Need ideas for rear window - so wife can reach it

[AndiS]

I don't have a hardtop so I'm not familiar with how it is structured inside, however... my daughter has a disability (and is only 4'-10" to boot) and had this same issue with her VW Beetle. We looked into switching out the struts with a different model so that the liftgate wouldn't go so high but ultimately decided it wouldn't be safe. Instead, we have utilized two different options in her car:

1. She always carries a quad cane in her trunk for occasions when she needs it, but most of the time she has detached the handle/stem from the base and used the padded handle end as a "hook" to help her pull the trunk down to within her grasp.
2. This fall my husband took a thick piece of leather (may have even been an old belt of his, don't recall) and folded it into a loop and punched a hole through the ends. He found a bolt or screw inside the liftgate that he removed and replaced with a longer one and threaded it through holes. Voila... strap she can reach. That has worked well for her.

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[Shibadog]

The 3m tape will do it. A lot of automotive stuff is secured with it from the factory

 

[Fudster]

I've never seen those - now the next question - would pulling down on just one side be an issue?

I own these though don't have them installed. They're sold in pairs. I absolutely do not think that pulling straight down from the attachment point of one, (either side, it makes no difference here) despite being off center, will in any way negatively torque the window or its mechanism, but if you want, attach both, put a cord between them, and attach a cord to THAT cord to pull down straight from the left/right center of the window.

 

[Fudster]

I don't have a hardtop so I'm not familiar with how it is structured inside, however... my daughter has a disability (and is only 4'-10" to boot) and had this same issue with her VW Beetle. We looked into switching out the struts with a different model so that the liftgate wouldn't go so high but ultimately decided it wouldn't be safe. Instead, we have utilized two different options in her car:

1. She always carries a quad cane in her trunk for occasions when she needs it, but most of the time she has detached the handle/stem from the base and used the padded handle end as a "hook" to help her pull the trunk down to within her grasp.
2. This fall my husband took a thick piece of leather (may have even been an old belt of his, don't recall) and folded it into a loop and punched a hole through the ends. He found a bolt or screw inside the liftgate that he removed and replaced with a longer one and threaded it through holes. Voila... strap she can reach. That has worked well for her.

The OPs note of his wife's height/mobility issues respected and considered, there are always these:

https://www.amazon.com/Grabber-FitP...argid=pla-307404760226&psc=1&region_id=373786

 

[Yawnie'sPapa]

The OPs note of his wife's height/mobility issues respected and considered, there are always these:

https://www.amazon.com/Grabber-FitP...argid=pla-307404760226&psc=1&region_id=373786

Her issue is her hands/arms. She can't use anything that a person has to grip. She could never use a pistol, for example. No thumbs, only 3 fingers. So asking her to hold something with one hand just isn't going to fly, sorry. A strap, yes. She has hands free, can reach up with her "good arm" and pull it straight down.

Mobility is fine (other than arthritis in the knees) but she can't reach and grip.
A separate device will get frowns from her - ok, now it has to be handy, something else to make sure is in there - and once she's got the glass pulled down - she can't use her other arm to get it closed so she'd have to let it slam. So the solution must be a one-handed solution.
Push a button, pull a strap, etc. so she could do it with one hand.
(She's restricted to an automatic transmission due to her handicap)

The 3m tape will do it. A lot of automotive stuff is secured with it from the factory

Yes, that's what held the emblems on my cars after restoration and the heavy fat bumper and side trim on another car. It's been holding for 10 years through travel, rain, washings, etc.
But am I talking the same stuff?
(I've got the 3M part number in my shop)

 

[Fudster]

@Yawnie'sPapa Bill:

Outside before I pulled down the window glass from a point above the hinge. It is entirely not a problem.

Try one of these as linked before https://www.extremeterrain.com/topsy-jeep-wrangler-hinge-hoist-brackets-only-hh-jlbo.html?utm_content=XTTops-Accessories|Topsy&T5_Var4=J165917-JL&intl=0&utm_campaign=XTW+Wrangler+Vehicle+Medium&dialogtech=ppc&utm_source=google-pla&utm_medium=shopping&T5_Var2=shopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_Pi-7fX-_AIVFM7ICh1K2ANpEAQYASABEgJAjPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

with a rope connected to it, with a handle at its end for her limited finger hands (a statement of fact, not in any way meant derogatory) and maybe a suction cup with a loop to keep the rope close to the window.

You don't like suction cups in the cold: how's about a medium size rare earth magnet with a loop for the loose rope, with another medium size rare earth magnet on the other (interior) side of the back glass.

This thread has me writing a new fortune cookie saying:

"All solutions come with their share of pros and cons with respect to cost, simplicity, reliability, complexity, aesthetics, and other attributes."

If you want to control the window's descent better we can start talking linear actuators. Cost and complexity rise by orders of magnitude though.

 

[AndiS]

The OPs note of his wife's height/mobility issues respected and considered, there are always these:

https://www.amazon.com/Grabber-FitP...argid=pla-307404760226&psc=1&region_id=373786

My daughter has one of these and uses for some things (like getting an item out of a high cabinet shelf) but it doesn’t work for pulling down her liftgate.

 

[Cuyose]

Why not just keep an aluminum cane in the back so you can reach up and just pull it down?

 

[Fudster]

Why not just keep an aluminum cane in the back so you can reach up and just pull it down?

Might work if cane has strap. Think OPs wife lacks thumb and therefore digit oppositional motor ability Shawn …I.e. ability to grasp

 

[Cuyose]

Might work if cane has strap. Think OPs wife lacks thumb and therefore digit oppositional motor ability Shawn …I.e. ability to grasp

Not to be difficult, but how is she opening the heavy tailgate and kicking the window up if she is unable to grasp a cane, definitely not trying to drive a 2 ton vehicle. I read it as if she had a shoulder injury which I totally get, and a 2.5ft cane with a smal rubber hook solves all those problems with $20 trip to Amazon

 

[There’sOnlyOne]

What about using the wiper arm? A strap hooked or tied to the base of the wiper arm long enough for her to grab when open. With a loop at other end to slip hand through bend wrist and pull.
You mentioned some type of limiter on struts. Made me think of a screen door strut that has the little square washer that floats but lets you "hook" it to keep it open. Limiter straps on the struts? So it can only raise so much. Like limiter straps on axles.

 

[Wbino]

Fold down the rear seats and use the side doors for access to the storage area.

 

[jaymz]

The cheapest and most simple solution would be to drill a hole in the tab below the wiper arm and attach an appropriate length of paracord. Close the gate and all but the first couple of inches will stay inside the vehicle.

You may be able to just wrap the paracord around the wiper arm stud, but that may create a binding issue, or more likely wear the cord out fairly fast.

 

[Yawnie'sPapa]

@Yawnie'sPapa Bill:

Outside before I pulled down the window glass from a point above the hinge. It is entirely not a problem.

Try one of these as linked before https://www.extremeterrain.com/topsy-jeep-wrangler-hinge-hoist-brackets-only-hh-jlbo.html?utm_content=XTTops-Accessories|Topsy&T5_Var4=J165917-JL&intl=0&utm_campaign=XTW+Wrangler+Vehicle+Medium&dialogtech=ppc&utm_source=google-pla&utm_medium=shopping&T5_Var2=shopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_Pi-7fX-_AIVFM7ICh1K2ANpEAQYASABEgJAjPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

with a rope connected to it, with a handle at its end for her limited finger hands (a statement of fact, not in any way meant derogatory) and maybe a suction cup with a loop to keep the rope close to the window.

You don't like suction cups in the cold: how's about a medium size rare earth magnet with a loop for the loose rope, with another medium size rare earth magnet on the other (interior) side of the back glass.

This thread has me writing a new fortune cookie saying:

"All solutions come with their share of pros and cons with respect to cost, simplicity, reliability, complexity, aesthetics, and other attributes."

If you want to control the window's descent better we can start talking linear actuators. Cost and complexity rise by orders of magnitude though.

You gotta know my wife to know your statement couldn't possibly be considered derogatory.
She worked in a state agency- voc rehab. I started there after we met when other jobs fell through. Anyway, one of the supervisors she really liked retired and they threw the lady a big party. One of the guys there played guitar and they did some sing-alongs, games and so on. Well, he came to the Hokey-pokey. You put your left foot in and so on. He said "put your right thumb in........ and so on." the guy was known to be the life of a party, non-stop talk and jokes.
My wife spoke up quickly "what if you don't have any thumbs". The whole room went silent, but people who knew my wife started laughing along with her. The guy had this look on his face like he had no idea what to do or say next. The retiring supervisor said "that's the first time I've ever seen him at a loss for words".

Not to be difficult, but how is she opening the heavy tailgate and kicking the window up if she is unable to grasp a cane, definitely not trying to drive a 2 ton vehicle. I read it as if she had a shoulder injury which I totally get, and a 2.5ft cane with a smal rubber hook solves all those problems with $20 trip to Amazon

No experience with people born with handicap, I guess. She's got shoulder issues, but that's not the big limiter.
Heavy? No, it's not really. It swings to the side like a door. You pull the handle and swing it off to the side and just push. Pull the bottom of the window out a bit and it goes up. She could reach the liftgate of our prior Grand Cherokees but had to stretch up to grab the handle they had on the bottom edges. This window actually sits a bit higher. Once it was reached maybe using a strap or handle, it's nothing at all to pull it down. It's not that it's a hard pull, it's hard to REACH.
These rear ends open and close easier than the tailgate on my Gladiator.

She can grab with one hand, but a cane or something to reach up is just clumsy.
Ya gotta pull down and then what, drop the cane or toss it in and finish pulling the window down or let the window smack down or maybe it slips and goes back up?
IMO, a bit clumsy.
I've worked adaptive equipment before and know that you want to make things appear natural, simple, and efficient.
She can grip around a steering wheel tight enough it would be difficult to take it away from her.
Luckily, I've worked with people with handicaps off and on for years and know their capabilities. I recognize trouble areas. (and how to make things work without making them appear more handicapped than they are)
She's got strength but not the reach.

Fold down the rear seats and use the side doors for access to the storage area.

Not with heavy modern sewing machines, her table and chair. Trying to lift the stuff and get it around the corner into the bock and the 3" drop or whatever it is back there with the 4xe...... won't work.
Not the clearance. It would be prohibitively clumsy and more difficult to load.
Loading and unloading is not a problem, looking for a simple way to pull the back glass down. The 4xe prohibits the seats from folding down flat so you have to go in the back with stuff.

I'm still thinking of the strap attached to the glass somehow.
The problem is the lack of space to attach a "hook" to attach a strap to.

There's very little space between the defogger grid and the bottom edge of the window.

I'm leery of attaching where the black is - it would likely pull off the glass. To the right it's real thin or narrow area between the grid and the bottom of the window.

I had wondered about using the screws that hold the cover on the wiper motor.......... but those look like a real small screw.
I thought of removing the two screws that hold the cover on the wiper motor and seeing if I can make a bracket that could be held in place by longer versions of those screws.

I suppose something attached to the "ledge" that is on the bottom of the window but that's a rough surface. I've had really bad luck with 3M tapes on Jeep interior surfaces (*like the cubbies that go on the side of the shift console area)

Feeding the deer in Korea........

Blue ribbon "Best Scrap Quilt" at Iowa State Fair -

 

[Yawnie'sPapa]

attach limit straps to the gas springs

It's a thought if I can't find a way to attach a strap to the bottom of the glass (preferably on the INSIDE so that it doesn't hang out in the weather, and doesn't hang in on the gasket between the window and the tail gate letting water follow it into the inside - it would be a wick if caught between the glass and lower part.

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