Door replacement - advice wanted

[Guest]

I have a 1985 924 which was in excellent condition until I recently lost an argument with a stone gatepost. After I finished kicking myself and wishing for the Omega 13 device from Galaxy Quest which allows you to reverse time by 13 seconds, I sourced a replacement passenger side door.

As a jobbing home mechanic of only around 3 spanners on the Haynes manual scale I would very much welcome advice from anyone who has changed doors on a 924. I will have to swap over the electric window motor and electric mirror, as well as transfer the glass, regulator assembly and door latch mechanism.

If anyone can warn me of potential pitfalls, or recommend the order in which things should be swapped I would be extremely grateful.

BTW - Paul, my register form is in the post - honest!

 

[PaulHere]

Welcome Skimbler []

The Wheeler Dealers programme covered door replacement, and I have replaced the window motor and glass myself in the past.

Will post more later on the subject

Look forwards to getting the form - What name should I look out for?

 

[Guest]

Hi Paul

Rumour has it that skimbler sometimes uses an alias of Bruce MacFarlane, and is known to live in Bristol.

I have owned my current 924 for just over a year, and previously had a 1982 model for 4 years until it was stolen and written off.

 

[PaulHere]

Hello Bruce

Door replacement isn't too bad a job - You need 2 people to help at times.

First open the door and remove the inner door trim by carefully removing the plastic clips with a thin flat edged tool, they are a pain to get out without breaking [] carefully remove the plastic undersheet - remove all window glass, trim, window motor and electrics (the Haynes manual has the correct order) take care with the window glass, don't let it fall off it's runner and fall into the door.

Once the door is stripped disconnect the middle door strap - then before undoing the main door bolts mark their original position, this makes positioning the new door easier - place a trolley jack with a plank of wood underneath to take the weight of the door, and undo the main bolts with a helper the hold the door.

When putting everything back onto the new door take time to clean and grease the window motor, as (hopefully) this is the last you will see of it for years. The window glass and window jack can be a pain to put back, you will need a helper to hold the glass while you guide it back into position

Let us know how it goes []

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the advice Paul - especially the bit about marking the bolt positions.

I think it's going to be a job for Sunday, so I'll let you know how it goes after the weekend