Tailgate not closing all the way

[Mark Shaw]

Mine was the same. Unfortunately the latches attached to toe body ARE NOT SLOTTED. It drove me to drink so I took latches off ( 2 star bolts on each side) and slotted latches about 1/4 “. That allowed the latches to slide in enough to allow the tailgate to close flush.
Just to clarify- there is no adjustment in brackets- they are NOT SLOTTED.

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[mongo]

Mine was the same. Unfortunately the latches attached to toe body ARE NOT SLOTTED. It drove me to drink so I took latches off ( 2 star bolts on each side) and slotted latches about 1/4 “. That allowed the latches to slide in enough to allow the tailgate to close flush.
Just to clarify- there is no adjustment in brackets- they are NOT SLOTTED.

Thanks for that confirmation, I couldn't find any adjustment in the service manual.
So the issue may be in the plastic side pieces?

 

[HaulingAss]

Thanks for that confirmation, I couldn't find any adjustment in the service manual.
So the issue may be in the plastic side pieces?

The metal post needs to be strong. I would assume the adjustment of the latch mechanism is done with the latch itself, not the steel post.

 

[Mark Shaw]

Mine was the same. Unfortunately the latches attached to toe body ARE NOT SLOTTED. It drove me to drink so I took latches off ( 2 star bolts on each side) and slotted latches about 1/4 “. That allowed the latches to slide in enough to allow the tailgate to close flush.
Just to clarify- there is no adjustment in brackets- they are NOT SLOTTED.

The steel posts that unbolt with the “ star” bolts 2 on each latch (1 holds the strap that holds tailgate ) must be removed. Then remold the latch and you will see there is no adjustment. They are not slotted. You need to slot the hole about 1/4 “ or so (towards the rear so the latch will go in a bit further). The hen reinstall ( make sure to tighten. Then tailgate should close better. I had to do it 4 times to gain enough to be satisfied. Tailgate now lines up perfectly.
Very easy to do if you are handy. If not a body shop can do in about 1/2 hour.
Good let cl
Mark

 

[Ddanis60]

Following. Also would like a latch adjustment procedure, but I’m not opposed to slotting the 4 holes on the steel post loops. Thank you!

 

[Mark Shaw]

Following. Also would like a latch adjustment procedure, but I’m not opposed to slotting the 4 holes on the steel post loops. Thank you!

Tesla will not slot the holes. I was told tailgate sticking out 1/4-1/2” was within tolerance. I couldn’t stand looking at it so I thought there would be slots like most cars for adjustment. When I saw there wasn’t I decided to make my own slots.

 

[Ddanis60]

Tesla will not slot the holes. I was told tailgate sticking out 1/4-1/2” was within tolerance. I couldn’t stand looking at it so I thought there would be slots like most cars for adjustment. When I saw there wasn’t I decided to make my own slots.

thanks for the follow up. I took both posts off a few weeks ago hoping to find slots and was quickly disappointed. I thought about drilling some then, but decided to hold off hoping for a latch adjustment. I don’t like taking my teslas in unless I have to, as something usually comes back worse than it was taken in unfortunately.

 

[Mark Shaw]

Don’t drill larger holes. Use a small cutter and make the current hole more of a slot. Remember to slot the front side so the post brackets go in further- thus allowing the tailgate to close more. A small carbide bit on a drill works best. Putting vise to hold it so it doesn’t grab and hit your hand.
Good luck. You will be happy and when you look at the relegate it looks like it was meant to look

 

[mstatkus]

Yeah, I was surprised when attempting to shore this up on mine maybe 1-2mm out on the passenger side but no adjustment. And getting to the latch side looks like a pain bordering on tailgate removal. This and my passenger roof rail/cantrail is about the only alignment complaint I've had and I can't get that roof rail to budge even after taking most the Torx out. Also suspect SC would just say 'in spec'.

 

[Mark Shaw]

Yeah, I was surprised when attempting to shore this up on mine maybe 1-2mm out on the passenger side but no adjustment. And getting to the latch side looks like a pain bordering on tailgate removal. This and my passenger roof rail/cantrail is about the only alignment complaint I've had and I can't get that roof rail to budge even after taking most the Torx out. Also suspect SC would just say 'in spec'.

So did you slot brackets as suggested?

 

[mstatkus]

So did you slot brackets as suggested?

Not yet, did the initial inspection a few weeks ago and hit the service page to see if they had updated any alignment tips yet. Most the guys posting body tear downs etc seem to be skipping over this stuff too. Wasn’t positive I wanted to put it under the knife just yet.

 

[mstatkus]

Done, yeah that was way easier than anything else. Thx

 

[jimnycricket65]

Someone record this process and post please.

 

[Jabman]

Someone record this process and post please.

Agreed. My tailgate is also off a bit

 

[Mark Shaw]

Open the tailgate- look left and right - take 4 star bolts off ( relegate won’t drop) take 2 post latches off. Take carbide bit and elongate holes ( backside so relegate closes more) reinstall and tighten. If not enough repeat process until satisfied. It is that simple. If not comfortable taking 4 bolts off and slotting hole 1/4 “ - bring to anyone. It can be done in less than a hour. TESLA WONT DO IT

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