broke rear door hydraulic arm (1 Viewer)

[CV Kurt]

Was up out fishing today and parked leaning towards the drivers side. Opening the door once I mistaken let the rear door swing open without holding onto the door. Ripped the ball out of the ball & socket joint at the door. The ball piece when flying as I couldn't find it.

Anyone know what part(s) I need to order to fix it?

Edit: looks like I need at least a "stay rod" ($102 online).

I assume this isn't something covered under warranty... though I guess I could try.

-- Kurt

 

[sinerasis]

Strangely enough I broke that same part off the first winter I had my FJ. It was really cold outside and it just snapped off when I opened the door.

If you're still under the bumper to bumper you've got a shot. I got mine replaced under warranty at the time.

 

[CV Kurt]

Strangely enough I broke that same part off the first winter I had my FJ. It was really cold outside and it just snapped off when I opened the door.

If you're still under the bumper to bumper you've got a shot. I got mine replaced under warranty at the time.

do you remember if the ball part of the joint was part of the rod part or part of the bracket part?

In diagrams I've found on line, looks to be part of the bracket. In that case, that's I'll need to fix mine. I broke the outer ball joint at the door (outer) bracket. The stay rod itself looks fine. See photo.

 

[sinerasis]

Yes its part of the bracket. Mine broke off the other end as yours.

 

[LuvMyFJ]

FJ Tailgate Cylinder Repair

I had the exact same issue caused by the same circumstance (parked on a slope, door swings open hard). I've had the problem with the fitting/bracket you are showing and also with one of the fittings on the cylinder rod end.

The one the bracket is the easier one to fix. The fittings are pressed on, i.e. they mate the two parts with a snug fit, then hit it with the manufacturing equivalent of a ball-peen hammer. This is a poor way to assemble anything that receives constant impact stress because over time the metal around the two parts bends and stretches causing them to separate.

The bracket you are showing has a hole in it where the end-fitting fits in. If there is remaining metal in that hole from the broken fitting , you may need to unbolt it from the body, put it in a vice and either tap out the metal "plug" or drill it out. It shouldn't require too much effort as it is very cheap metal often called "pot" metal. The bracket itself is decently strong metal but be careful not to bend it or distort the hole too much.

Now it's time to replace the ball fitting. You can find them with a threaded end, on which you can put a washer and a nut - Toyota should have used this type to begin with. It's hard if not impossible to find these separately at Autozone, Pep Boys, etc. but you can find replacement gas/hydraulic cylinders there with those in the package. Find the least expensive cylinders you can that includes the screw-on fittings and just throw away the cylinders. I found one for about $20 at Pep Boys with very good quality threaded fittings. The parts guy thought I was weird for searching through their entire rack of cylinders, but after some explanation he had no problem with it. You can also buy these fittings online and a Google search of "gas spring end fittings" turned up a lot of hits. Here's an example:
http://compare.ebay.com/like/221120231611?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar

Then, take the fitting to Lowe's to find a stainless steel nut, washers, and lock washer (I think I used the kind that is a star shape instead of the split-ring type). The fittings that come with the cylinders are intended to be screwed directly into body hardware on the model car it's intended for so it doesn't come with nuts. I'm thinking the whole time, "Why didn't Toyota do it that way?"

Lowe's has a board in the screw section where you can just thread your fitting into a female screw hole to get the right size and thread. Then it's just a matter of assembling it all with the bracket using the washers and a lock washer. A bit of LocTite on the threads wouldn't hurt either. The same kind of bracket is on both the door and the body,so I'm thinking of proactively replacing the other.

Well before all of this happened, the fitting on the end of the cylinder rod broke off too - it's also pressed on when it should be threaded. For this, I put some JB Weld in the hole of the fitting and hammered the fitting back onto the rod end. I didn't completely trust the JB Weld, so I drilled a hole (perpendicular to the rod) through the rod and fitting where they join together. I inserted a cotter pin through the hole and bent the ends over. This worked for a year or more, but recently it came apart again, shearing off the cotter pin. (You'd think I would learn NOT to let the door swing open, lol)

With the door open and looking at the top hinge, you will see a tab of steel on the hinge that acts as a stop for when the door swings open. I think what happens is that repeated door swings hitting that tab causes it to bend and it no longer stops the door before the cylinder is fully extended. Therefore all of the impact is on the cylinder and brackets causing them to break. With a tire iron and a sledge hammer, I once tried bending this tab back so that it would indeed stop the door before the cylinder is fully extended. It worked, but that was prior to the last cotter pin break, so apparently it bends right back over time. I'm wary of doing that too much for fear of breaking or bending the hinge. A couple things I'm considering is epoxying washer(s) on this tab, and keep adding one when it bends a little, drill a hole in the tab, tap it with threads and put in an adjustable bolt, or taking a short piece of stainless steel cable and somehow attaching it to the door and body back by the hinge so that it stops the swing.

I do Love my FJ but this is one part that was VERY poorly designed. I've considered buying new parts - $100-$150 but the only ones I can find are OEM and I suspect they would have the same problem eventually. Let me know how things work out!

thehemphill@gmail.com

 

[tnorman]

My hydronic arm for my rear door is bracken as well. Not like yours but every time i open my rear door all the way the arm goes to lock mode and every time I go to shut my door I have to push the yellow lock piece in the middle of the arm and close at the same time. It's a struggle to sometimes when my hands are full.