Tail gate cracks

[3HrTour]

Hi. Has anyone experienced a cracked tail gate? I have a 2001 Mountain Aire and the tailgate is cracked in the narrow part in all three spots (left, right and middle (photo)).
It obviously needs to be reinforced, but how? There are so many curves.
Thanks in advance for your feedback.
Jim

[JNSNWT]

I've had pretty good luck fixing similar cracks in the past by using fiberglass cloth and resin. It will have to be really clean and roughed up to get a good bond between the new and the old . Check YouTube for how to videos

[Dutch Star Don]

I would remove the engine cover and do the repair on the ground. I would buy some aluminum bar stock and bend it so that it lays in that trough on the back side, (where the cracks occurred) conforming it to the curves of the engine cover. I would make sure the aluminum extends past the cracks as far as possible. Once you have the aluminum shaped, I would fiberglass it in. Fixing the side you see will require a decision to fix and repaint, or leave it alone.

[3HrTour]

I was thinking along those lines for alum or wood backer. What do you think of using construction adhesive to tie it in, rather then fibreglassing. Its a very narrow spot, and if i keep all repairs on the back side, I won't have to do an expensive repaint.

[Dutch Star Don]

I would use fiberglass. Very simple to prep and use. You can pour in the resin, add some mesh and brush. Add the aluminum, more resin and mesh. With the fiberglass, you can keep brushing in more resin, filling the trough. HD and Lowes will sell a fiberglass kit that come with the mesh and a quart can of resin.

By using the fiberglass, you'll encapsulate the aluminum versus just sticking it on. Plus it will be two like materials attaching to each other.