I just got my Element and I want to take good care of it. I know the tailgate is made of plastic. Has anyone had problems with scratcing on the tailgate? If so what did it get scratched with? I want to make sure to avoid anything that will mark or mar it.

Thanks for the help. :)

It scratches easily, but that's what tailgates do. If you don't want it scratched, try putting a blanket on it when loading.

I brought the cargo tray and it's really durable. If i have to put something heavy on the tailgate, i just slide the cargo tray over the tail gate and it protects anything and everything :D

Yeah, I've scuffed the crap out of mine, but if they didn't want it scuffed they wouldn't have made it a tailgate, right? As long as my leasing company considers it 'normal wear and tear'. :)

Drew

The tailgate on my E got fairltyt deeply scratched by an empty cardboard box in the cargo area. Indeed, I could hardly believe the marks it left and I think this is the most poorly chosen, over-soft material I've seen on any car that wasn't made for distribution via Toys-R-Us.

I've seen posts that describe the use of a vinyl 'diamond-plate' to protect this panel, but I've decided to leave mine alone. I can always buy a new panel if I need to!

I only had my new E for about 20 hours when I carefully loaded a bookcase in the back, using a coat to help prevent scratching.

The zipper left about an 18-inch scuff.

That's still the only mark I have on it. I guess that was the point at which it truly became "mine". :oops:

I just keep a neatly rolled up black bathroom rug rolled up in the trunk. When I load or unload anything I just cover the tailgate with it. Works great and so far no scratching.

Thanks for the tips. I will have to consider leaving a towel in the storage pocket in the back.