This has only been an issue a couple of times. There is adjustability in the hatch hinges themselves and a range of tolerances for the gap at the factory. It seems like some at the far end (or beyond) of that range are close enough for the ladder to rub. You can loosen the hatch hinge bolts, pull the hatch out to the furthest point in the adjustment, and tighten them back up.

Is there any documentation on how to adjust that bracket as when i see it im not sure how i can pull the whole hatch outward with it open.



Has anyone else had this issue?

I had a similar install issue with mine and I found that I made the problem worse when I plumbed up the ladder. When I installed the ladder in place with the edge of the top bracket at 4.5 inches and pulled everything down tight I had no rubbing. In that position the bottom of my ladder naturally kicked to the right slightly. When I squared it up and bolted it in place, the top bracket twisted away from the hatch on the left edge and rubbed. I was able to get it to stop rubbing by adjusting the ladder in as tightly as it would go, allowing the tension between the top and bottom brackets to hold the ladder singly in place. If I could have done it over I would have left the ladder to fall naturally and bolted it in place. The lean wasn't that noticeable and it was very tight when I clamped it in place.

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It will help to have a second person to hold the hatch. Loosen the bolts while the hatch is open. Use a pry bar (with a towel around it to protect your paint) to move the top of the hatch out from the body and then tighten the brackets back up. As long as you have someone else holding the hatch, you can also unclip one side of the hatch struts if they are fighting against you.

tried that but still rubbing, so already on it’s way back sucks i couldn’t get it to work as i really liked the ladder

I reinstalled the plate within 24 hrs when I noticed slight Plate scratch on driver side. During the reinstall, remove old tape and reapplied 3M tape. Prior to laying the plate flat, Stick 6 cardboard pieces between the plate and the roof. This really helped push the plate to the position where visually, u can tell it’s where u want it to be (away from the roof). With cardboard in place press down to get tape to stick. It’s not daily driver so I let the cardboard in olds for 2 days to keep plate in place. I also made sure to pull the ladder away from hatch best I could before tightening the ladder to the lower plate. This is for a c4 ladder but I think the mounting solutions are quite similar so hope it helps.

I had the same issue. I reinstalled the top plate 3 times pulling it rearward as hard as possible during install but it kept rubbing on the right hook. My OCD kept kicking in until I finally tried loosening the hinges based on the above post as it sounded super easy. Unfortunately it only got worse to the point the entire hatch was scraping the body. I removed the ladder and tried to get it back to my original pre-adjustment witness marks and I never could get it back. The 4runner has been at the body shop for the past 3 days with them trying to re-align the hatch and fix the body scrapes but they can only get it marginally better. They still have a few other options to try (new hinges and dropping the headliner to adjust the bolts under the headliner), though.

I emailed victory and they were responsive. I sent some pictures to Chris but haven't heard back since the last correspondence. Having dealt with Victory on other parts I have every inclination they will help me out with returning the ladder.

I will never install a ladder again to any hatch on any vehicle I have, though. In retro I love the ladder and concept but feel like the hatch is not designed for a 200lb guy and a 30lb ladder hanging on it. I'm planning to pick up the left side swing out with ladder for their bumper as soon as I get this remedied.

Brandon

I wanted to comment here after installing my ladder last week. This is for my 4th gen, but something everyone should be aware of.

First, Victory quoted 3-4 weeks and it took 10. Second, they forgot rubber feet, and two bolts/nuts/washers from the kit. Not really sure how that happened, but they have since sent those out.

Upon install all seemed well, but after having it on the truck for a few days I noticed that the 'feet' that held it to the top of the hatch had 'let go' and caused scratching as if the hatch was not adjusted appropriately. The hatch had plenty of gap, the issue was that the 'feet' had not been bent enough from the factory to adequately hold the ladder in place.

I took it all apart, hit the feet with a hammer once each to give them more 'grip', and all is working as it should be.

Unfortunately my paint is damaged, and if I had a 5th gen I'd be more upset personally.


How the 'feet' were after a few days.

Thank you everyone! I read everyone's comments because I actually installed the Victory ladder today. By chance anyone who what the 2 round rubber bumpers are for that comes with the hardware ?

The rubber bumpers are used on the 4th Gen upper bracket. They aren't needed on the 5th Gen!

how do you install it without messing up your truck? any updated installation video?
top plate scrapes the body just like in the above
in tailgate , the big washers started morphing on the outside. thanks

manufacturers these days expect customers to be their beta testers..ROFL

Just get something tried and true, like a gobi.

Had a c4 ladder then went to a gobi ladder, never looked back.

home depot sells ladders too. ya clowns

Reach out to customer service [email protected] if you haven't already and they can help you out! They'll get some photos from you to see what the issue is.