Hi everyone! I am very new to owning my 1994 Nissan 4x4 Truck. Heck, I am new to owning a truck. When the tailgate is down, I have to pull on the handle as I am closing it to get it to lock in place. I looked closer and see a lock on each side. They seem very tough to push manually. Is the tailgate supposed to be lifted like this for safety reasons or can I just pull it up without the handle being pulled? Hopefully I am making sense. Just curious.

Thanks, Chris

It's probably due for some lubrication. Pull the small access cover on the inside part of the tailgate opposite the handle, undo the plastic clips on the rods carefully (twist them 90° then you can pull the rods up). Remove the tailgate handle by undoing two nuts. Then on each side of the tailgate, remove the bolts holding the latches, then pull them and the connecting rods from the tailgate. Clean up the handle and latch mechanisms, slap some synthetic grease on moving parts and contact points, then reassemble. I did this a few months ago on my 98 Frontier (practically identical tailgate as yours), and latching is effortless. I would previously hold the handle to help it, but it could be latched with moderate force.

Hey folks, the fix above worked great. Now, the tailgate bed closes without holding the handle to keep the side latches closed. Thank you!

Awesome, glad that helped.

I've had success just spraying the latches on each side of the tailgate without all of the other steps. My lubrication of choice is SuperLube. This stuff works great on garage door hinges and rollers too... lasts for years. Looks like it's available at Home Depot for under $7.

Yes, you can absolutely use your spray of choice to loosen up the latches. The main reasons I suggest disassembling the latches outside the tailgate is to clean off the 20 years of dirt build-up, checking that the mechanisms are still operable, and not having excess liquid pooling inside the tailgate.

I also use the gel version of the Super Lube, available from Harbor Freight. It tends to stay in place pretty well.

Still a good idea to lift the handle when closing the tailgate to avoid wearing the white plastic (delrin?) in the latches. When they completely lifting the handle is required to close it which sucks sometimes.