Have You Been Replacing Your Tailgate Handle Several Times?
A bad and gunky lift gate latch actuator will need more pressure to unlatch causing the part that holds the latch cable from your handle to bend resulting to your tailgate handle to have less than travel than usual and fail. If you have been replacing your tailgate handle more frequently then the tailgate latch actuator may also be the culprit. The integrated tailgate latch assembly can easily be installed with no special tools required and is a common issue with Toyota Sequoias with model years 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07 that have a 4.7L engine Limited and SR5 submodels.