Hi, I recently bought a 2009 Ford Ranger 2x2 with 45k miles. My father in law had it is his garage for a few years. It is in excellent condition. I open the tailgate once, now it will not open, it has to be a manual unlock, no key hole for a key , no key fob. I looked through the owners manual and cannot fond any reference on how to open/lock the tailgate. Dies anyone have this year, I am not sure if it broke or what's going on. Thanks.

 

The tailgate does not lock or unlock to my knowledge. I don't recall any ranger being fitted with a locking tail gate, but it's possible.

If your gate won't open while pulling the handle, the handle release arms could be broken off, or the latches on either side/latch mechanism is potentially frozen from rust.

Try spraying some rust penetrant in the mechanism under the handle, use a flashlight and shine up in there as best you can and try to get something sprayed in there. You can also try spraying down the edges of the gate where they meet the bedside, and possibly get some lube up in the latches as well.

 

+1 ^^^

Welcome to the forum

Ranger never had factory key lock tail gate like some F-series did

Diagram of how latches work here: https://dz310nzuyimx0.cloudfront.net...0e1651371b.png

The handle(3) pulls on the rod holder(4) and that causes the rods(5) to be pulled in towards the center, and the rod pulls in the latches(6) to clear the striker(7)

There may or may not be an access plate on the bed side of the tailgate, number 2, in a 2009 Ranger