Gap between body panel and swing gate

[FTW1996]

My 2024 Rubicon X got rear ended a couple of months ago. They hit the spare tire and it bent the swing gate inward slightly and broke some things on the tire carrier. The body shop replaced the swing gate, the heavy-duty tire carrier, and the other broken parts. I went to pick it up today and had to decline to accept delivery because there is a gap between the swing gate and the rear quarter body panel. The gap is on the driver's side at the top corner area of the swing gate (the side the handle and latch is on). When closed, the edge of the top corner area of the swing gate sits about a quarter inch higher than (proud) the rear quarter panel that the swing gate latches to. The body shop told me this is normal because the extra weight of the 35" tire "twists" the top of the swing gate outward thereby making the top driver's side corner of the gate sit higher (not higher upward, but higher outward). I'm pretty sure that gap wasn't there before the accident, so I dashed over to the Jeep dealership to see if a new Rubicon X had the same kind of gap. It did not. The swing gate on the new Rubicon X at the dealership was flush with the rear quarter panel, so I went back to the body shop and told them they needed to get it right. It was almost closing time so they said they would take a look at it and get back with me tomorrow.

Question for those of you with new Rubicon X's: Does the top driver's side corner area of your swing gate sit flush with the rear quarter panel when closed? I'm wondering if this might be a jeep factory quality issue where some swing gates fit flush and some don't. My worry about the gap is that it might cause a leak when it rains.

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[Ratbert]

Did you happen to have captured a picture of that part of your Jeep beforehand? Hopefully it's high enough resolution so you can zoom in to see what it looked like before the accident.

And no, that's not normal. I would definitely want a big discount if I was buying a used Jeep with that type of issue.

 

[FTW1996]

Did you happen to have captured a picture of that part of your Jeep beforehand? Hopefully it's high enough resolution so you can zoom in to see what it looked like before the accident.

And no, that's not normal. I would definitely want a big discount if I was buying a used Jeep with that type of issue.

I do have a picture of that part of the old swing gate. It doesn't look like it has a gap like the new gate, but the picture is from directly behind the gate rather than at a side angle, so it's hard to be sure.

 

[Compression-Ignition]

Without seeing pictures I’m going to say your tub/body got tweaked some.

 

[muffinking]

From what you're saying, it definitely seems like something's off with the repair. I'm not an expert, but I'd push back on the body shop. Maybe get a second opinion from another shop or the dealership?

 

[FTW1996]

Thanks for the feed-back, guys. I sure hope it's not a problem with the body. I'll post the info once I get the issue resolved.

 

[garykk]

sounds to me like they didn’t install the gate / tire carrier properly. That’s the idea of installing a heavier tire carrier, so it doesn’t make the gate sag.
Let’s hope the tub isn‘t tweaked.

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