Tail gate stuck and tonneau cover on

Good Morning all,

looking for some help.

My Pop n lock handle is no longer releasing the latches for the tailgate and the lock cylinder is spinning. I do not have access to the bed as my Trifecta Extang soft tonneau cover is down. What is the best way to get my tailgate to open?

 

Sorry OP, no help here. Sub'd because it'll probably happen to me sooner or later.

 

Can't you slide your hand under to unlock the cover? If you can pry open the cover to access the tailgate panel, this is the route I would go. Then climb in the bed, remove the screws to the plastic panel and try sliding it up to remove it. From there you should be able to access the 2 rods to manually pull and release the gate. It's likely the plastic rod clips are worn or broken.

 

Unfortunately I cannot as the latch that holds the tonneau cover down is spring loaded. I tried lifting the tonneau cover with a 2x4 to get my arm under the cover but because their is so much tension I cannot pull down the tonneau hatch. Need some brut force to pull down.
I was hoping that there was another way. I think I only have two options either cutting the tonneau cover to get my hand in and pulling down the latch or breaking the handle on the tail gate and pull on the rods.

 

Think of it this way. You have a closed system with two possible entry points, err two reasonable entry points: the tonneau cover and the tailgate. If you cannot release those clamps with the tailgate closed, then the tailgate needs to be opened.

I see two reasonable solutions:
1. Cut open the tonneau, toss it in the trash after
2. Break the tailgate handle to force open. Not ideal.

That is assuming you cannot rig up something to slide under the tonneau. From the video I watched it didn’t seem to be that much pressure required. Maybe get a helper, lift one side, use something thin and sturdy to slide into the bed and pop the tonneau cover lock?

 

The tonneau cover spring clamp is the same as in this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFlHRgwvufs You can see him pry the tonneau cover to show how much flex there is and would be difficult to pull down. I may try a metal rod and see if I can pull down on the clamp.

Another idea I just saw by looking at the clamp is seeing if I can remove the bolt off the bottom. Maybe this will loosen the tension a bit more so I can pull down see picture

 

I had the same thing happen to me with the Pop-N-Lock handle and a different tonneau cover. I was able to slide a piece of wire with a hook between the top of the tailgate and the cover. The latches for the cover were spring loaded with a cable between them. Hooked it, opened the cover and then, like Wattapunk said, removed the tailgate panel. I then replaced that Pop-N-Lock with the original tailgate handle after lubricating all the moving parts.

 

From that video, it looks like you can simply reach in there with a hacksaw or saw zall and simply cut that skinny bolt. Pretty sure that will work and you can just replace that bolt at any hardware store.

 

When my pop n lock broke I lifted my Extang Tri Fold cover at the rear corners one side at a time. Then I reached in with my arm and released the spring clamps. Then I could access the tailgate panel to change the handle. Contacted pop n lock customer service and they sent me a replacement pull, it isn’t hard to rebuild that latch.

 

Thanks for all the help. I managed to use brut force helps with my wife to lift the tonneau cover from one end while on the other end I slipped my arm in and pulled the clamp down as hard as I could. Tonneau cover is now off and I have taken off the edge moulding and back panel. Seems the lock still works. It’s the mechanism of the pull bars for the latches that is sticking. Will have to see how to fix or rebuild.

 

If I remember correctly you have to flip the drivers side latch pull bar for Pop&Lock to work properly. They have very good install video on their website for whatever latch you have.

 

Too late now but here is a what I did in case my pop n lock ever gave up the ghost and stopped working. Thankfully, I have never had to use it since the initial install.

Pop N Lock PL8521 Install With Emergency Release

 

I have had my 2011 latch get stuck not allowing me to open it. I've found that lubricating the mechanism/rod ends every couple of years with white grease has helped this not be an issue. There may be better lubricants too, I worried the white grease might attract dirt etc., but has yet to be the case. I have the manual/keyed Pop-N-Lock. FWIW...