Early Sliding Door Needing lot of force to close

Thin bits of metal and bright blue light. Including glass & trim.

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bmouthboyo
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Location: Bournemouth

Early Sliding Door Needing lot of force to close

Post by bmouthboyo »

Is the sliding door adjustable in terms of momentum needed for it to slam "pooh"? After a removing and refitting the door it seems really hard to have momentum to push the spring that assists in opening. And makes a bloody loud noise when slams shut at that force.
1983 Autosleeper Trooper - 1.8 Gti Conversion

boatbuilder
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Location: County Monaghan, Ireland

Re: Early Sliding Door Needing lot of force to close

Post by boatbuilder »

Mine shuts pretty nicely - its an 84, so the early style slider etc.
I put new rollers and bearings on everything. The lower track was worn right through where the roller ran on the metal, so I had to cut out the whole thing including the outer sill and put a new one in.
The mid-height track itself had a dent worn into it, which I welded back up and smoothed out.
Now it all rolls nicely - the loudest bit is when the catch engages at the back of the door - it sounds like a gunshot going off! I think that's just the way its supposed to be...
1984 1.9D (AEF Code) T25 tintop

nsjtaylor
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Location: Basingstoke, Hampshire

Re: Early Sliding Door Needing lot of force to close

Post by nsjtaylor »

Mine requires a lot of oomph to get it shut, so I started to investigate. (mines an 83/84, early door)

I found that the rear locking mechanism probably has the same grease in it from when it rolled out of the factory. Which is to say a) there isn't much left and b) what is left is basically toffee (and sticks just as well!). Without disassembling the whole thing I managed to get in there with a good dose of spray silicon grease. This has alleviated it somewhat, but really I need to disassemble the whole of the rear locking mechanism, strip, oil, re-assemble. I've no doubt this will resolve the having-to-slam-it-hard symptoms; just haven't had time to disassemble it all yet.

Incidentally, an easy way to test that it's the rear mechanism; push "a bit" against the back of the door with your spare hand as you slide it closed. If it closes with less sliding-force (and less noise!) then it's probably the rear mechanism that needs some TLC. If it doesn't make much of a difference it could be roller/slider related.
"Bob" - 1984 Westfalia Joker High-Top, 1.9DG

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