Frozen tailgate

[BruceK]

Just a note for anyone in a cold climate. It seems my tailgate is frozen shut after we had some wet snow, then a hard freeze last night. Typical Minnesota issues. I think the tonneau cover froze to the top of the tailgate. I’ll wait a few days, see if it warms up a little.

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[icegradner]

When we had that it was the hinges that got ice, and it's even worse with the tailgate assist, which can get wet a freeze as well. Tailgate hung half open for a while. Nothing new to trucks I suppose.

 

[KSC Grey Ghost]

Just a note for anyone in a cold climate. It seems my tailgate is frozen shut after we had some wet snow, then a hard freeze last night. Typical Minnesota issues. I think the tonneau cover froze to the top of the tailgate. I’ll wait a few days, see if it warms up a little.

Man thats a bummer had that polar vortex come down at Christmas. Went from rain , sleet ,ice and snow temp -8 wind chill -22 . My Maverick was nothing but a Big Blue Icecube. Took four days for me to get in it . So I can relate . Take care stay warm

 

[Pickles]

Just a note for anyone in a cold climate. It seems my tailgate is frozen shut after we had some wet snow, then a hard freeze last night. Typical Minnesota issues. I think the tonneau cover froze to the top of the tailgate. I’ll wait a few days, see if it warms up a little.

This happened to me too lol id say use ice scraper, but if youre like me, your ice scraper is in your box mine wasnt too bad though. Just a bit of jiggling and it was free

 

[BruceK]

Fortunately, it’s not a huge issue at this time. I was kinda waiting for some cold weather issue to show up. It’s going to be above freezing tomorrow by a couple degrees. I’ll bet it opens then. I don’t want to pull too hard on anything least I do some damage. I’ve done that before with my old beater trucks. Just make a mental note to watch for the trouble, figure out exactly what happened.

 

[Axlesup]

i use a lube stick before the start of each winter on all my door seals. it looks like a giant chap stick. it goes a long way to prevent rubber from sticking to metal or glass. its like a greasy wax. originally designed for wooden windows and drawers to help them slide easily. maybe it will help with the tonneau cover sticking to the tailgate.

 

[BruceK]

i use a lube stick before the start of each winter on all my door seals. it looks like a giant chap stick. it goes a long way to prevent rubber from sticking to metal or glass. its like a greasy wax. originally designed for wooden windows and drawers to help them slide easily. maybe it will help with the tonneau cover sticking to the tailgate.

I’ll give something like that a try once I get it open again. I could see where this could be a real problem if a person depends on the truck for their work. Fortunately I’m retired and I can still get in and drive with no issues. Life in the frozen north. Gotta deal with it.

 

[BruceK]

I managed to get it open by gently tapping on the edge of the tonneau cover with my fist. It was just enough to break the thin film of ice. After I got it open I scraped off the ice with my fingernails and wiped the edge of the tailgate and rubber weatherstripping on the tonneau cover dry with my glove. Into the garage it goes. No more water, no more ice, no more stuck tailgate. Let’s see how it goes.

 

[BruceK]

Be gentle about it…

 

[siberdraknon]

My tailgate was frozen today. At least I hope its frozen. I was parked outside in a snowstorm for 7 hours and went to get in the bed to get the snow brush. Tailgate won't move at all. Key won't go more than 3/4" into the hole. I decided not to force anything and will check on it in the morning.

 

[Montana]

When I was in Germany, my first duty station, I bought a POS Renault off a soldier that was PTSing back to the states. Cars got passed around quite often as you can imagine. One soldier is leaving, quickly wants to sell their vehicle and does so for pennies. Being Germany, freezing sometimes, I went out one morning to open the door and ripped the door handle right off. Of course my buddy is just dying laughing, already giving me crap on a daily basis for this little hoopty (while he expects me to take him everywhere of course) and then he goes to open his door and does the same damn thing. Both doors. No handles. Thankfully as an Engineer all of us had a multitool (gerber) on our belts as pretty much standard items so that's how I got in and out of that vehicle for a while lol.

The cold weather does some scary stuff to equipment. Sometimes funny though.

Anyways... currently in the negatives where I live and yea, everything is frozen and I made the mistake of going through a drive through today. Window wouldn't roll down. It did eventually at least... for the final window.

 

[Xjeepguy]

Easy fix guys, i keep a partial jug of windshield washer antifreeze in the truck and pour a bit on tonneau cover gaskets and also where all windows meet gaskets. I also do this as soon as i finish washing the truck, i even splash lock cylinders. It thaws instantly.

 

[Zotman]

Silicone spray is recommended for window/door seals.

 

[BruceK]

My tailgate was frozen today. At least I hope its frozen. I was parked outside in a snowstorm for 7 hours and went to get in the bed to get the snow brush. Tailgate won't move at all. Key won't go more than 3/4" into the hole. I decided not to force anything and will check on it in the morning.

Try using a hair dryer along the top of it if you have a Tonneau Cover like mine. It seems to be vulnerable to moisture getting between the cover and tailgate which freezes and makes everything stick. Don't force anything as you might damage the weather stripping. When you do get it open gently remove any ice or moisture on the weather strip. Keep it dry and maybe try some Vaseline to keep the moisture at bay. It's annoying, but it will clear up eventually when it get warmer.

 

[Automan21]

i use a lube stick before the start of each winter on all my door seals. it looks like a giant chap stick. it goes a long way to prevent rubber from sticking to metal or glass. its like a greasy wax. originally designed for wooden windows and drawers to help them slide easily. maybe it will help with the tonneau cover sticking to the tailgate.

Yes^^^^

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