Dee Zee tailgate lift- anyone had this issue?

[buddy guy]

its been working great for me. only in for a month or so. today i went to lower it and it only came down 3/4 of the way. the piston looked straight and no sign of any issue. then i noticed that cover to keep the cable from binding was jammed behind/beside the left hand side of the piston. i was able to pull the piston to the right enough to pull out that protector and noticed then the cover on the on lowering cable is torn (cable looks fine). i then slowly opened and closed it a number of times and everytime the cable protector wants to go left and get wedged again. as long as when i close the tailgate, that i sort of steer it right it goes into the much bigger space on the right of the piston where it can't bind.


just wondering if it's just my experience? i don't want to bend the piston to the left at all cause it looks straight, its not binding at all and opens smoothly. i bet dodge wants a fortune for a new cable.

 

[WTM75]

Did you snap that thing on to your trucks cable? I think that is there to prevent this from happening, it had a specific measurement where it is supposed to be installed.

 

[buddy guy]

i did. and i put it where it was supposed to go. maybe it slipped up or down. i'll have to recheck location of it i guess and maybe put tape above and below it so it can't slide at all if it did.

 

[buddy guy]

update...so i checked it. start 3.5 inches down as it was supposed to be and how it looked in pic as instructions weren't totally clear (3.5 inches from top of cable below fitting? 3.5 from the bottom of the fitting retainer? (i think that's where it was. from the pic, higher would have been way too high) anyway, i played with moving it higher, lower..only time it seemed to have a better chance of not catching in the left and kind of landing center than moving right was with that block pushed right up. but even that was not perfect. i left it there and i'll just have to watch to make sure it goes right not left. in my opinion it should have been a little larger so it could not slip into the right at all, but maybe then then the door could get wedged open. it occurred to me that i couldn't see how the cable could get wedged with the block off completely. its not even on there in some pics online. anyway..one more thing to watch for lol.

 

[FriedDumpling]

update...so i checked it. start 3.5 inches down as it was supposed to be and how it looked in pic as instructions weren't totally clear (3.5 inches from top of cable below fitting? 3.5 from the bottom of the fitting retainer? (i think that's where it was. from the pic, higher would have been way too high) anyway, i played with moving it higher, lower..only time it seemed to have a better chance of not catching in the left and kind of landing center than moving right was with that block pushed right up. but even that was not perfect. i left it there and i'll just have to watch to make sure it goes right not left. in my opinion it should have been a little larger so it could not slip into the right at all, but maybe then then the door could get wedged open. it occurred to me that i couldn't see how the cable could get wedged with the block off completely. its not even on there in some pics online. anyway..one more thing to watch for lol.

I don’t even use the cable snap thingy - couldn’t see the benefit. Am I missing something?


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[buddy guy]

its supposed to, i assume, keep the cable from getting caught up somehow in the piston? i wish i had tried it without. now i have to leave it on. it will drive me nuts to see the torn plastic sleeve underneath. almost bought a new cable set (you have to buy as a set it seems) while i was on amazon buying lug nuts today. but resisted the temptation. i can buy a pack off cider coolers for the price of the 2 cables here in canada. you folks can get one at a dozen auto stores for as cheap as 14 bucks. cheapest here is 30 a pair on amazon, 45 a pair at an auto store. f$ckers.

 

[clifford15]

I took mine off. The first one broke putting it on and DeeZee sent a new one. I got that one on but it ruined the cable jacket. It was difficult to close the tailgate because it wanted to jam into the seam. Then it wore right thru the clear protective tape. I suppose they felt is was required but I got rid of it over a year ago and the cable does not get caught on anything. Of course now my cable is ruined and the new one I had for my '01 doesnt fit a '15. Black tape band-aid for now.

 

[buddy guy]

i think that's what mine is trying to do. jam into the seam? i can literally as i close it see it mosey over to the left hand side and sit between the edge and piston, then get pushed in between the more i close it. then i have to unclip the damn piston top to pull it out or slightly pull the piston out, enough to get it out. i'm not impressed

 

[buddy guy]

okay. cause i'm **** or OCD or whatever the hell, I know what is happening here and why, I think, they came up with that blcok or whatever you want to call it to put on the cable. i took mine off and opened and closed it repeatedly. the cable without that block, CAN get caught on the sharp edge of the pinch weld to the left of the piston when you open the tailgate and easily damage the plastic jacket and over time, I bet the cable if you don't notice it. the problem with the design of the block is it is small enough to slip behind the pinch weld when you close the gate so its stuck between the pinch weld and piston or behind the pinch weld when you open the gate. unfortunately, the weight of the gate opening up once, is enough to put strain on the cable and jacket underneath the block and tore a block length rip into my jacket. it was fine when i opened and closed it at the airport picking up my daughter with no binding. next time i opened it, it bound completely. i did not try to force it down at all as i knew something was hung up and it had to be related. looking at the pinch weld more closely, its very sharp on the edge. and mine anyway is not completely flat. i actually wonder if it got bent a bit when the block caught between the piston and the pinch weld.

in any case, i examined my cable itself and no signs of damage so i put one round of electrical tape over the tear, put the block back on, and from now on, i'll just be sure to make sure it goes right, not left. it isn't until the gate is almost closed and the pinch weld and piston are almost parallel that it can slip in between. if i had designed this, i would have made a uclamp piece that slipped over top of the pinch weld so that the cable and jacket can't catch on a sharp surface. i'm confident now they had some reports of cables being damaged and came up with this block idea.

 

[FriedDumpling]

And has everyone noticed that the cable on the DeeZee side is not as taut as the right side?

I have noticed that the cable has been susceptible to some nicks in the cable, but never caught on anything. Not sure whether or not it’s because of the tailgate assist or not.


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[buddy guy]

i wonder if they are the same length. supposed to be 21 1/4 i believe it is from the dorman part kit i saw.

 

[Slapshotz]

late to the party on this one, but i had this issue and fixed it pretty simply by bending the cable attachment at the top with some pliers. just a 10 degree bend inward makes the cable go to the inside of the lift arm every time.

 

[Toddz]

I know this is an old post, but I figured I would post to help anyone who has this issue (I wish I had tried Slapshotz idea first). I bought furnature moving pads for $1, removed the foam, and used an adhesive to stick the foam behind the pinch weld. Now the cable cannot slip behind and get stuck.

 

[Dissent]

I just encountered this issue and I was so glad to find this ancient thread! Had to remove the piston top twice today to get it free.

I'm going to bend the top cable mount a bit because I observed the same thing today, slightly to the right = no binding.

Thanks!