Liftgate problems with snow and ice

Discuss any problems, warranty, repair, or replacement issues you are having with your Vibe & Matrix
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PMC
Posts: 31
Joined: Tue Sep 30, 2008 12:15 am

Liftgate problems with snow and ice

Post by PMC »

I've had my 09 vibe for about two months now and for the most part am loving it.I've run into one problem and want to see whether it's a problem with my car or a design flaw.First of all I love that the lift gate goes more up instead of out. That way if snow and ice builds up on the rear bumper you can still get it open (unlike many of my friends in SUVs)But there seems to be almost no clearance along the top. It's hard to explain (I will add a photo when I get a chance to better explain) but the sheet metal from the top of the lift gate has less than a millimeter clearance from the frame when fully open. The problem is that when it's closed there's a gap along the top so snow and ice gets in there, and right now when I raise the lift gate, it goes 99% of the way up and then hits the ice that's built up and makes straining sounds. There is not much ice but it only seems to take a little bit of snow to start interfering.Has anyone else run into this? Can anyone else give me an idea of how much clearance there is when the gate is fully open?
kowell
Posts: 469
Joined: Mon Mar 31, 2008 10:19 pm

Re: Liftgate problems with snow and ice (PMC)

Post by kowell »

You can thank Mother Nature for that one This is a common problem I faced during winter on all hatchbacks I owned over time. That crack exists so rain water will flow on each side during the summer but during winter, ice forms there. The noise you hear is the ice breaking. It's annoying but not damaging. It does reduce the head clearance since the liftgate doesn't open all the way anymore. As soon as the ice melts (or breaks) you're back in business.Welcome to winter!
2009 Vibe 2.4L 1SC - Red Hot Metallic
2011 Sienna V6 CE - Sky Silver
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