Grommet/Gasket for tailgate center hole

[Rollcast]

I envision a lot of salt spray collecting in that hole and rotting the tailgate.

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[Rav34653]

The one on my overland has a cover, They must have decided to change it

 

[smlobx]

^^^^

Busted!

 

[jjmstang]

Nope not busted. That pic is the wiring going into the bed of the Jeep not the tailgate.

 

[Gatorized]

You can bet the chipmunks are going to love filling the tailgate with acorns... and every time you go round a corner they will be rolling back and forth driving you crazy! They managed to do it on my CRV hood inside the cross bracing, and it had the sound deadening pad attached covering all the holes. I was never able to get them all out so every time i opened the hood they rolled from top to bottom.

 

[Jake]

Hey Alex @JeepCares I find it hard to image that a Jeep engineer could not put a wire plug connector into the wire right at this hole and then have just the wire going into the grommet. This should have been a very simple fix, basics of wire connections.

Hi Everyone,
I did hear back. No piece is missing. The opening size is required to fit wiring connectors into the tailgate during manufacturing. When the tailgate latch is closed, this hole faces straight down and engineering testing confirmed that any accumulated debris will fall out onto the ground, eliminating the need for a grommet in this location. I hope this provides some clarification.
Alex
Jeep Cares

 

[canyonrat]

Hi Everyone,
I did hear back. No piece is missing. The opening size is required to fit wiring connectors into the tailgate during manufacturing. When the tailgate latch is closed, this hole faces straight down and engineering testing confirmed that any accumulated debris will fall out onto the ground, eliminating the need for a grommet in this location. I hope this provides some clarification.
Alex
Jeep Cares

Forum needs a laughing reaction icon. Seriously? Just mail us all the grommet, it's not that hard to install. Sheez. "Engineering"... hehe.

 

[Oscar Indy]

Just use duct tape.

 

[Elwenil]

It seems strange to me that they would put a plug in the bed but not in the tailgate. I would be interested to hear "Engineering's" explaination as to why the bed needs a plug but the tailgate does not. I foresee a lot of Gladiators on used car lots in the future with a bubbling rust line on the bottom.

These are probably the same "engineers" that think it's perfectly ok to make decades of full size trucks with the left and right springs being the same regardless of the driver side having the weight of the fuel tank, steering column and box, battery, brake booster, master cylinder and majority of the brake lines as well as the main harnesses all being on that side. Their "fix" for the sagging driver side? A TSB with a 1" block between the spring and front axle. Simply amazing.

 

[Rafael's Jive]

@JeepCares The engineers contention that debris will fall out is valid for debris that might blow into the opening . But mice and chipmunks will find the tailgate a very nice home. They will pack a corner of the tailgate with nesting material which will rot the tailgate from the inside. The same thing has happened to other cars I have. My WRX hood rattles each time I open it, my Scrambler frame had nests in each frame rail, and my tractor air box needed to be cleaned out until I started using an electric rodent deterrent.

We as owners should just be proactive and cover the hole, or get one of those electric rodent deterrents. My 2020 Jeep Scrambler (F' it, I am calling it a Scrambler) will be a weekend toy or used sporadically so I need to keep the critters out.

I work in manufacturing and realize that "just adding a 10 cent grommet" is BS. By the time the entire the engineering-procurement-manufacturing process is complete, those grommets are 10's of thousands of dollars of inventory. I would be surprised if Jeep stepped up and provided us all with a grommet or made a TSB to have the dealers do it.

 

[LongTimeListener]

Duct tape.

 

[mazeppa]

Duct tape.

Don't hodgepodge a new Gladiator with duct tape ............

 

[DrEric1]

Hi Everyone,
I did hear back. No piece is missing. The opening size is required to fit wiring connectors into the tailgate during manufacturing. When the tailgate latch is closed, this hole faces straight down and engineering testing confirmed that any accumulated debris will fall out onto the ground, eliminating the need for a grommet in this location. I hope this provides some clarification.
Alex
Jeep Cares

Hi - thx for checking. I understand why it is needed, but I think once debris finds its way in there, it is going to distribute, and the odds that it finds it way out is a bit limited. Back to the Grommet search!

 

[mortuar]

https://www.amazon.com/Flyshop1-77-...ubber+grommet&qid=1569966629&s=gateway&sr=8-4

Looks to be the same as the ebay seller.

I decided to be a guinea pig and ordered these, although it says they won't arrive until late Oct or early Nov. I'll keep everyone posted if they work.

 

[Lucky1]

I decided to be a guinea pig and ordered these, although it says they won't arrive until late Oct or early Nov. I'll keep everyone posted if they work.

Definately wil be curious to hear if they work!

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