Inside Liftgate Release This thread at Element Owners Club inspired me to install an interior liftgate release lever. Unable to find a suitable stranded sheathed cable, I started with the base and sheath from a solid-wire choke cable, Dorman/Motormite (Help) p/n 55101. I reversed the threaded collar so the nut can be installed from the top (details). A hood release cable kit, Dorman p/n 03323 (Figure 1), has a stranded cable but requires that most of the square end be ground down (Figure 2) to fit into the choke cable end shaft.
The rest was simply a matter of fabricating a bracket to hold the end of the cable sheath (bracket made from junk box parts in Figure 3; later version here) and mounting that assembly to the existing mechanism (Figure 4). The base is bolted to the liftgate frame (Figure 5) under the plastic garnish (Figure 6).
Photo gallery of subsequent installation here. |