Rear Hatch Gas Springs - don't lift anymore

[mrrock]

I've had my hatchback for two years now and the gas springs that hold up the rear hatch don't open it all the way now. Has anyone else experienced this?
does anyone know of an alternate that is stronger?

[redyaris]

Originally Posted by mrrock

I've had my hatchback for two years now and the gas springs that hold up the rear hatch don't open it all the way now. Has anyone else experienced this?
does anyone know of an alternate that is stronger?

I've noticed a lot of sag in my liftgate lately too. It happens to all of us with age.

Only thing to do is replace the gas struts. An easy fix.

At least the Yaris doesn't have a power liftgate like my wife's Toyota Sienna XLE van does. The struts failed on vans with this option causing the unfortunate person standing under the liftgate to become trapped as the power door lowered without warning (it has been fixed by a Toyota recall however).

what 'stronger' alternative would you want that allows you to open and close the liftgate?

[stuffy]

my car has a bunch of snow on it that is hard and crusty so my hatch has not been opening up all the way because of the extra weight...

...does your car have any snow on it?

[cali yaris]

You can buy replacements from MSC in any length and strength you like, way cheaper than from the dealer, too. I'll post up a link shortly, but you can probably google it and find them.

[thebarber]

its the cold weather....i had the same problem w/ my matrix

get them replaced under warranty....but itll just happen again next year....

[ROCKLAND TOYOTA]

ive noticed same thing which started this winter. its funny when you hear others say JUST REPLACE with yada yada. if its still under the 3/36 then take it back to ANY toyota dealer and get it repaired........

[YAR1S]

mine is lazy... goes just high enough to still manage to smack me in the head... have to push the hatch up to open it all the way up... stays once up... really annoying... I'll deal w/ it. no more warranty... oh well.

[ztrack157]

adventurerv.net has them cheap. if anyone wants a 125lb rated lift I have one for free.

[jvgillow]

I've noticed that mine get a lot "slower" in cold weather, but they still go all the way up. Car is only 9 months old though.

[kimona]

Just had them changed on my 07 under warranty. Good for a few more years now.

[maryinredding]

I would think this would be taken care of by your warranty. It is an 06 so it should be good through 09 unless you bought your car in January.

[ztrack157]

Its not covered under warranty. But Great to see another person from Norcal around here. Come down to Chico often.

[kimona]

Originally Posted by ztrack157

Its not covered under warranty. But Great to see another person from Norcal around here. Come down to Chico often.

Mine were changed under warranty.

[ztrack157]

We're talking about an '07 hatch bought in 2006 it may have more than 36k on it

[yaris07hb]

My car has been on the road four years; bought it in June 06. The damn rear hatch struts started hanging up in cold weather (cold is a relative term - I live in SoCal). I keep them cleaned and lubed using LPS1 or 2. I priced them out online. Sparks wants $100 EACH!!!! You've got to be kidding. I must've searched for the wrong thing. The local auto part dealers don't carry them. Funny though, as common as these damn things are (under $20 for most vehicles) I find it hard to believe that these are so expensive. I'm looking for alternates - tried looking for the recommended "MSC" but no luck. What do we call these things anyway? Gas spring? Strut? Support Lift?

[bladesmith6]

Go to www.mscdirect.com look up struts or gas cylinders. You just have to get the fully extended length and the right type of end fittings. probably 50 lb lift maybe? use the "gas springs" and a bunch should come up.

[pelesl]

Originally Posted by bladesmith6

Go to www.mscdirect.com look up struts or gas cylinders. You just have to get the fully extended length and the right type of end fittings. probably 50 lb lift maybe? use the "gas springs" and a bunch should come up.

Same thing happened to my 2007. Really pathetic. I've had a hard time finding a replacement online; I think I found the assembly for $125 (my guess is that includes all the brackets).

McMaster is easier to search through than MSC. What you want is gas springs:

http://www.mcmaster.com/#gas-springs/

Their prices are not very good, but the search is great. After you find what you want, you can ask them who makes it, and then see if a distributor will give you a better price. But McMaster will ship it fast, and they give you zero hassles with returns---so if you can't close your hatch even with your whole family hanging on it, you won't have any trouble getting replacements.

In any case these are not cheap. You'll want stainless steel parts for sure. Or you can keep them coated in oil/grease, or hope that they fail before the rust is too severe anyway.

I don't have the car right now (getting serviced), but my biggest worry is that the ends are some custom thing and you won't be able to do anything without the Toyota part.

I'm not sure how you'd measure the compressed length---you can't get at these when the lid is closed, right?

The extended length should definitely be measured when they are off the car.

I'm not sure if there's room in there, but maybe you can shove a coil spring around the gas spring to help it that last bit? Century Spring is a good place for that (and good prices)---http://www.centuryspring.com/

[pelesl]

Originally Posted by pelesl

McMaster is easier to search through than MSC. What you want is gas springs:

http://www.mcmaster.com/#gas-springs/

McMaster doesn't seem to have a cylinder close to what's in my car (unless you consider changing the end fittings).

The cylinders in my car are Stabilus Lift-O-Mat. If you go to their site, they have an "automotive spares" lookup; but for the Yaris they list manufacturing dates of 2001 and 2006 only. Plus they give you zero information on the specs; you have to get them from the distributor in Michigan (at which point you just buy it from a parts store).

Interestingly the passenger and driver's side cylinders have different numbers:

Passenger:
9716UG 0370N 092/06 DG 31
68750-0D020

Driver's:
9714UQ 0370N 084/06 AD31
68960-0D010

My guess is the numbers are so different because they must refer to the whole assembly (including brackets, which are mirrors of each other). I don't see why the gas springs themselves are different.

I'll tell you what, though---I can guarantee you they are just not specified correctly. When you look at the hatch fully open, those springs are at such an awkward angle that you'd have to have a lot of force at the end of the stroke to get it all the way open.

I measured a rod diameter of 8mm and a body diameter of 18 mm. Extended length is about 15 3/8 inches from base of fitting to base of fitting. I looked carefully and if you try to open the hatch "more" the spring brackets move a bit so I'm pretty sure their extended length is the actual limit for the hatch opening; there are no other stops. What you have to worry about is that the top lip of the hatch between the hinges doesn't hit the body, so I think you could go a bit longer if you had to.

The fittings look like they are easily removable from the balls.

Although it certainly looks like you could help it with a coil spring around the rod and a washer for it to push against the fitting, what you really need is force at the end of the stroke which means when the spring is fully compressed there's going to be a lot of force.

Given this I think I'm going to just remember to push mine all the way open. If I push it open it stays there; it just doesn't do it on its own anymore.