4x4Hank

Well the good news is that they didn’t have to order a switch, they had one. They claim to have tested the wiring and they don’t think that’s the issue. The tailgate would open fine from the fob and the dash button. I had a new service manager this time that I hadn’t dealt with before and he shared his theory that it’s water from the drain holes. I told him that I plugged the holes. He didn’t have an answer after that. Even though it’s a PIA running to the dealer every few months for a switch replacement at least it’s covered under warranty. I’m concerned what will happen once my truck is out of warranty.

Well I had another tailgate switch go bad. This time the main tailgate switch. I’m sitting at the dealership right now waiting for a diagnosis but it’s not my first tailgate rodeo so I’m pretty sure that I know the drill. They will come get me in the waiting room and say that they have to order a switch. I’m kind of losing count at this point however I think that this will be the second main tailgate switch replacement. There has also been two inner tailgate switch replacements. I siliconed the holes on the top of the tailgate after the last inner switch replacement so I’m not sure what could have caused another failure other than maybe the damage was already done before I sealed the drain holes. Whatever is causing the failures it’s very irritating!

I think that it’s fairly obvious that the holes are for draining the water out of the indentation/grasping handle. That indentation seems to be a little useless to me since the tailgate opens quite easily without having to pull on it. That being said I suppose a good amount of water could run through those holes particularly if you have a tonneau cover and either driving in the rain or parked with the back of the truck lower while it’s raining. I haven’t had the tailgate apart to see what the inside looks like so all I have to go by is what the GMC technician told me, and he said that that the water that drains from those holes runs right over the switches. He may be right or he might be all wet (pun intended), regardless, I can’t see that it does any good to allow extra water to run inside the tailgate when two simple dabs of silicone (not lathered) in the holes prevents it. I have yet to have anyone see my truck and exclaim: “Yikes, why is your tailgate all lathered with silicone?” I also highly suspect that you are correct and that they are cheap Asian switches.

Well it’s not really “smearing.” It’s just a couple dabs of silicone in the two holes that really can’t be seen. I used clear because that’s what I had. But if I had to buy some special I would have bought black and that might better than clear. Knock on wood, I haven’t had a switch go bad since I plugged the holes.

Well once the switches are replaced the tailgate operates fine and doesn’t malfunction. Also, when my inner tailgate switch goes bad the inner tailgate just flat out doesn’t work. It won’t open. Once the switch is replaced then it will open. Key fob/software coincidence? The GMC technician/mechanic apparently thinks that it’s a legitimate problem. If it was software, swapping out the switch would not remedy the problem. Just because you haven’t had the issue doesn’t necessarily mean that other people can’t have the problem. As a for instance, many people have had the GM 8 speed transmission shuddering/hesitation problems. But not everyone. GM came out with their remedy for the different trans fluid and the triple flush. So were the people that were experiencing the problems imagining it because not everyone was having a problem? Some people get flat tires and others don’t! Trust me, I have much better things to do with my time then sitting at a GMC dealer waiting for a tailgate switch to be removed, then waiting for a new switch to get shipped to the dealer and then go back again to have that switch installed if I thought that there was another cause to the problem. I’m sorry that you find a problem that you are fortunate enough to not have “hard to believe.”

I’m curious as to if anyone with a 24 with the MultiPro tailgate can tell me if it still has the indentation with the drain holes in the top of the tailgate or if GMC/Chevy got smart and decided not to let water enter the tailgate and run down inside onto the electronics. I’m asking because I am in my third inner tailgate switch (I have now siliconed the holes on my 22 as recommended by the GMC technician). thanx Hank

I don’t see a link

Was there any diagnosis on your problem? It sounds scary!

He said to silicone them

I brought my truck to the dealer for turn signal and brake light errors. As luck would have it my inner tailgate switch that was on back order FOR A MONTH arrived while my truck was there so the mechanic installed it right away. The mechanic said that it’s not a sealed waterproof switch. The mechanic also said the my light problem was probably because of the tailgate switch shorting out since it’s all connected back there. The lights needed to be reprogrammed. After I got home I immediately siliconed the two holes on the top of the tailgate. I don’t want to have to go through this faulty tailgate switch every few months or problems with the lights because of the switch problems. I love the features of the MultiPro Tailgate but there is definitely a design flaw with the switches since so many are failing. The service department says that there has not been a TSB issued with regards to the failing switches.

Agreed.

So, I assume that the drain holes are there to keep the indentation/pull handle from filling up with water and ice. I'm not sure if the drain holes are the culprit with the faulty switches but if they are the cause that is pretty pi$$ poor engineering! Hank

I'm only on my third switch so that's a bad situation that you have there. There must be a lot of bad switches because it takes a long time for the dealerships to get new switches in stock.

Well please keep us posted as to how the combination gas/10 speed performs when towing.

OK, I know that this thread is a couple of months old but I found the gas VS diesel discussion interesting. Here's why. Last year, we bought a 30' travel trailer (bumper pull). At the time I had a 2020 Ram 1500 Longhorn with a 5.7 Hemi (I traded in my 2014 Silverado for the Ram) . The truck capacity was maxed out with the 8K GVWR on the RV and the first tow to the last tow was an unpleasant white knuckle experience. I knew the first 20 miles that I was going to be getting a new truck. Besides the 1500 not being enough truck suspension-wise to comfortably tow, I was amazed at the RPM's that I had to keep the truck at while towing. Granted, it was a 5.7 Hemi and not the 6.4 but revving between 3K and 4K was uncomfortable even though Ram people say the engines love it. Last June I found a used 2022 GMC 2500 SLT Crew Cab Duramax with 8K miles on the GMC lot by my house (there were no new 2500's to be had last year) and pulled the pin. Towing with the diesel was like night and day. I understand that a 3/4 ton truck is a lot more truck than a half ton but the difference between the gas and the diesel was incredible. I've owned over 50 vehicles in my driving lifetime and never owned a diesel until this past year. Instead of revving 3000-4000 RPM's I feel like I'm idling at 1400, 1500, 1600 RPM's while going down the highway. The 10 speed Allison helps but so does the incredible torque. So, that said, the fellows on here that like towing with the gassers, are the towing RPM's much higher than the diesel lovers? Hank PS, I love this truck!