I did this the other day, fast little mod, and a must for someone 6'2"...

I noticed that the bottom brackets are marked L and R but when you turn them upside down they are maked as well, so in some markets they must have sold them like this.
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DelicaMark
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by DelicaMark »

I finally get it!!! :shock: This helped http://www.delica.ca/forum/rotor-remova ... t=tailgate a lot. As they say a picture is worth a 1000 words...thanks Adam.

-Mark
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by DelicaMark »

As it turns out I still didn't get it! I do now though thanks to warmland89. Here is the key that I had missed from previous posts. When you swap the left for the right you have to flip and swivel the bottom mount 180 degrees so that you get the pivot point at the top like was shown in other photos.

Here is the before on warmland89s
this is the strut and bracket before the change
this is the strut and bracket before the change
before.JPG (217.09 KiB) Viewed 14275 times
Here is the after on mine.
after.JPG
after.JPG (251.64 KiB) Viewed 14242 times
Notice that the bracket is flipped and swivelled.
Here is the difference this mod makes...
before_.JPG
before_.JPG (74.22 KiB) Viewed 14225 times
after_.JPG
after_.JPG (76.47 KiB) Viewed 14215 times
Pretty nice! Thanks to whoever figured this out in the first place!

-Mark
trendkiller
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by trendkiller »

Hey guys,
quick question,
How did you remove the strut from the bracket?
It looks to me like you would have to break the plastic piece that holds them together....
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loki
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by loki »

trendkiller wrote:Hey guys,
quick question,
How did you remove the strut from the bracket?
It looks to me like you would have to break the plastic piece that holds them together....
you don't you just undo the 2 bolt on each and and flip upside down and switch sides of the van.
Delicanagan
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by Delicanagan »

I dunno what it is about this simple mod that makes it so hard to understand...but I have been over it several times and always thought I got it...until today when I started to look over the pictures again...and then slight anxiety kicked in as I realized what I had thought I'd known was all lost and I was back to being the model for "a sack of hammers" again...dang!...

So, I saw in the pics that the bases for the shocks are given a left right designation with and offset to make this so...BUT then when I started to form the model from a matchbook and blunt here at my smoking den/computer something in my head went "pop!" and it became clear for once...

By spinning the base/plate/mount around top to bottom you put the mounting pin higher on that base...but then in order for the flat part to sit flat on the van, you have to spin it around...this will make that mounting plate face the opposite direction with the shock pin up higher on the plate...switching from side to side now will allow you to keep the right and left of that plate in the appropriate mounting position and presto you have a small but not insignificant lift in the hatch door...

I know that was a ramble to most of you...but to those as altered as I am most times, it might somehow make sense of a confusing yet simple procedure...but if not, I hope it was at least entertaining to see how the twisted mind sorts and processes. ;)

As you were...nothing to see...move along...quite staring at me...

*sigh*
trendkiller
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by trendkiller »

loki wrote:
trendkiller wrote:Hey guys,
quick question,
How did you remove the strut from the bracket?
It looks to me like you would have to break the plastic piece that holds them together....
you don't you just undo the 2 bolt on each and and flip upside down and switch sides of the van.

See I thought about that, but in the preceding pictures the shocks look as if they are oriented the same way pre and post mod, that is to say the shaft of the shock ( shiny part ) is at the bottom for lifted and none lifted. If the whole thing was flipped wouldn't the shaft be at the top?
Miloki
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by Miloki »

trendkiller wrote: See I thought about that, but in the preceding pictures the shocks look as if they are oriented the same way pre and post mod, that is to say the shaft of the shock ( shiny part ) is at the bottom for lifted and none lifted. If the whole thing was flipped wouldn't the shaft be at the top?
Argh - just when I thought I understood it!

Okay, I'm looking at it and thinking - do you even have to swap the shocks? Couldn't you just remove the lower plates from the van and from the shocks, and swap them? So that you take off the left lower plate, turn it upside down and install it on the right, and vice-versa?
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'91 Super Exceed grey over black... work in progress
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Erebus
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by Erebus »

Miloki wrote:Okay, I'm looking at it and thinking - do you even have to swap the shocks? Couldn't you just remove the lower plates from the van and from the shocks, and swap them? So that you take off the left lower plate, turn it upside down and install it on the right, and vice-versa?
The mounting plates are riveted onto the struts, so that isn't a good idea.

Okay, I wish someone would take a video clip of this. It is so simple, but everyone mixes themselves up.

I'll try an explanation again.

1. Get new bolts. Too many break when re-installed. There is a huge amount of sheer-strain on the bolts. Size is mentioned above.

2. Get a buddy to help, the tailgate is very heavy, and it will have to be held up while the struts are removed.

3. Note that on the upper mounting bracket the bolts are to the outside of the spot where the strut attaches to the bracket, whereas on the lower mounting bracket the bolts are to the inside. Notice that on the lower bracket, the strut attachment point is near the bottom of the bracket. (This is the key point, the whole purpose of this mod is to raise that attachment point. Also note that the fat part of the strut is up, the shiny part is down. Remember all this!!!!

4. Unbolt both struts. Keep track of the left and right struts.

5. Take the left strut, move it to the right side. Rotate the strut 180 degrees around its axis. The top stays at the top, the bottom remains the bottom. Top left becomes top right, bottom left becomes bottom right, etc.

6. Using the new bolts, attach the top. The rotation should now result in the strut side of the bracket still being on the inside.

7. Using the new bolts, attach the lower bracket. The rotation should now result in the strut side of the bracket still being on the outside, with the strut attachment point now being near the top of the bracket. If your buddy hasn't had to raise the tailgate about 6" higher, you are doing something wrong.

8. Repeat 6 and 7 with the other strut on the other side.

That should do it. Hopefully this helps.
Image "I could be just around the corner from heaven, or a mile from hell." -- Jackson Browne, "The road and the sky".
Miloki
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by Miloki »

Erebus wrote:5. Take the left strut, move it to the right side. Rotate the strut 180 degrees around its axis.
aaahhhh [lightbulb goes back on] For some reason, I was envisioning removing the plate from the shock to flip the plate over. Of course, rotating the shock allows you to do the same thing without removing the plate. [sound of heel of hand hitting forehead] Of course!!
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trendkiller
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Re: 6 inch tailgate lift

Post by trendkiller »

I would definately replace all the bolts.
I got them out no problem so I thought they were fine.
I then sheared the heads off when reinstalling them.
Pain in the ass!
It is way better having all that room now.
And a big plus, the liftgate now holds the ladder, where before it couldn't.
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