Fleet and Commercial Body
Truck Lift Gate Installation, Repair and Replacement
Typical range
$1,500 to $8,500
Shop hours
8 to 35
Labor rate
$210/hr
The short answer
Lift gate work covers new installation, replacement, and repair of rail, tuck-under, cantilever, and column gates including mounting, hydraulics, and power cabling. Work runs $1,500 to $8,500, or 8 to 35 hours at $210 per hour plus the gate. In shop install only.
01
What this work actually involves
A lift gate is a structural attachment before it is a piece of equipment. It hangs a thousand pounds of steel and up to thirty-five hundred pounds of rated load off the last twelve inches of the chassis, and every cycle applies that load as a cantilever moment against the rear frame. Gates fail at the mount far more often than they fail in the hydraulics. On units coming out of high-cycle beverage and food service routes across Orange County and the Inland Empire, we routinely find elongated mounting holes, cracked welds at the frame plate, and a rear frame that has slowly rotated downward under years of loaded cycles.
Installation is therefore a fabrication job, not a bolt-on. The mounting plate has to tie into the chassis rail web where the section modulus can carry it, the body has to be supported so the gate load does not fold the rear sill, and the ICC bumper has to be relocated or replaced to remain compliant with the gate deployed and stowed. Then the electrical side: a gate motor pulls serious current, which means proper gauge cable, a fused disconnect, a solid ground path back to the battery, and terminals that will survive coastal salt rather than corroding into a voltage drop that a driver reports as a slow gate.
On repair work, the diagnosis usually comes down to three systems. Hydraulic, which is pump, cylinders, hoses, and seals. Electrical, which is cabling, solenoid, motor, and switches. Structural, which is the mount and the platform. Slow operation under load is nearly always electrical or a tired pump. A gate that will not hold position is a cylinder or a valve. A gate that sags at the hinge or opens a gap at the sill is structural and needs to come off the truck. In shop body, paint, structural, and equipment install only. Engine, drivetrain, and DOT inspection work are not performed.
Systems and brands we work on: Maxon, Tommy Gate, Anthony.
Location: All work is performed at our Yorba Linda facility. We do not offer mobile, roadside, or fleet route service.
02
What the job includes
- New lift gate installation on box, flatbed, van, and stake bed bodies
- Rail, tuck-under, cantilever, and column gate mounting and fabrication
- Chassis rail reinforcement and mounting plate fabrication at the attachment point
- Rear sill and body support reinforcement to carry gate load
- ICC bumper relocation, modification, or replacement for gate clearance
- Power cabling, fused disconnect, solenoid, and battery ground path installation
- Hydraulic pump, cylinder, hose, and seal replacement
- Platform repair, flip-over section rebuild, and cart stop replacement
- Cracked weld repair and elongated mounting hole correction
- Cycle testing under rated load before release
03
When you need this service
- A gate that runs slower under load than it did last year
- Visible sag at the platform hinge or a gap opening at the rear sill
- Cracked paint or a visible crack at the mounting plate weld
- Elongated or oval mounting bolt holes in the chassis rail
- Hydraulic fluid weeping at a cylinder rod or a hose fitting
- A gate that will not hold position and drifts down when stopped
- Corroded or heat-discolored power terminals at the pump or disconnect
04
How we do it, step by step
- 01
Application and capacity review
Gate style and rated capacity matched to the body, the chassis rating, and the actual route duty cycle. Undersizing a gate on a high-cycle route guarantees a short service life.
- 02
Structural survey of the mounting area
Chassis rails, rear sill, and body mounts inspected for existing cracks or elongation before anything is bolted up. A new gate on a tired rear frame fails at the frame.
- 03
Mount fabrication and reinforcement
Mounting plates fabricated and welded into the rail web where the section can carry the moment load, with reinforcement added at the rear sill as required.
- 04
Bumper and clearance work
ICC bumper relocated, modified, or replaced so the vehicle remains compliant with the gate both deployed and stowed, and so the platform clears at full travel.
- 05
Electrical installation
Correct gauge power cable run and protected, fused disconnect and solenoid mounted clear of spray, and a solid ground path landed at the battery rather than a chassis guess.
- 06
Hydraulic setup and bleed
Pump, cylinders, and hoses installed or serviced, the system bled completely, and operating pressure verified so the gate holds position rather than drifting down under a stopped load.
- 07
Load cycle test and release
Gate cycled repeatedly at rated load, every mount rechecked for movement after the test rather than before it, control and capacity decals reinstated, and the installation documented in photographs.
05
Pricing and posted rates
| Item | Rate or range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Typical job range | $1,500 to $8,500 | Varies with extent of damage and parts availability |
| Shop hours | 8 to 35 | Quoted after teardown, not before |
| Body and paint labor | $210 per hour | 2026 posted rate |
| Paint supplies | $55 per paint hour | Calculated automatically on every estimate |
| Body supplies | $5 per body hour | Calculated automatically on every estimate |
| Parts | 100% markup under $100, 35% over | Special order parts require a non refundable deposit at order |
| Deposit | 50% at authorization over $2,000 | Additional 25% when parts arrive on jobs over $10,000 |
| Sales tax | 7.75% on parts and materials | Labor is not taxed |
Insurance billed jobs may be billed at carrier negotiated labor rates that differ from the posted retail rates above. See all posted rates.
07
Vehicles we do this work on
Vehicle
Box Trucks
Box trucks put a separately built cargo body on a cab chassis, and the joint between them is where most failures start. Rear frame
Vehicle
Flatbed Trucks
Flatbed trucks carry unprotected loads on an open deck, so the deck, headboard, rub rails, and stake pockets take the damage rathe
Vehicle
Cargo Vans
Cargo vans on Transit, ProMaster, Express, and Sprinter platforms carry trade tools, parts inventory, and route freight. Rear door
Vehicle
Beverage Delivery Trucks
Beverage bodies use a row of individual side bays with roll-up doors instead of one cargo space. High door cycle counts, bulkhead
Vehicle
High-Cube Vans
High-cube vans trade a tall roof and maximum interior volume for a large flat sail area and a roofline that clears almost nothing.
Vehicle
Utility Trucks
Utility trucks carry a compartmented service body loaded with tools, parts, and frequently a crane, and the compartments are where
Vehicle
Parcel and Furniture Delivery Trucks
Walk-in step vans and parcel bodies are aluminum-bodied, low-stepped, and cycled harder than any other commercial vehicle on the r
08
Questions about lift gate installation and repair
Frequently asked questions
What does a lift gate installation cost?
Installation labor runs $1,500 to $8,500, or 8 to 35 hours at $210 per hour, plus the gate itself and any reinforcement material. A straightforward tuck-under on a chassis that needs no reinforcement sits at the low end. A rail gate on a body requiring rear sill reinforcement, ICC bumper fabrication, and a full power run sits at the high end. Deposits are 50 percent at authorization over $2,000.
How long is the truck down for a gate install?
A new installation is typically four to seven working days once the gate is on site, since mounting fabrication, welding, cabling, and load testing each take real time. A repair to an existing gate is usually two to four days. If the rear frame needs correction before the gate can mount, add a week. Gate lead times are the biggest schedule variable, so we confirm availability before scheduling intake.
Which lift gate brands do you install and repair?
We install and service Maxon, Tommy Gate, and Anthony gates across rail, tuck-under, cantilever, and column styles. On repair work, the brand matters less than the failure mode. Structural, hydraulic, and electrical are the three systems and the diagnosis path is the same across manufacturers. Parts availability does vary by brand and age, and we confirm that before teardown.
My gate is slow. Is it the pump or the battery?
Test the electrical side first. Slow operation under load is most often voltage drop from corroded terminals, undersized cable, or a weak ground rather than a failing pump. Coastal humidity out of the Long Beach and Carson lanes eats terminals quickly. We measure voltage at the motor under load before condemning any hydraulic component, because replacing a good pump does not fix a bad ground.
Do you certify or inspect the gate for DOT compliance?
No. We install, repair, and load test to the manufacturer specification, and we make sure the ICC bumper configuration is correct for the gate. DOT inspection work is not performed at this facility, and neither is engine or drivetrain work. Your annual inspection stays with whoever handles that for your fleet.
09
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