Hey guys, after i went for a surf this morning and put all my crap in the back of my wagon i shut the tailgate and heard this god-awful clunk bang, opened it up and realised the bolt that holds the gas strut to the frame of the car had given way, its so badly given way that its torn all the thread from the hole where the bolt screws in, the hole is bigger then the bolt is now and the bolt just slides in and out freely, tried just putting the bolt in the hole and re-attaching the strut and trying to close it and the bolt just slips off and gives way.
Has anyone had this happen before?
And what would be the best way going about getting it fixed?
Would a smash repairer be able to weld the bolt into the frame or something?
Heres some pics.
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn76/longerwombat/Photo-0107.jpg
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn76/longerwombat/Photo-0106.jpg

Could always weld a nut onto the affected area... then you can bolt the tailgate strut in again like normal.

will have to take it to a welding shop or something similar. maybe an exhaust shop would know what theyr doing.

but yea that hole and thread will have to be made up again one way or another.

could possibly just get the hole re-tapped and use a slightly larger bolt. My cbonnet strut bolt got lost when we took the bonnet off, a normal bold does the job just fine!

Had a very similar thing happen a couple of months ago, but mine bent the panel rather than completely coming out. Same side as well. Put in new struts a while ago, and they pack quite a punch, the pressure when closing the boot must be too much.

From what I could tell, there's actually a loose nut on the inside, but it's pretty-much impossible to reach; I assume there must be some way of reaching it, but I couldn't figure it out.
I just ended up bending the panel back flat, managed to tighten the bolt up to a degree somehow or other (can't remember, may have just been friction on the body panel), also can't remember if I swapped in my old non-stuffed strut to try to reduce the chance of it happening again.

But yeah, pretty sure there is actually a nut in there somewhere, that the panel itself isn't threaded.

There are threaded nuts that can be put into panels, similar method to a pop rivet.
Thats all I know about it though.

Mmm the bolt itself isnt damaged at all, its just the thread on the panel work that is destroyed, the bolt doesnt even touch the panel when you slide it into the hole(thats what she said haha)

When i get my windscreen and stuff fixed soon i might ask them if they know anyways of fixing it, im assuming welding the bolt into the hole is the best way to go about it, tailgates weigh a freaking ton.

STAY AWAY FROM SALT AIR!!! RUST IS BAD :P... hahahaha

STAY AWAY FROM SALT AIR!!! RUST IS BAD :P... hahahaha

Lol thats true, hard to stay away from it when my house is 50 metres from a saltwater lake, and then about 1km away from a beach on the other side.

Happened to me too. Same side, same problem. As I was repainting the car, the interior trim was already removed. I cut a slot in the metal work (angle grinder) near the bolt hole, and put a nut behind the hole, and wound the bolt in while holding the nut with a spanner. It worked loose later but several goes with superglue over a week locked in place. Hasn't moved since. Replaced the plastic trim and all was good - nothing visible, strut still holding after 6 months.

PS. The tailgate is heavy, but I managed to lift it off the hinges during the painting process. Not a fun part of the job IMO.

And, no, there is no nut there normally - the strut bolt just screws into the body work. It works ok until one of the strut weakens and the other side takes all the load. (eBay is your friend for replacement struts)

And, no, there is no nut there normally - the strut bolt just screws into the body work. It works ok until one of the strut weakens and the other side takes all the load. (eBay is your friend for replacement struts)

Weird, same thing happened to me not so long ago. However, I found that there was a nut behind the strut bolt which I was able to tighten by removing the trim and reaching up through a small whole in the body near where the strut bolt is positioned. The bolt itself wasn't attached to the body in any way.

Mine was screwed into the bodywork, not sure if theres a bolt behind it as well, might go have a look when it stops raining outside, i hate fiddly little jobs.

I found that there was a nut behind the strut bolt which I was able to tighten by removing the trim and reaching up through a small whole in the body near where the strut bolt is positioned.That's it, I remember now that I could actually reach the nut with my fingers but couldn't get a tool onto it.
Mine definitely has nuts :shifty:

The nut has gone mate, there should be access from behind to get a new one in though.

It is common in the second gen wagons as they are not fastened as well, people do not realise the strut bolt has come loose, every time you open and close the gate it moves and eventually it goes ta ta into your quater panel.

There are threaded rivets avail but not that big, you need a 8x1.25 threaded nut to go back in there.

just cut a wide slot in the body work, then use a nut taped to a spanner to hold it when you thread the bolt in. Bolt detaches from the strut to make the job easier.

Happened in my third gen, fished the nut out from the bottom of the quarter using a magnet on a long screwdriver, and was able to reach in and hold the nut inplace after taking out the trim, after dropping it twice, it didn't spin once it tightened up so i didn't need to get a tool onto it, definately no cutting or welding required on a third gen.

There are threaded rivets avail but not that big, you need a 8x1.25 threaded nut to go back in there.

Cheers, that was going to be my next question, ill get around to fixing it soon, thanks guys.