hey guys...

my tailgate won't shut at all...the handle seems to not do anything either...somebody told me there's a cable that runs through the tailgate that works the handle and it might have broke or got stuck...it's a 97 silverado

does anybody know how to get to this cable so i can fix it??

any advice will help!!!

Thanks!!!

 

I am not personally familiar with the 97 truck tail gate but I would suspect you should be able to close the gate but not open it if the connecting rod or cable was broken.

If you have access to the ends of the gate I would inspect the latches for wear or sticking, the handle should have a removable bezel that will allow you to see the area around the handle, the handle should be able to be removed from attaching screws at the back side of the gate....
the latches at the ends of the gate should also be removable.....

once you verify that all the mechanism are working correctly a very light shot of white grease to the latches and the strike plates may also help

 

I have a 97...not that it matters, at any rate my cables were fine, BUT! the handle itself was rusted and needed some HEAVY WD-40 treatment. un-do the 3 screws on the inside of the bed(but on the outside of the tailgate) and pull your handle out. see if the handle is rusted as badly as mine was, if not then follow in2pro's advice, it should be your latches

 

i have tried to get the screws loose unfortunantley am unable to do so...any idea's of how to the darn things undone???

 

unfortunately you'll have to drill through em an make a new hole

 

have u tried spraying wd-40 or liquid wrench on the bolts. u will have to soak them down and let it set. it may take a couple of days of spraying them and letting them set to do the trick. make sure u have good torque bits because ive had several brake on me. also have u looked at your strike plate on your truck bed or the latches on the sides of the gate yet. ive had a plate on the side latch bend on me before and it wouldnt let me close the gate.

 

alright guys so i finally got my tailgate apart and the handle out...it doesn't appear that handle is functioning as intended. when i left up on the handle two peices hit a "v" shaped thing that appears to be stuck (it did have two rods attached that I unhooked) if my thinking is correct the "v" shaped thing should move in and out to pull the rods in and out.

sorry for my very unmechanical description of what my issue, but from what is my thinking correct??? and if so will spraying it with pb blaster helf correct it or should i just buy a new handle??

any advice would be great. I'm not very mechanically inclined so maybe some other ideas would help!!!

thanks!!!

 

Not sure about the 97 model. On my 08 NBS, Chevy had a brand new handle, mechanism for $50.00.

Hope this helps

Eric