8Tech
12-31-2011, 01:10 PM
Ok, it's been a while since I did one of my "How To" posts and although this is going to be a fair size posting, I have NOT added anything about the window/regulator or glass alignment. I could not justify pulling all that out just to do a post when I have already aligned it all and there is nothing wrong with my window mechanism, so apologies for that and I will concentrate on the more common issues concerning the doors and their contents.
I will be doing the posts in 3 parts, part 1 being the overhaul of the exterior handle, and whilst this has been shown before as a repair, I will try and show how you can prevent the necessary repair or expensive replacement at a later stage.
Part 2 will be the overhaul of the interior door panel trim itself and
Part 3 will show how it all goes back together again.......hopefully.
To start with, we will take a look at that exterior door handle that has a nasty habit of breaking and only a very competant fabricator can repair. For the rest of us, its an expensive replacement.
To remove the door panel, you will need to buy, or fabricate a panel trim tool. This is what you are looking to get.......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0001.jpg
and something could be simply made with a small wedge of wood with a "U" cut in the end although the tools are very cheap anyway. You will need to remove the 3 screws holding the door panel on, one in the interior door handle cover by a small push-in cap here.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0048.jpg
followed by 2 behind covers inside the door handle here.......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0044.jpg
To remove the door panel with the minimum risk of panel damage, use the trim panel tool around the outer edge of the panel, and locating the panel clip positions as shown in red here.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0042-1.jpg
Now unscrew and remove the door lock button on the top rear edge of the door.
position the "U" either side of the plastic "popper" and lever it out of the chassis of the door, NOT out of the door panel.
It is a good idea to be careful here as the board of the door panel will get weaker with age and the plastic popper harder, so it is much more favourable to break the popper, than damage the door card.
You can now pull the lower edge of the panel away from the door and you now need to detach the wiring to it, there are connections to the door panel window/mirror control switches, the door speakers and the light at the bottom of the door panel as well as a connector to the vent illumination. You now need to carefully pull the upper edge of the door panel away from the sliding clips shown here in yellow....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0042-1.jpg
and when free, carefully lift the panel off of the door lock pin on the rear top edge. You will see the interior door handle release cable now attached to the handle assembly which can now be unhooked.
You can now carefully remove any area of the foam insulation membrane from the inside of the door to access whatever job you wish to do. Note that the black hi-tak adhesive used to hold it in position will now be stronger with age than the membrane, so keep calm, dont lose your temper with it and CAREFULLY detach it where required.
Next, to remove the outer door handle, remove the small plastic "bung" in the rear shut of the door and using a straight bladed screwdriver, ideally with a small slot in it to prevent slippage, push the slider inside the door to release the outer handle, outer shell.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0038-2.jpg
For clarity, this is what you are doing (door panel off for sake of pic)
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0037-2.jpg
Next, the door handle is retained by two coach bolts and 10mm nuts. To remove it, undo and remove the 2 nuts from inside the door and pull out the 2 coach bolts from outside the door skin. You will now be able to get your hands inside the door to detach the multiplugs from the door handle and the small control rod dropping down to the catch mechanism.
The exterior handle can now be lifted away followed by the rubber handle seal/gasket.
Now for the preventative medicine, recommended even if you are installing a new handle. Here you can see the pivot points of the handle and the positioning or the return spring. The silver bar along the top is the cause of all the failures as it is manufactured from "pot" metal.....any old cheap cr@p scrap aluminum all melted together to make an inadequate casting.
Whilst this is all true, reducing any excessive load on the part due to heavy-handed use, corrosion or icing MUST help so you can lubricate the pivot points where shown to reduce the risk.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0022.jpg
My big oval highlighting along the bottom is where the slider operates retaining the outer handle and some light oil here makes refitting much easier.
So now we get to refurbishing/checking/maintaining that very valuable interior door panel.
One of the first things to check is the condition of those pesky door poppers and its a good idea just to buy a complete set plus a few spares as they are cheap, fragile and you could well break some refitting the panels.. Check the sockets in the door frame for the remains of any broken ones as well as laying the door panel face down and checking the condition of the ones still in the panel. Here you can see a new one compared to a damaged one which is not obviously damaged at a quick glance.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0030.jpg
To replace these, they have a gap in a flange and to replace them, you need to firstly remove any of the old popper......BE CAREFUL IF DOING THIS BY HAND, THEY CAN BE VERY SHARP AND BRITTLE.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0031.jpg
With the new popper and a clean socket, the popper is fitted at an angle as shown........
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0033.jpg
and with the leading edge of the flange entered into its socket, it is screwed in until the inner flange is sitting behind the board of the panel. There should be a lot of play when fitted, possiblt 5mm in sideways movement to allow some degree of self alignment when refitting the panel.
The interior door handle is retained by 5 self tapping pressed nuts ......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0012.jpg
plus a 6mm nut where it meets the door handle reinforcement.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0013.jpg
To access the front-most self tapper, you will need to use a small spanner in 10mm as the ducting covers it.
We will now jump ahead to the reassembly of the door panel. The removal of the parts was simply a reversal of the refitting procedures.
The door speaker grille (mine is modified for aftermarket speaker) is refitted with 4 spire clips.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0008.jpg
with the front window vent grilles firstly inserted in the panel slot at the rear......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0009.jpg
and retained with a self tapping screw at the front.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0011.jpg
Due to the weakness of the door card material, the interior door handle fixing is reinforced with a steel plate. Originally bonded to the panel, corrosion may well have detached it, as in my case, so after cleaning and powder coating them,
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0004.jpg
I reattached them to the panel with some silicone adhesive for some light adhesion and panel damping and..........
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0005.jpg
using new stainless steel washers and locknuts.......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0006.jpg
reattached them back onto the panel.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0007.jpg
NOTE: THIS PIC SHOWS BOTH NUTS ATTACHED. I DID THIS WHILST THE SILICON CURED AS THE FORWARD NUT NEEDS TO BE REMOVED AGAIN TO REFIT THE INTERIOR DOOR HANDLE.
The interior handles are not intended to be overhauled but they can be with care. Here we have the component parts of a stripped handle.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0027-1.jpg
and as you can see, the handle pivots through a small bronze bush inside the handle frame. To strip it out, the pivot pin can be gently tapped through the handle as it is retained in the handle with a spline and flared end. This can be closed up with pliers and then tapped out gently with a small pin punch.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0028.jpg
Here you can see just how dry that pivot can become. In the pic above, you can see the master spline that indexes the pivot in the correct position. With some cleaning, followed by light oiling, the pivot can be refiited through the handle shell and handle.........
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0030-1.jpg
followed by the newly lubricated bronze bush......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0031-1.jpg
and the refitted handle tested for freedom and smoothness of travel
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0029-1.jpg
You then need to refit the torsion spring, seen here being done...
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0034-1.jpg
and secured with a small dab of epoxy......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0037-1.jpg
after reopening the forked end that was previously compressed to originally remove it.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0036-1.jpg
Procedure can be repeated for both panels but keep components separated as the two sides are not identical!!
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0038-1.jpg
We can now check the removed air ducting. Here we can see the mechanism for operating the door vents.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0035.jpg
I will be doing the posts in 3 parts, part 1 being the overhaul of the exterior handle, and whilst this has been shown before as a repair, I will try and show how you can prevent the necessary repair or expensive replacement at a later stage.
Part 2 will be the overhaul of the interior door panel trim itself and
Part 3 will show how it all goes back together again.......hopefully.
To start with, we will take a look at that exterior door handle that has a nasty habit of breaking and only a very competant fabricator can repair. For the rest of us, its an expensive replacement.
To remove the door panel, you will need to buy, or fabricate a panel trim tool. This is what you are looking to get.......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0001.jpg
and something could be simply made with a small wedge of wood with a "U" cut in the end although the tools are very cheap anyway. You will need to remove the 3 screws holding the door panel on, one in the interior door handle cover by a small push-in cap here.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0048.jpg
followed by 2 behind covers inside the door handle here.......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0044.jpg
To remove the door panel with the minimum risk of panel damage, use the trim panel tool around the outer edge of the panel, and locating the panel clip positions as shown in red here.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0042-1.jpg
Now unscrew and remove the door lock button on the top rear edge of the door.
position the "U" either side of the plastic "popper" and lever it out of the chassis of the door, NOT out of the door panel.
It is a good idea to be careful here as the board of the door panel will get weaker with age and the plastic popper harder, so it is much more favourable to break the popper, than damage the door card.
You can now pull the lower edge of the panel away from the door and you now need to detach the wiring to it, there are connections to the door panel window/mirror control switches, the door speakers and the light at the bottom of the door panel as well as a connector to the vent illumination. You now need to carefully pull the upper edge of the door panel away from the sliding clips shown here in yellow....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0042-1.jpg
and when free, carefully lift the panel off of the door lock pin on the rear top edge. You will see the interior door handle release cable now attached to the handle assembly which can now be unhooked.
You can now carefully remove any area of the foam insulation membrane from the inside of the door to access whatever job you wish to do. Note that the black hi-tak adhesive used to hold it in position will now be stronger with age than the membrane, so keep calm, dont lose your temper with it and CAREFULLY detach it where required.
Next, to remove the outer door handle, remove the small plastic "bung" in the rear shut of the door and using a straight bladed screwdriver, ideally with a small slot in it to prevent slippage, push the slider inside the door to release the outer handle, outer shell.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0038-2.jpg
For clarity, this is what you are doing (door panel off for sake of pic)
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0037-2.jpg
Next, the door handle is retained by two coach bolts and 10mm nuts. To remove it, undo and remove the 2 nuts from inside the door and pull out the 2 coach bolts from outside the door skin. You will now be able to get your hands inside the door to detach the multiplugs from the door handle and the small control rod dropping down to the catch mechanism.
The exterior handle can now be lifted away followed by the rubber handle seal/gasket.
Now for the preventative medicine, recommended even if you are installing a new handle. Here you can see the pivot points of the handle and the positioning or the return spring. The silver bar along the top is the cause of all the failures as it is manufactured from "pot" metal.....any old cheap cr@p scrap aluminum all melted together to make an inadequate casting.
Whilst this is all true, reducing any excessive load on the part due to heavy-handed use, corrosion or icing MUST help so you can lubricate the pivot points where shown to reduce the risk.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0022.jpg
My big oval highlighting along the bottom is where the slider operates retaining the outer handle and some light oil here makes refitting much easier.
So now we get to refurbishing/checking/maintaining that very valuable interior door panel.
One of the first things to check is the condition of those pesky door poppers and its a good idea just to buy a complete set plus a few spares as they are cheap, fragile and you could well break some refitting the panels.. Check the sockets in the door frame for the remains of any broken ones as well as laying the door panel face down and checking the condition of the ones still in the panel. Here you can see a new one compared to a damaged one which is not obviously damaged at a quick glance.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0030.jpg
To replace these, they have a gap in a flange and to replace them, you need to firstly remove any of the old popper......BE CAREFUL IF DOING THIS BY HAND, THEY CAN BE VERY SHARP AND BRITTLE.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0031.jpg
With the new popper and a clean socket, the popper is fitted at an angle as shown........
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0033.jpg
and with the leading edge of the flange entered into its socket, it is screwed in until the inner flange is sitting behind the board of the panel. There should be a lot of play when fitted, possiblt 5mm in sideways movement to allow some degree of self alignment when refitting the panel.
The interior door handle is retained by 5 self tapping pressed nuts ......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0012.jpg
plus a 6mm nut where it meets the door handle reinforcement.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0013.jpg
To access the front-most self tapper, you will need to use a small spanner in 10mm as the ducting covers it.
We will now jump ahead to the reassembly of the door panel. The removal of the parts was simply a reversal of the refitting procedures.
The door speaker grille (mine is modified for aftermarket speaker) is refitted with 4 spire clips.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0008.jpg
with the front window vent grilles firstly inserted in the panel slot at the rear......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0009.jpg
and retained with a self tapping screw at the front.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0011.jpg
Due to the weakness of the door card material, the interior door handle fixing is reinforced with a steel plate. Originally bonded to the panel, corrosion may well have detached it, as in my case, so after cleaning and powder coating them,
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0004.jpg
I reattached them to the panel with some silicone adhesive for some light adhesion and panel damping and..........
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0005.jpg
using new stainless steel washers and locknuts.......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0006.jpg
reattached them back onto the panel.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0007.jpg
NOTE: THIS PIC SHOWS BOTH NUTS ATTACHED. I DID THIS WHILST THE SILICON CURED AS THE FORWARD NUT NEEDS TO BE REMOVED AGAIN TO REFIT THE INTERIOR DOOR HANDLE.
The interior handles are not intended to be overhauled but they can be with care. Here we have the component parts of a stripped handle.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0027-1.jpg
and as you can see, the handle pivots through a small bronze bush inside the handle frame. To strip it out, the pivot pin can be gently tapped through the handle as it is retained in the handle with a spline and flared end. This can be closed up with pliers and then tapped out gently with a small pin punch.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0028.jpg
Here you can see just how dry that pivot can become. In the pic above, you can see the master spline that indexes the pivot in the correct position. With some cleaning, followed by light oiling, the pivot can be refiited through the handle shell and handle.........
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0030-1.jpg
followed by the newly lubricated bronze bush......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0031-1.jpg
and the refitted handle tested for freedom and smoothness of travel
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0029-1.jpg
You then need to refit the torsion spring, seen here being done...
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0034-1.jpg
and secured with a small dab of epoxy......
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0037-1.jpg
after reopening the forked end that was previously compressed to originally remove it.
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0036-1.jpg
Procedure can be repeated for both panels but keep components separated as the two sides are not identical!!
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0038-1.jpg
We can now check the removed air ducting. Here we can see the mechanism for operating the door vents.....
http://i283.photobucket.com/albums/kk287/big8bmw/doors/IMG_0035.jpg