rattling hatch!

[Justpunchit]

my rear fiberglass hatch has been doing this for years now everytime i hit a bump it rattles and clunks anyone else had this problem if so how did you make it stop im open for anything.

 

[bocaj]

open for anything?

Take it off! you'll be able to see everything behind you. mine rattled alot but i couldn't find anything to make it stop.

 

[otto]

Sometimes adjusting the striker plate will stop the hatch from rattling. Worked on my 1990. The plate is secured by two torx head bolts. Try adjusting the plate inward, or in some cases upward with a shim. Worth a try to shut that damn rattle trap up.

 

[Matthew Currie]

You can try to adjust the striker. On my 95 you can bend back the rubber bumper trim to reach the two 13 mm. nuts underneath to loosen it, and move it around some. In addition you can adjust the rubber bumpers on the sides, that hold the hatch out against the latch. You should also check for wear on the pin itself. If it's worn you could try turning it 180 degrees, but if the wear is too bad, or the latch is also worn, you won't get rid of all the rattle. If you adjust it too tight, it will be hard to latch and hard to unlatch, but it will still rattle if the pin is worn because it flexes sideways as well as in and out, especially if the hinges are a little worn too. There's a delicate balance between tightness and ease of latching, and once it's badly worn you may never find it.

 

[RangerRick]

If you find the striker pin worn, take it off, turn it around then adjust it.

 

[Pelican]

Wrap several turns of black vinyl electrical tape around the pin until you are ready to turn or replace it. Quick, cheap, unobstrusive and will last a surprisingly long time. Just put on enough turns to allow closing the hatch without too much difficulty.

 

[Spudboy]

Mine started rattling a lot when a piece of the latch broke off. New latch and no more rattle. You will likely need to find a known good latch to compare to as the only way I could tell mine was broken was that I had both pieces.

 

[Menzenski]

Are you sure it's the hatch? Several months ago I thought my hatch was rattling, and then found out that my rear shocks had no lower bushings; that was the rattle.