Nissan Develops New Tailgate That Opens Like Your Garage Door

Nissan's filings with the US Patent and Trademark Office show the brand is working on a brand-new kind of tailgate built for hauling longer loads. The patent details a truck's tailgate with a second, moving panel that allows the tailgate to split open at its hinges. A splitting tailgate isn't a new idea, but Nissan's take on it is new enough to justify the trip to the patent office.

Ford, Dodge, and other brands all have multi-function tailgates already. Ford's can split along a vertical axis, allowing it to swing open horizontally like a traditional SUV tailgate for easier loading of small items. GMC has one that can fold down along a horizontal axis, leaving an indentation in the bed to fit lumber or other long items in without having them rest along the leading edge of the bed. Nissan's idea, first discovered by Autoblog, is far and away the most innovative we've seen, though.

The Nissan patent still allows for normal tailgate operation, but additionally, the gate can be opened like a garage door. The gate is fitted to tracks within the bed sidewalls and can be opened horizontally like a garage door, allowing longer items to rest on the floor of the bed while the tailgate rests above them, keeping items secure. Nissan's filings indicate the gate could be power-operated as well. More than that, Nissan says the gate is actually comprised of two panels, allowing for it to be split just above the first handle in the images above. If so, it could provide further storage options for larger, awkwardly-shaped items that wouldn't ordinarily fit in a closed bed. Like all patents, this may never come to light, but with Nissan's updated Frontier coming soon, it's possible that similar bed storage technology could make its way to production sooner.