I just noticed this morning that the nut on the top of one of the tailgate struts is quite loose and it's causing the top of the strut to push/rub on the body work when it's fully open. It looks as though it has been loose for some time as the nut and washer rattles around and the hole on the body where it threads through looks as though it's widened! Is this going to require some welding to fix? I have a feeling there's some kind of capture nut on the other side and i'm afraid i'll loose it inside the body if I try and tighten it!

 

Has anyone else had something like this happen before?

Yup, all four of mine, top and bottom of the strut, come undone regularly. Just get something to take the weight of the tailgate as one strut isn't strong enough on it's own, take a strut off, tighten with a 13mm spanner, repeat the other side. Boom!

 

In case you don't know how to take the strut off, use a small flat blade screwdriver or similar to carefully prise the flat metal plate spring thing around the balljoint at the end of the strut you're working on, then pop it off the mounting nut you're trying to tighten. I say carefully; you can just pry it off willy nilly but it'll likely just go pinging off and you'll have to retrieve it from several metres away. If you're vaguely careful, you can easily leave it on the plastic ball end bit and still get it off. Once it's off, push the clip back on fully, then when you push the strut back onto the mounting bolt, it'll just snap on over the mounting bolt ballend, bob's your uncle.

I had the same problem on my Octavia Estate on offside. You don't need to remove the strut to tighten the nut, you just need slim 13mm spanner to fit over the nut.

Just a 10sec job or even lest.

The stud on the bodywork has a nut on the otherside. If you just tighten on the visable side it might just spin round, You can take some trim off and get behind to hold the nut that's hidden. Its a real pain, I use thread lock to stop it working loose.

Odd, I've never had the thread spin on any of the four of mine. Sort of agree with what mb09 said in that you can get it with a thin 13mm spanner (my Halfords ones are just a touch too thick) but I wasn't sure if you're tightening the thread up adequately as potentially it'll be forcing at a slight deflection against the extended strut if it's still attached. Should be fine, but personally it's about 10 extra seconds popping the strut off.

The stud on the bodywork has a nut on the otherside. If you just tighten on the visable side it might just spin round, You can take some trim off and get behind to hold the nut that's hidden. Its a real pain, I use thread lock to stop it working loose.

 

 

This. It just spins and the hole has widened a bit which means it must have been loose for quite some time :( . I'll have to take off the trim, but that'll be a job for another day and no doubt it will need a small plate with a new threaded hole welded in place... If i'm unlucky. I still have the lumpy idling issue to solve too!

Edited 22 May, 201511 yr by Dan83

As the bolt is still actually in the nut, try taking the strut off and levering the bolt head away from the hole with a screwdriver or trim tool or something. By doing that you'll pull the nut onto the skin on the other side of the metal and that might be enough friction to keep it from turning round and for you to carefully do the bolt up until it tightens fully without having to undo the trim.

 

Worth a try.