Tailgate swap

[cabinetmaker29]

Hello everyone. I am in the process of changing the tailgate on my 84 for one off of an 87. I would like to be able to hook up the defrost as the one on there now does not have one. Can anyone give me any information on what I need to do to hook it up? I do know that the defrost only stays on for a few minutes then cuts out but I'm not sure how it works. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Seabronc]

Your truck should be prewired for the control.  You need to take the dash switch from the doner truck.  Watch out for the torsion bar, it can really hurt you. Remove the bolts that hold the torsion bar clamp with the tail gate just open enough to get a ratchet at them and reverse that for the installation of the tail gate.  Electrical connections are behind the left tail light.

Good luck,

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[cabinetmaker29]

I tried the switch in the donor and it did not work. Would an aftermarket one from l.m.c. work just as well?

 

[Seabronc]

The factory switch has a built in timer to prevent burning out the element.  So the answer is, if the switch is identical to the OEM part, yes.  If not, I would advise against it.

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[cabinetmaker29]

Ok thanks for your help.