GX Cargo Door Projects (1 Viewer)

[Bluetribal]

Over the last couple of weekends I knocked out three projects for the cargo door. Another project is the gas strut mod but I am choosing not to do that mod because it will not work for me in the future when I have a trailer.

Anyway here I will describe how I did the following cargo door mods to my GX: Grab Handle Replacement, Emergency Latch, & Front Runner Drop Down Table.

So first up is the Bartact Paracord grab handle that was introduced by @Scat Adams.
Grab Handle Link: BARTACT 550 Paracord Jeep Wrangler JK Sound Bar Grab Handles with grommets (PAIR)
You will find that the Khaki is a good match to the Tan interior. They come in pairs so I was able to team up with a local GX guy I have wheeled with and we split the cost.

For about $3 in hardware at Home Depot you can knock out this mod in an hour.
You will need (2) 5/16"-18 x 1" Hex Bolts | (4) 5/16" x 1 1/2" Fender Washers | A pack of 5/16"-18 Jam nuts, and a pack (2) of 5/16"-18 Cap Nuts. If you really want to pimp this out paint the cap nuts black, which I plan to do myself.

First up remove the plastic cargo door panel.
Next you put a washer on the back side of the metal tab, put the hex bolt through, add a second washer, then the Jam nut and tighten it all down. Repeat this on the second handle tab.

At this point add a second jam nut to the bolt and break out the dremel. Remove about two threads with a cut-off disk then remove the second nut to repair the threads to make sure the cap nut will screw on. Note that I had the panel back on but you will slip and cut your panel, trust me!

Now put the panel back on and grab your Bartact handle, slip it over the bolts and then put your cap nuts on for the finished product.

 

[Bluetribal]

OK props to @coops2k for the inspiration on the rear cargo door interior release. You can find his thread here: Interior rear door release

I went a quicker and simpler route for the pull. I basically just want this as an emergency exit in case this is the only way out of the vehicle for me and my family. But if you sleep in your GX then this is a very convenient modification.

Material:
4' 3/16" Braided wire cable (Plastic coated or not your preference).
2) Cable Wire Clamps
1) Cable Wire Thimble

I forgot to take a pic of how I connected to the latch inside the door but I will just borrow a pic from Coops since I drilled the latch just like he did.

So after drilling that hole I just put my plastic coated cable through it and cinched it down with a cable clamp like this one pictured below.

Next find a good spot for your cable to pop out from behind the door skin. Make sure you feel inside so that you miss any bracing or the back side of a clip. I drilled right next to this plastic clip because any higher and there was a metal brace inside. If you really want to be anal here you could add a rubber grommet to the hole but I don't see the need for the limited times I will ever use this latch.

Next up you need to line up your door panel and figure out a good location for a hole through that piece. Once you have that hole drilled you work the cable through, re-install your door panel and test fit the cable thimble and mark how much excess cable you need to cut off. Use your final cable clamp and check another project off of the list!

 

[Bluetribal]

OK now the Grand Daddy of all Cargo Door Mods! The Front Runner Drop Down Table. This mod took two Sundays to get set and then a run to the hardware store for the correct length bolts. The table is very stout and it is very heavy and awkward to deal with when trying to figure out a location to mount it. I finally decided to disassemble it so it would weigh 1/3 the weight.
For disassembly I highly recommend Metric Allen wrenches as these bolts are tight and you don't want to strip them out using an SAE Allen wrench. As for the instructions that come with it they assume you will be using the holes provided in the table and mounting it to a nice flat surface so throw them away they are useless!
Just a heads-up you will be losing access to your tool door unless you mount it on the opposite side of the cargo door.

Hardware:
Utilize (2) of the four bolts and mounts provided with the table from Front Runner
(4) 3/8" Nut Certs (1/4" would work but less room for play when lining up all three holes)
(4) X/X" Bolts (Forgot Size will add later)

The hard part is to coordinate all the holes so everything lines up, You need holes in the table, holes in the plastic, then holes in the door skin metal. And to be hones I was lucky on my layout and didn't take into account the plastic panel when I located the holes but it worked out.

The way I started was to put two of the Front Runner Hardware provided into the two tabs that hold the stock tool kit into place. This gave me a base point to measure off of to locate the other holes.

Once you have those two locations then you find good locations for at least four more mounting points and this will give you three along the bottom and three along the top.
Here is where I located all of the Nut Certs in the door.

Next you will want to transfer these locations to the table. Measure 2 times 5 times whatever it takes. And start off with a small hole and verify location one at a time before you drill the full size hole. Once you have all of the holes transferred to the table test fit things and do any necessary massaging.
At this point in the photo I only had one bolt the correct length so I had to test fit it in each hole individually.

Now is where you figure out if you are lucky or not. You need to transfer the holes to the plastic panel and I did this by making a cardboard template of the table with holes in the correct locations. This will take time but you patience and accuracy will pay off.
Now another test fit with the plastic panel in place.

Once you are 100 percent on the holes in the table I would recommend touching up the holes with paint so you don't have any bare metal.

And then crack a beer and rest it on your table. Yes I lose points for not having that photo but I was being yelled at "YOU'RE LATE FOR DINNER"!

 

[HomersCanyonero]

Great way to attach the rear door handle. I like it. One improvement would be to use metric bolts and nuts to match OEM ones. This is to maximize the use of the stock oem toolkit wrenches and prevent carrying a 5/16 wrench. Although, you can always use the plyers or adjustable wrench to unscrew. Very minor detail. Lol

 

[Bluetribal]

Yeah but the key to this attachment is the skinny Jam Nuts that hold the washers in place. Might be difficult to find a jam but in Metric?

 

[Arailt]

Great way to attach the rear door handle. I like it. One improvement would be to use metric bolts and nuts to match OEM ones. This is to maximize the use of the stock oem toolkit wrenches and prevent carrying a 5/16 wrench. Although, you can always use the plyers or adjustable wrench to unscrew. Very minor detail. Lol

For all those times you need to maintenance the rear hatch grab handle on the fly.

 

[Scat Adams]

Interested in the emergency latch, nice write up so far!

 

[JLee]

Yeah but the key to this attachment is the skinny Jam Nuts that hold the washers in place. Might be difficult to find a jam but in Metric?

 

[JLee]

I really want that table...

 

[Sleepy]

Table would be even cooler if main table was full width of door with an equivalent length slide out. Hmmm...

 

[Bluetribal]

I really want that table...

Do it!
I believe this table and the Wolf packs are great deals on Front Runners site.

 

[Bluetribal]

Table would be even cooler if main table was full with of door with an equivalent length slide out. Hmmm...

Unfortunately two tables won’t fit side by side. So if you want that then you will have to go custom.

 

[JLee]

Do it!
I believe this table and the Wolf packs are great deals on Front Runners site.

Oh man, I hadn't seen those!

 

[Bluetribal]

You can order high top lids for them as well.

 

[Da808racer]

Not quite a thread revival, but I’m thinking about doing a cargo door release after getting stuck back there and having to climb over the middle row (car seats already installed).

I started thinking about how I wanted to do it and was wondering if this T handle cable would work. I would drill a smaller hole for the cable to go through the plate and then put the cable lock on either side of the plate. The handle part would be similar to the OP’s except there would be a more finished look.

Thoughts?

 

[Bluetribal]

Just a heads up, I am regretting using a plastic coated cable for the emergency pull. It keeps getting hung up on the hole inside. This can probably be fixed by drilling a larger hole but when I go back in there I will probably just replace the cable with a non-plastic coated cable.

 

[kris9884]

So, question. I hope this isn't a thread jack but what do you think of the swinging door? If you could go back, would you get a LX instead for the tailgate style or do you like the barn door style? Just honestly wondering someones opinion who owns one and this was the most relative thread I could find lol. Thanks in advance!

 

[Bluetribal]

The barn door is the lamest thing about the GX but in no means a deal breaker. Everything else (V8, Lexus Quality, Nimble Size, etc...) all makes up for it. It's actually less stuff to open up compared to a lift gate with tailgate and you can still kind of sit on the bumper.

 

[kris9884]

Gotcha, thanks man

 

[GonzoShinyPants]

Honestly I think there are pros and cons to all of them. A tailgate makes it harder to reach inside the rear of the vehicle, though if you are fully on drawers/etc with sliders maybe that doesn't matter as much. But I have rear work lights mounted on my roof rack that the upper half of a tail gate would block. I recently put on the gas strut mod for the rear door and WOW is it a must do mod. I think having that on there makes the barn door as good as any. Just pull the latch and boom - your door is open and out of the way.

So, question. I hope this isn't a thread jack but what do you think of the swinging door? If you could go back, would you get a LX instead for the tailgate style or do you like the barn door style? Just honestly wondering someones opinion who owns one and this was the most relative thread I could find lol. Thanks in advance!