Hatch mounted ladder - For passenger or driver side
September 2024: Passenger side ladder ready to ship (won't last)
1) Before Mounting
• Attach 3 inch wide foam padding to bottom of top bracket
• Attach 2 inch wide foam padding to top of ladder
• The padding has an adhesive on one side
• Your hatch struts will need to be stronger than 143 lb stock strength. McMaster 175 lb struts are perfect (more info with part numbers coming)
2) Stick foam pads to upper brackets
• One side has sticky side
• Attach sticky side to ladder brackets
• 2 inch, 2 inch and 1 inch
Loose top bracket gets 3 inch width
• stick 2+1 inch foam onto bracket and cut with scissors
Attached-to-ladder bracket gets 2 inch width
• stick 2 inch foam onto top of ladder
3) Install the included Trim Top
• Use the shorter of the included trim pieces
• Place the included rubber trim on top of the hatch door
• Place the shorter rubber trim before the steel curves on the right
• The longer rubber trim is for the bottom
• Use screwdriver and maybe mallet to put trim into place
4) Insert the bracket into opening
• Crack open the hatch door to allow for the bracket to slide in (easier with someone helping)
• Place the top bracket as shown (left side of door), wrap it around the hatch door lip, then slide it in the direction of the arrow.
• The hatch should stay closed during the process.
5) Move the bracket to the right
• Move the bracket until the position shown, while pulling to keep the bracket just around the metal lip
6) Hang the ladder on the 2 threaded bolts
• Gently pull on the ladder while opening the hatch door until it is all the way up
• While holding the ladder, install the bottom bracket in the orientation shown in 6) below
7) Install the included Trim Bottom
• Mark where the trim needs to be (like with blue tape)
• Place the included rubber trim at the bottom of the hatch door
• you may need a mallet to press the trim into place, because of the metal ribs inside the rubber
8) Bottom bolts
• Tighten the bolts 1 and 2 first, then 3 and 4 -- with 5/32 Hex socket
• There is a locking washer under the bolt head, followed by a flat washer
• Make sure to hand tighten these first, then use a hand tool, not a power tool. With a misalignment you can cause stainless burrs to cause permanent bonding.
• Use of anti-seize is recommended (generally speaking for many products), however, if you ever had the graphite on your fingertips experience, you will think twice. If you do use it, dip the tip of the bolt slightly.
• Use oil if needed, just a drop, if you get resistance, but normally the bolts go in fine
• Unlike in the photo, the bolts are now all with Philips heads
9) Top bolts
• Tighten the 2 bolts with 9/16 wrench
• The blank area facing back is perfect for placing a decal!
• This is the last step of ladder install
Xterra rear hatch struts
• stock struts are 143lb, you need at least 175lb to support ladder weight
• you may need even higher rating when adding extra weight to the ladder
• like with other suspension, the struts may act 'too strong' for 1-2 weeks
• You can get Xterra rear hatch struts at McMaster Carr:
• phone: (562) 692-5911 (great to deal with)
• website: mcmaster.com (can get confusing without part numbers)
• part 9416K147 - (2 needed) $23 each (price on 2021-11-19) 175lb Suspa gas springs
• part 9416K76 - (4 needed) $2 each (price on 2021-11-19) M8 ball stud screw into the generic Suspa struts
• [me] Since I have 2 ladders mounted, I am using a 225lb rate hatch struts from McMaster
• [me] With 2 ladders you most likely need re-inforced hinges
Hatch hinges
• If you are thinking about dual ladders, you will probably need these re-inforced hatch hinges in the future: Hinges
roXterra