a torsion bar makes! I bought my 90 XLT in July of last year, with a fair bit of rust on the tailgate that quickly turned into a lot more rust. I always wondered why the tailgate was so heavy to open and close (as in, really really heavy!), until I was looking what inner parts needed to be replaced when I replaced the tailgate. Tailgate is now replaced, and I finally got a new torsion bar & installed it yesterday. Wow, it goes up with just the flick of your wrist! So nice and light. The install was a royal pain, but I managed it by myself, with all fingers intact!

Casper
1990 XLT 5.8L 31 x 10.5 Kumho Powerguard M/T's

 

Where did you get your tailgate? I also need one and have been thinking about Bronco Gaveyard's tailgate.

 

is a torsion bar normal on the Broncs?? it is a pain to get that tailgate up. where can i get one and for how much? is it really a huge pain to put on?

 

I picked up the tailgate from a Ford dealer nearby (I'm in British Columbia, Canada) for $479 CDN + tax - approximately $320 US before taxes. The torsion bar came from Jobrite auto (www.jobriteauto.com) though it is OEM as well - it was $52 CDN/$35 US. Yes, you really do need a torsion bar (unless you don't mind a really heavy tailgate - I'm a pretty big guy, and it took a fair bit of effort for me to raise my previous tailgate, probably the amount of rust on it). The hardest part of installing the torsion bar is hooking it back up to the body - I removed the glass (4 bolts, unless it hasn't been removed before, then four rivets to drill out & replace with bolts). I the passenger end of the bar into the tailgate & out the hole, the rest will swing into place & be held by a clip inside the tailgate itself. Added the clamps on the bottom (mine weren't in place as it was a new tailgate) they have a bolt each on the bottom edge of the tailgate. The hard part is getting force on the torsion bar & pray it into place - you end up with the the tailgate almost closed, and a pry bar pulling on the torsion bar. I was tall enough to reach over from outside & hold the tailgate in place with the same arm I was using to pry, and then using the other arm to attatch the bolts & clamp to hold it into place. It is quite possible by yourself, though probably much easier with another person to help.

Casper

 

You can see pics of it here.

 

Fortunately, my wife is kind enough to humor me and lend her smaller hands to get projects like the tailgate torsion bar replaced. Together, we got the bar back in the gate and then put the ring that holds the end of it in the jamb in place with me almost completely closing the gate and she lined up the bracket and ran the bolts in.

I actually had the rust on my 92's gate get bad enough that the torsion bar snapped out of its clamps inside the tailgate and shattered my rear window. Just thrilled me to know that I had to replace the gate AND the window. But, I did have the foresight to take the tailgate to the local Rhino Linings Shop where they coated the lower half of the gate uncluding the inside and the entire interior face and inspection cover in a grey that matches my Grey-streak down the side and my interior grey.

Don't know when this changed but when bought the replacement torsion bar from local Ford dealer, I noticed that the replacement was a LOT longer beyond the bend INSIDE the tailgate than the original. As I think about it, if the original had been that long, it would not have had enough clearance to do what it did to the window when it broke free of the internal clamps. By the way, I dealt with an empty (no guts i.e. window, window motor, equalizer, etc.) tailgate all last summer until I replaced it all. And hefting that tailgate was a chore when I did have to open it. I would hate to think what it would be like to try and close a fully loaded tailgate without the torsion bar in place.

 

I have found one of the cheepest and best places to buy a tale gate and other body parts is from http://www.jcwhitney.com/, I priced a talegate at a ford dealership in Iowa and they wanted almost $700 for one.

 

I know there was quite a difference between Ford dealerships here when I was doing my pricing - up to $200 CDN for the exact same part, and the dealers were less that 30 miles apart! I went with the OEM because I was able to pick it up for only $4 more than an aftermarket.

I really couldn't (and still can't) believe the difference between not having a torsion bar and having one. I'm 6'4", and had to put my whole body into lifting my completely loaded tailgate. It was at least 50 lbs lighter with the new tailgate (no rust!), but still a workout.

Ouch! Losing the glass AND the torsion bar at the same time would really bite. You are right, Greystreak, in that the new torsion bar that I received was longer on the up bend than the original, and seemed to go straight into the bend while the old one had an S in it right before the bend.

Casper

 

$200 C difference for the same part!!! Everybody has to make a profit to stay in business, but isn't that rape!

Yes for just a few dollars more I would get the OEM tailgate. That is what concerns me about the aftermarket parts with the actual fit. So far Jeff's Bronco Graveyard still seems still the best deal (even better the JC Whitney). Has anyone used one of the Bronco Graveyard tailgates? I have bought a tailgate switch/latch from them and it was fine.

 

Mine is a Graveyard tailgate! Everything bolted in just fine. All lined up with the OEM inner components. Only thing I had to do was drill the holes for the brushed aluminum mid-section on the outer panel and the spare tire carrier latch plate. For obvious reasons these holes weren't already drilled.

 

I put a JCW t/g on a friend's Bronco and I was really impressed with the quality. I couldn't distinguish it from an OE, other than the black primer.

 

I had to price one for insurance and the list price for the gate is over $980, but a website 1stfordparts.com, has them new for just over $720, I also read a good tip to prevent them from rusting from the inside out. Line the inside with a rubber coating such as rino liner or something along those lines. The dust goes down where the window goes in and when it gets wet and sits on the inside metal of the tailgate is when it rusts. The rubber coating will keep it from getting to the bare metal.