Door problems

[MaineShark]

Well, as expected, any used car purchase entails a certain amount of repair work. First and foremost, my doors are giving me trouble.

The passenger door started out nice, but now won't open at all. I'm guessing a linkage came apart, or the latch mechanism broke? More pressing than figuring out what the problem is, is figuring out how to get the door apart, so I can find out. Is there any way to open the door?

The driver's door was rough opening when I got it, and is getting rougher. Looking at the wear marks on the stud on the door frame, as well as the alignment of the door with the body at the rear, it seems obvious that the door is low, and riding heavily on the stud. The fact that the outside handle (which requires you to push down) opens rough, but the inside handle (which does not require any downward force) opens relatively easily also supports that.

Also, the outside handle does not come back up all the way - I assume there is a spring that is broken or weak?

Thanks,
Joe

 

[Eric]

If your latch has the anti-theft sheild someone else will have to help you. If it doesn't (like mine), roll the window down and slide a long thin flat-head screwdriver in the window slot about 3 or 4 inches from the back. Use a maglight to see what you're doing. Find the latch plate and give it a firm downward push and the door should fall open - that is unless the latch plate is the thing that's stuck.

Mine did the same thing just after I got it. Good luck!

As for the outside handle, all of the catalogs sell the spring and it slides in pretty painlessly. A pair of them are under $10 I believe. Installation takes about 20 seconds - not an exageration.

 

[MaineShark]

Well, I found out what the problem is, sort of. Fixing it will be another thing...

Looking through the window slot, and comparing with my operable driver's door, I found that the lock lever on the door mechanism is stuck. The lever which is attached to the handles moves freely, but the lock lever will not move more than a tiny fraction of an inch, and is stuck in the locked position.

It looks like I do have the 'anti-theft' shield (piece of molded plastic, right?), so this may be difficult (without it, I would just invent a hooked tool from a piece of coathanger, and catch the lock lever).

I've squirted it with a generous amount of WD-40, but it did not come free. I will try again later, after it has had more time to soak in, but I am not too hopeful, since the anti-theft shield prevents me from spraying a good portion of the affected area.

Joe

 

[Cream79L82]

Congrats on your purchase. You chose an excellent year vette to own. My doors like to give me trouble to. Especially the locks. I have power locks, and the driver side seems to work great, but the passenger side won't come out on its own. It also requires a great deal of force to open from the outside. Because it keeps on working, I haven't spent a whole lot of time trying to fix anything. I am interested in your problems and fixes though. Keep us posted. :TALK

 

[MaineShark]

Well, I got the passenger door unlocked, with some creative tool use. Now it won't lock, but that is less of an issue. Still, I want to get it fixed, so I will pop the door open and see what I can do.

I still can't figure out the driver's door. It opens easy as can be, from the inside handle, but takes a good deal of effort from the outside one. I'm really uncertain about this one.

Any ideas?

Joe