Tailgate Lever Help

[Russell J]

I'm trying to remove the tailgate mounting plate in order to replace the release lever bolt. Problem is, the 4 screws (now three) that hold the plate in place are so buggered and crusty that I can't even get them with a healthy dose of PB Blaster and an impact driver. I'm curious about attempting to drill them out. Has anyone done that before because I haven't. If these screws drill into a threaded hole that's part of the tailgate I'm worried about messing up the threads.

Any suggestions on how to get these out will be very much appreciated!!!

[jamesingarage]

Try to catch the edge of the screw with a sharp chisel and hammer it till it breaks loose, i've had to do this before and it takes a bit of doing, keep it wet with the pb blaster also..

[Russell J]

Got it! Your advice about using the chisel really worked well! A few smacks all the way around the head and then a shot with the impact driver did the job.

[cep62]

You can also put some valve lapping compound on your screwdriver to give it a better bite.

if all else fails wire weld a nut to the screw and turn it out.