1967 Ford Country Sedan - Magic Tailgate Repair Question

Discussion in 'General Station Wagon Discussions' started by Dickson746, Aug 1, 2016.

  1. Dickson746

    Dickson746 New Member

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    Hi All - I'm new here having just bought a 390 ci 1967 Ford Country Sedan.

    It's a Denver car, so not much rust and relatively clean. However, the Magic Tailgate is an issue. The dash switch is broken, and even hot wired the rear glass does not lower. And the previous owner lost the key to the rear gate too.

    So, we're stumped as to how to get the glass lowered so we may open the tailgate to make motor repairs.

    It seems that the only way to get to all the screws to remove the tailgate inner panel is to remove the rear seat and interior panels. Correct?

    Any suggestions would be very much appreciated. THANK YOU - Dickon
     
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  2. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    Does the motor make any noise at all? Have you verified you had power at the switch connector? Those switches work a certain way to make both power and ground at the same time. Simply wiring the power won't drive the motor, as it won't have the ground side.
     
  3. Dickson746

    Dickson746 New Member

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    Andrew - We have not verified power at the switch connector. The switch itself is broken. So were were trying to "hot wire" the motor...We got no motor noise at all, maybe due to no ground. This might be a blessing, as I initially thought it meant that the motor too was bad.

    Is there a suitable (reasonably priced) replacement switch? The old stock ones are around $100....THANKS - Dickson

    I'm now wondering if I can find a locksmith to make a new key from the existing exterior lock cylinder, so we can lower the window via key....
     
  4. Leadslead

    Leadslead Well-Known Member

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    Generally locksmiths run about 80 on up for a new key, not a copy.
    Found that out when I needed a new key cause I lost mine... and 80 was on the cheap end!
     
  5. BlueVista

    BlueVista Well-Known Member Charter Member

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    A hundred bucks for a new old stock power rear tailgate window switch is a deal.
     
  6. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    If you have power at the connector, and a wiring diagram, you can at least attempt to drive the motor down by providing both power and ground through the connector. Use at least 14 ga. wire, hook the power to the motor, then jumper the ground wire to the other motor wire. If it makes noise but doesn't move, swap the power and ground to see if you were backward. Nine times out of ten, when I do this, the motor drives it and the window opens (or closes, if I'm helping a customer).
     
  7. Dickson746

    Dickson746 New Member

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    BlueVista - Used old stock switches were quoted at $85-$125 - unfortunately not NOS. :disagree:

    Hobo - Thanks for the detail on "hot wiring" the window sans switch. I'll try that again. Dickson
     
  8. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    Put the positive jumper on first, then the negative. Keeps the sparks down....
     
  9. Dr B Smith

    Dr B Smith Well-Known Member

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  10. BlueVista

    BlueVista Well-Known Member Charter Member

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    There's also also a switch in the tailgate to disable the motor when the gate is open so the window can't be raised. If that isn't working nothing is going to make that window motor work.
     
  11. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    Yes, we were all assuming the relay and switch were working, so you may have to pull the inner tailgate skin anyway, either to detach the glass (if possible) or juice the motor directly from its wiring connector.
     
  12. Slidemanic

    Slidemanic Well-Known Member

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    I have the same make & model,but it is a '73. On mine,the ignition key opens the Magic Doorgate,and can trip the switch to get the window up or down. The oval key just locks the GC and any other storage (such as the DFR Seats compartment). When I got the car,I foolishly tried the oval key in the gate,but no go,as it is made in a reverse pattern.
    The other problem is the gear drive for the motor to drive the glass! On some versions,there are three little torque buttons,which will disintegrate over time. I got an NOS gear and it failed immediately. Some of the gear drives had springs instead of buttons.
    Try the key you start the car with in that Doorgate!
     
  13. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    The '67 cars-- they had the older single-cut keys? I thought the double-cut keys came in with the '72 MY.
     
  14. Dr B Smith

    Dr B Smith Well-Known Member

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    My 67 had one key that fit the ignition and all the door locks.
     
  15. Silvertwinkiehobo

    Silvertwinkiehobo "Everything that breaks starts with 'F.'"

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    Interesting. Maybe thefts was the reason for going with two keys. GM had two keys for their cars; my grandpa's '66 Delta 88 had two, IIRC, I'm sure of it. One was octagonal (ignition) and one was round (GB and trunk).
     

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