Multi-Function Tailgate Misalignment?

[Bob big boy]

Hi Steven & Creighton,

I am very sorry to hear that you both are experiencing this.

Creighton - if you would be interested in getting a second opinion from a different local dealer, please know that I would be happy to connect you with a case specialist who can work alongside your dealer to explore all potential solutions for this concern.

Steven - Please let me know if you decide to address this with your dealer. I would be more than happy to escalate a case for you to get you connected with a case specialist as well for further assistance.

Our team is always just a PM away.

Mark
RamCares

Hey, Mark I have a 2020 limited with the 60/40 gate, brought it new in 2o2o and took it in for tailgate adjustment they said nothing they could do, so I have lived with it being hard to close, coming open while driving, slamming it to close, well now it is stuck in up position, can't get it to unlatch, can't take it apart because it is stuck open, it is not out of warranty by 14,000 miles. How in the heck can you open it to repair when stuck in up, and the key fob does nothing, why no emergency release? Ideas or repairs I can make? bummer, when you buy a truck like this and dealers, won't help.

 

[go-ram]

mine is the same way but now I can't open it has it is stuck in the closed position, Help!!!!

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My 2020 Laramie Longhorn MFT is aligned perfectly. When using it in barn-door mode, the left door does need to be closed very firmly. When I close mine, I keep the palm of my hand against the door to damp out the inherent springiness of the MFT's barn doors, in order to make sure it doesn't flex too much and bounce back out of the MFT-closed switch. But mine looks good and operates smoothly, except for the need for deliberate closure using a firm hand.
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[wegasque]

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My 2020 Laramie Longhorn MFT is aligned perfectly. When using it in barn-door mode, the left door does need to be closed very firmly. When I close mine, I keep the palm of my hand against the door to damp out the inherent springiness of the MFT's barn doors, in order to make sure it doesn't flex too much and bounce back out of the MFT-closed switch. But mine looks good and operates smoothly, except for the need for deliberate closure using a firm hand.
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That's exactly the same as mine. It requires a forceful closure, but it's not misalignment.

 

[Dschmid37]

Loosen the striker bolts (#40 Torx), and slide them rearward a little. Spray latches with silicone lube spray.

 

[RamCares]

Hey, Mark I have a 2020 limited with the 60/40 gate, brought it new in 2o2o and took it in for tailgate adjustment they said nothing they could do, so I have lived with it being hard to close, coming open while driving, slamming it to close, well now it is stuck in up position, can't get it to unlatch, can't take it apart because it is stuck open, it is not out of warranty by 14,000 miles. How in the heck can you open it to repair when stuck in up, and the key fob does nothing, why no emergency release? Ideas or repairs I can make? bummer, when you buy a truck like this and dealers, won't help.

Hi there,

We are very sorry to hear about this, as it certainly sounds frustrating. To clarify have you had an appointment recently with your Ram dealer regarding this? Please send us a private message so we can further discuss.

Lex
Ram Cares

 

[ladyfitz]

mine is the same way but now I can't open it has it is stuck in the closed position, Help!!!!

I'd imagine you must have gotten this resolved by now? Interested to hear how it went. I just picked up a 2021 Friday. The dealer said they lubed the tailgate and it's fine but "they all stick sometimes" and it hasn't opened since we picked it up.

 

[DEG]

My sister has the same issue with her multi-function tailgate and it's one of the reasons I refused to buy a truck with it.

 

[go-ram]

I'd imagine you must have gotten this resolved by now? Interested to hear how it went. I just picked up a 2021 Friday. The dealer said they lubed the tailgate and it's fine but "they all stick sometimes" and it hasn't opened since we picked it up.

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When you press the latch, can you hear the solenoid click at all? Or is it just dead silence?
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If you hear nothing at all when you press the latch, then it's more likely an electrical problem, not "sticking" mechanically.
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I've never had any mechanical sticking/rubbing with my 2020 MFT, but one time my MFT was "electrically dead" even though the rest of the truck was fine. Turning power off and back on didn't clear the problem, but what worked for me in that case was to remove the battery ground cable and let the truck sit overnight with battery disconnected. As soon as I reconnected the battery ground cable the next morning, the MFT opened normally, and I haven't had that "electrically dead latch" problem since.
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My experience with my truck is that whenever it's acting weird, I disconnect the battery ground cable and let it sit for anywhere from a couple of hours to overnight, then reconnect the battery. Knock on wood, but that has worked every time for me so far.
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I'm thinking Ram should include a 10 mm box wrench with every vehicle. I bought an extra 10 mm box wrench and keep it in my center console at all times (for unhooking the battery ground cable).
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[mikeru82]

I'd imagine you must have gotten this resolved by now? Interested to hear how it went. I just picked up a 2021 Friday. The dealer said they lubed the tailgate and it's fine but "they all stick sometimes" and it hasn't opened since we picked it up.

And dealerships wonder why people hate them. Any time you're told something like "they all (fill in the blank) sometimes", I usually just turn around and walk out. There are other dealerships in my area who don't treat their customers like they're mindless buying machines.

For the most part the MFT has been a great design. The biggest problem I see with them is Ram didn't give much dealership techs enough training on how to deal with some of the small issues that happen during assembly. This was confirmed by a local service adviser.

My sister has the same issue with her multi-function tailgate and it's one of the reasons I refused to buy a truck with it.

You should definitely continue to follow what your sister recommends. I'm sure she'll point you to a good ob-gyn.

Sorry, couldn't resist. But seriously, just because your sister had a problem with her MFT doesn't mean you will. Many here take the time to figure out how things on their trucks work, and have been able to overcome some of the problems that have come up. We've owned two trucks with the MFT and both were/are nearly flawless. The only issue that both had was initially requiring to be closed with a little more force than what should have been needed. That issue lasted a couple weeks.

 

[DEG]

You should definitely continue to follow what your sister recommends. I'm sure she'll point you to a good ob-gyn.

LOL! I'm sure the women you encounter just love your sexist attitude.

Sorry, couldn't resist. But seriously, just because your sister had a problem with her MFT doesn't mean you will. Many here take the time to figure out how things on their trucks work, and have been able to overcome some of the problems that have come up. We've owned two trucks with the MFT and both were/are nearly flawless. The only issue that both had was initially requiring to be closed with a little more force than what should have been needed. That issue lasted a couple wee

If you had read my post more carefully you might have noticed her issues were only "one" of the reasons I avoided the MFT. Another was limitations in tonneau cover selection. Yet another reason was the fact that I use my tailgate a workbench covered with bedrug tailgate mate and didn't want a seam down the middle where smaller parts might migrate. I doubt anyone here needs you to to explain to them that just because one person has a problem the next person will have the same problem. However, based on responses to this thread it seems quite a few people do in fact experience the same problem.

 

[mikeru82]

LOL! I'm sure the women you encounter just love your sexist attitude.


If you had read my post more carefully you might have noticed her issues were only "one" of the reasons I avoided the MFT. Another was limitations in tonneau cover selection. Yet another reason was the fact that I use my tailgate a workbench covered with bedrug tailgate mate and didn't want a seam down the middle where smaller parts might migrate. I doubt anyone here needs you to to explain to them that just because one person has a problem the next person will have the same problem. However, based on responses to this thread it seems quite a few people do in fact experience the same problem.

Haha that's a good one. Some people just have no sense of humor anymore and are offended by everything. I did in fact read your post, but since you didn't volunteer any more information on what the other reasons were I was left to speculate that your issues were of a more mechanical nature. Thanks for clarifying though. Just like any other option, the MFT isn't for everyone.

 

[DEG]

Haha that's a good one. Some people just have no sense of humor anymore and are offended by everything. I did in fact read your post, but since you didn't volunteer any more information on what the other reasons were I was left to speculate that your issues were of a more mechanical nature. Thanks for clarifying though. Just like any other option, the MFT isn't for everyone.

You didn't offend me in the slightest and I was very amused by your post.

 

[ladyfitz]

.
When you press the latch, can you hear the solenoid click at all? Or is it just dead silence?
.
If you hear nothing at all when you press the latch, then it's more likely an electrical problem, not "sticking" mechanically.
.
I've never had any mechanical sticking/rubbing with my 2020 MFT, but one time my MFT was "electrically dead" even though the rest of the truck was fine. Turning power off and back on didn't clear the problem, but what worked for me in that case was to remove the battery ground cable and let the truck sit overnight with battery disconnected. As soon as I reconnected the battery ground cable the next morning, the MFT opened normally, and I haven't had that "electrically dead latch" problem since.
.
My experience with my truck is that whenever it's acting weird, I disconnect the battery ground cable and let it sit for anywhere from a couple of hours to overnight, then reconnect the battery. Knock on wood, but that has worked every time for me so far.
.
I'm thinking Ram should include a 10 mm box wrench with every vehicle. I bought an extra 10 mm box wrench and keep it in my center console at all times (for unhooking the battery ground cable).
.

definitely not any sort of dead electrical problem. I could hear it engage and then retract. I spoke with the dealer again who took it for a few hours and ended up replacing the latches and the striker. it also doesn't look entirely even to me. I did mention this to the body guy when I dropped it off and suggested I was going to adjust the latch hooks to try and mitigate as mentioned by Dschmid37 above - it does not appear they did anything of the sort. and it did stick on me one time when repeatedly testing it in the service bay upon pick up. I need that to not be the case, however. My hands are often full with the kid the dog and a wagon or what have you and perhaps sometimes materials to bring to a job site or the shop - likely even with at least one of the rascals in tow. The last thing i need is a tail gate that maybe works sometimes.

Also for what it's worth - for the bit of digging I had to do to even find people experiencing this to get advice from, I'm relieved to know it's not a huge issue amongst all RAM MFT's. Not like conspiracy theory deep dive search, but certainly not the first 3 hits either. So it doesn't surprise me to learn that the dealer isn't adequately trained on the issue or that they might brush it off. To them, it's a one off. and that's probably an accurate representation of the quantity of instances over all - though not any less annoying to experience. Just my 2 cents. Cheers and thanks for advice guys! I'll update as needed.