Locked out of Bed - any ideas?

Well, as the title says...I'm locked out of my Tundra's bed at the moment. My aftermarket tailgate actuator is binding up and will not let me unlock/open the tailgate with the key. To make matters worse I have a Bakflip MX4 tonneau cover installed and I'm unable to open that unless I can first open the tailgate. I've read some have been successful in using a metal hangar to pull the cord on the tonneau cover to open it, but I cannot find any video. If I can do that to open the cover I'd gain access to the bed in which case I could remove the inside panel of the tailgate and manually release the latch to open the tailgate. Anyone else run into this and figure out how to open the MX4?

 

https://www.tundras.com/threads/ope...dle-and-mech-rod-tailgate-at-the-latch.35686/

 

Thanks, I can take a look approach. I think my best bet is to slip something between the top of the tailgate and under the cover to hook the cord and pull it.

 

Do you have any glow rods used for pushing/fishing wires? My set from Home Depot came with a hook that might help for what you're trying to do. I'll try to find them and take a pic of what I'm talking about.

 

Good call. The hook type may just work.

 

This us what i used when this happened to me!
It can take a while though for sure

 

Glad to hear this worked. I'll need to go pick one up.

 

I run wire for a living so already had them.
Be careful too if one breaks! Worst splinters ever!

 

Anyone have an MX4 that would be willing to measure the distance from the end of the tonneau cover to the middle of the cord? Just so I can have an idea where to feed it to under the cover.

 

Yes, give me 15-20 minutes and I’ll go measure mine

 

Yup, that looks like the way to go. The latches on my cover would be impossible to release, but yours looks like a cakewalk. I would totally try coat hanger wire, it’s thinner so puts less force upwards against the latches.

 

From the plastic cap on the tailgate go 8 and 1/2 inches over on either side and you will be at the middle of the release. It is 2 inches back from the tailgate when closed. This is on a 2019 crewmax with an MX4 on it.

 

I agree here always try hanger first if you can find one

 

I concur, here’s a pic for reference:


The trick will be angling down enough, you can see there’s about a 2” drop from the top of the cover to the pull cord. Good luck!

 

Perfect. Thank you.

 

Just to make sure, can you pull the cord back (towards you) to release the latch? I know typically we're pulling downward with a hand, but I'd assume it will still release if pulled back, maybe just not as easily.

 

You're on the right track for finding the release cord and pulling it. I've had to do that once on my Undercover Flex. Not a Bakflip, but the principle is the same. You may be able to raise it enough to see where the cord loop is on the rear edge. I don't remember what I used for a tool, but the thinner the better to avoid damage to cover or tail gate. My takeaway was that a locking bed cover is false security for bed contents.

Is your other key fob MIA?

 

Yes, pulling on the cord in any direction will work, as it’s just compressing the springs in the outside latch mechanism.

 

Nope, I have the key fobs. The issue is that my linkage is binding up inside and not allowing it to unlock. Pressing lock/unlock on the truck switches or key fob is not doing anything along with trying to use the actual key to unlock.

 

Wow...That is bound up. Good luck with it.

 

Solved. Although this makes me feel less confident about the security of the MX4. I was able to get in the bed within about 10 mins and no damage. I pulled up on the cover just enough to slide a medium flat tipped screwdriver under wrapped in some tape to prevent any marring or scratches. I ended up using some thicker solder that I twisted to make a hook. The hook needed to be really small and tight or it lost is shape when tugged on. The screwdriver gave just enough space to slide the solder in and with a flashlight I could barely see the cord. Thanks to @Bob_Wiley and @FUBAR for the pics and measurements. I was able to hook the cord pretty easily and pull it to open the cover. After the cover was opened the next obstacle became my amp research bed extender which blocked 2 of the screws I needed to access to remove the inner plate from the tailgate. After disassembling the sides of the bed extender I had enough space to remove the last 2 screws. From there, I pulled the access panel and manually pulled the level to release the tailgate. The failure was a result of a snapped actuator that was installed to add a power tailgate lock feature.

 

Glad you got in there!
When mine broke it was the fault of a 25 cent clip that I had to buy in a pack of 10 different crappy little plastic clips to find at all?
What a terrible design!

And yes I would not feel too secure with that cover either?

 

Pretty much no opening cover is truly secure. I feel more confident with the Diamondback than I did with the BakFlip, but I can still easily see someone breaking in if they truly wanted to. Came down to how easily I thought someone could brute force it open, and I can't see that happening with the Diamondback.

Only way I see as truly secure is to put a sled deck on it, then you pretty much have to buy a sliding cargo tray too.

 

I gently pried the back flip up on my truck, put a curved coat hanger in and pulled on the cable.

 

Nice job!
I was gonna suggest spraying the shit out out of the lock with WD40 or PB Blaster. Maybe another time...

 

Any idea why the actuator snapped?

 

Who knows. It was only on there for a short period of time, but was brand new when installed. I'm running the kit from the group buy on here, but this is NOT her actuator. When her kit was released there was a mix up with the actuators and the ones that shipped where not oriented in the correct position. I picked one up here locally to get my kit installed quicker. My best guess is it broke due to cheap material (plastic). I'm a little hesitant to throw another one back on there immediately. Maybe I'll search around for a higher quality actuator. At least I now know how to get in if it happens again.

 

Had the bakflip on my f350 10 years ago. People were picking them open using coat hangers and wire pulls back then. I stopped this from happening by screwing a piece of aluminum angle iron in front of the gap where the cable pull is. Pulling on the cable was stopped by the aluminum piece. Had to pull down to open the top, but pulling never worked.

 

I have the kit in my garage, hopefully going to install this weekend. If you find something higher quality post it up. If not we’ll I have the same cover. We can open it up pretty easy

 

Is t wrong that when I read “locked out of bed” I thought....damn, this poor bastard really messed up during quarantine.