fbekholden.com

FireKraka wrote: Sun May 11, 2025 4:04 pm Started cleaning up the EK Mart upper tailgate, can’t believe how thick the red oxide is, I thought it was thick on the roof, it’s a wonder these things ever rusted al all

The extra red oxide that they put on the upper tailgates was saved from the lower tailgates

Cheers,
Harv

You have a point there Harv

Fitted the tailgate, playing with a gas strut but may stay old school

I have struts in the wagon - they work well.

Cheers,
Harv

Hi Harv can you show me a photo of how they fit at the bottom and maybe the strut type you have.

Stoney has struts on his wagon as well mate

FireKraka wrote: Sun May 25, 2025 6:59 pm Hi Harv can you show me a photo of how they fit at the bottom and maybe the strut type you have.

Some info on my install over here:

https://www.fxfjholden.com/forums/viewt ... rut#p58686

Let me know if you can't access it and I'll try and find the original photos etc.

Cheers,
Harv

Not a member Harv can't access

I replaced the original tailgate latches with gas struts on my EK wagon as I only had one working latch, and the little clicky locks were painful to use routinely. I did some measuring using this as a guide:
I took that to one of the local truck spare parts places. They sell gas struts, and can fill them to whatever pressure you need. I measured the tailgate weight using a "hanging fisherman's scale", divided the weight by two and that's the weight they were filled to hold. My tailgate can be lifted up by hand, and stays wherever I put it... it doesn't go pssssht and raise up on it's own, which is OK by me.

A word from the wise... I had images of driving around with the front windows open and the tailgate upper lifted. It's raucous (I like raucous ) and dangerously fumey. Won't be doing that again.

Mine bolts into the existing tailgate bolt holes on both the window and frame side. I moved the strut ends around using some steel brake tube offcuts as spacers. I used simple bolts rather than the ball-end ones you see on modern cars... they work OK, but there is a slight sideways load that the ball-end would take care of. Hasn't failed in 12 years of daily use though
Cheers,
Harv

Cheers for the photos Harv that makes sense.
The issue Cookie and I are having is that the bottom mount fouls a little when you shut the tailgate down and we think by moving the bottom in towards the D pillar by not using the original two hole mount it will clear, I'll post some photos if I get to do this.

Probably really have a lot more things to do before I worry about that though

These pictures probably show what I did better. I used the “lower of the two” lower tailgate holes it fits when closed with room to spare, albeit with an eye end rather than a ball end.


Cheers,
Harv

Hi Harv;
That's my thought precisely and tes the ball ends are a bit bigger will maybe look at eye ends thanks for the info it really helps mate