REPAIRS PAGE 68
RESTORATION TOPICS – DOORS
This is my latest article the in series of what
seems to be infinite in duration – but its self-inflicted as I ‘do it myself’
wherever possible – but a ‘2nd career’ job has scuppered me on the
time availability front.
As to restoring doors - and I am only talking about
the steelwork here – nothing to do with its internal mechanisms (as they are
covered elsewhere) – the steelwork can be done – but it is a ‘pig’ – and
believe me I know – I’ve tried – hard!
The problem is the complexity of design – although
they are no different to the auto industry ‘standard’ door construction – a
‘pretty’ outer skin lip-folded and spot-welded around a complex inner frame -
which does all the real work. If that might sound a bit obscure – but just open
your car door and all will become obvious.
The big problem with all these standard designs is
(surprise-surprise) the bottom internals of the door – it rots out from the
inside – always – sooner or later. Just take a moment to think about it –
The internal surfaces of the bottom door edge are a natural reservoir for water.
Water will always get in there – as the window seals are never very effective – on
any car – ever. Why else do manufactures fit a sealed polythene membrane to
separate the door from the door card? Answer – because the door card (being
hardboard) will warp if exposed to moisture – the metal door itself is
effectively sacrificial. (Warped door cards tend to get noticed by warranty
customers – incipient internal door rust does not – QED).
The manufacturers ‘design solution’ here is to fit several ‘drain’ holes at this
bottom door interface. This however still leaves moisture trapped in the seam
crevices – bad news. These ‘drain holes’ get blocked – with crud - and then rust from the door internals.
Moisture builds up and the ‘vicious circle’ is now in place – end result, bottom door rot.
Right – so given that bad news – what can be done about it? Well the first thing to say is —
a) Check the bottom area – a good poke with a
screwdriver will soon establish how sound it is. If it is sound – go to b)
below - but if not – panic and go lower down this article - for consolation!
b) For the lucky ones with sound ‘bottoms’ – This
area has no rust protection – and now is the time to do it – because it really
needs it for further survival! OK – how – well the object is first to try and displace any pre existing
moisture in that bottom area - and then replace it with an anti moisture
product – sometimes easier said than done. If
the car is genuinely ‘bone dry’ – then no problem – first remove the door card –
not that difficult (but if anyone has problems – just ring me.)
Remove the polythene divider membrane – carefully to avoid ripping it. (Hint – use a
hair dryer or a hot air gun – carefully - to soft tack and release the
adhesive - without damaging the membrane. This takes a bit of try and error
and then judgement – so go easy at first!)
Manually clear the bottom area out of all debris – and there will be some - and make
sure the drain holes are totally clear. Do not use metal objects here – use
plastic – why scratch metal so it might eventually rust?
Clean the area with a cloth lightly damped with a good solvent – I use meths – cellulose
thinners are OK – but make it a very lightly damped cloth! Let the solvent dry out –
20 min.
Prepare to spray the bottom internals with wax based anti rust sprays – obtain WD-40
plus Waxoyl clear or Dinitrol aerosols, or equivalents.
If necessary – cover the road surface below the door edge with protective covering
– such as newspaper etc.
Spray that bottom area with WD-40 - the object is to get a water repellent
into the crevice area that water really wants to go – so get messy! (Hint- the
WD-40 ‘wicks’ into crevices much better if it’s first heated up to a tepid bath
temperature – allegedly – not that I’ve ever had a bath with one!)
Spray in the clear Waxoyl or Dinitrol.
Let everything ‘settle’ - to make sure the drain holes are not going to get blocked
by the likes of surplus Waxoyl etc.
Refit membrane (with sealant) and then door card. Say
‘Thank God that’s over – but I’ve preserved my precious MK1.’
Keep those drain holes clear – preferably for ever – but at least for 2 months to
stop the drain holes from clogging up.
And moving rapidly on -
For those of us that have less than good doors – shame - First and foremost
– there are no ‘aftermarket’ door skin parts available – the MK1
was made in too small a number to make it attractive (and incidentally this
applies to any MK1 panel.) Toyota only supply whole doors – well at
least as long as their existing stocks last – there is a strong suspicion that
they are in the ‘run-out’ phase.
So – what to do – well there is the outer door skin, the inner frame and the
combination to consider —
a) Outer door skin (below swage line) – this is not exactly easy to fabricate (– but
compared to what follows it is a doddle.) At least is 2-D so any decent fab
shop could make it.
b) Inner frame – nightmare country – believe me – I’ve just been there - and I
don’t want to go back for quite a while!
i)The bottom part of this frame – most people
(including me) would think this would be a 2-D pressing – wrong! Its actually a
gently convoluted 3-D with some nasty
sharp indentations – ie a real pain to replicate – not just for me but any bodyshop.
The corners of course are of such tight radius that they are impossible to make
except by ‘orange peel’ welding - and boy - does it take some time ( and oxy
needed here to soften and bend the metal prior to weld up.)
If the above sounded bad – say you’ve just survived
the above trials - just try grafting the inner frame and skin outer together.
They can be welded together of course – but finding the right ‘shut-line’ is a
nightmare – never again for me!
Please bear in mind that the above comments apply
only to my DIY efforts – a bodyshop will undoubtedly do better – but I suspect at a high price.
The moral is – take care of what you’ve got – don’t
let it dissolve on you unless you’ve got a large wallet!
ALAN JONES