Rear gate handle questions (doesn't open hatch, just glass)

[geosnooker2000]

My gate handle has been like this for several years. It won't open the lift gate. It will only open the glass. I opened it up and I see the problem. The black plastic shaft sticking out of the handle control apparatus LOOKS like it was broken off and is only long enough now to make contact with the window latch, but not the gate latch.

SOOO I was at the local U-Pull-It the other day and, on a whim, decided to test a 1st gen I was walking by. That handle worked both the gate and the glass. So I grabbed my wrench and pulled that part and felt oh, so, smart.

This evening I was about to just trade them out, and held the replacement up to the one still in the truck. The black plastic shafts look identical in length.

Is it possible (probable) that the steel bracket that holds the glass and gate latches has warped/bent inward away from the black door handle actuator shaft that it is now out of reach to the gate latch? I'm thinking of removing the bracket and bending out a bit and re-installing it.

What do y'all think? Has this happened to any of you?

 

[something9000]

Heres what the haynes manual has about the door latch and i guess what it should look like. https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-HLYbawDhG1s/TjYnTRhOJwI/AAAAAAAAABI/5g_DwZ7dPgc/s800/IMAG0097.jpg

 

[geosnooker2000]

Mmmmmmm.... No help. I have the Haynes manual, but you can't tell weather or not my bracket is bent by looking at that drawing. I just want to know if this (Handle opens glass but not gate) is a common problem, and if so, what is the common solution.