RatDog

The other day, we went for a ride and when we got back, the passenger side door wouldn't open. No amount of fiddling with the door release or lock from the inside would get the door to open. Before telling my wife to crawl over to the driver side to get out, I tried my key on the door and it unlocked and opened.

So, before I pull the door panel, my question is, does this sound like just a cleaning/adjustment problem or maybe something has just come loose, or should I go ahead and order some replacement parts?

Also, apparently all 4 of my window and vent cranks are missing the stainless bezel/spacers that are supposed to be on the door panels. Man those things are expensive!

Thanks,
-- Steve

Frankie the Fink

I wouldn't order any parts until you get the panel off. Some of those little rods can be:

a) installed wrong, or,
b) the little clips that hold the rod in place can come off/get lost.

Prob a cheap fix if its just one of the above.

RatDog

OK, I'll hold off on ordering anything until I see what's going on. Another issue is that there's a lot of play and slop in the window cranks (both sides).

-- Steve

Easy Rhino

Sounds like it's time to get inside the doors.

Of course, the window crank play is not related to the inside door latch. My bet is that the little clip that holds the actuator rod in the door latch is corroded/broken and the rod fell out. Easy fix.

Did she think you did it on purpose?

RatDog

No, she didn't think I did it on purpose. However, she did make a rude comment about how if that happened to her C6, she could take it to the Chevy dealer and they'd fix it for free.

-- Steve

Easy Rhino

My wife would wonder if I did it on purpose.

I suppose since you're going to fix it, then it's just like taking to the Chevy dealer for the free fix, except that she doesn't have to drive it anywhere to get it fixed.

RatDog

You know what? The truth is she doesn't give a rat's behind if I fix it or not as long as I can use the key on the outside to get her out <LOL>.

-- Steve

65hihp

you have a convertible. She could just stand up, sit on the rear deck, rotate legs over door, slide off side. Just don't want to make a habit of it.

suggest you open up the passenger door, and trouble shoot the latch mechanism. While you're in there, take the windows out and overhaul the regulators. It will seem like a difficult job as you work through it. But it really isn't. Once you get the one side done, the other will seem much easier, and go quicker.

1955 copper

Well tell her while I was in Hawaii I got a call from my wife panicking with her sister because when they went to start my C6 after getting in the battery was drained to the point it dint start and then they cant get the door to open and let them out. She took 10 minutes trying to get out and what should they do call the police.LOL after calming them down I told her to feel at the left side lower seat area and pull a lever up to open the Corvette door . Good side of the story she never wants to drive it again with out me in it.

Nowhere Man

Take a good flash light and look down inside the door. Look for something off look on the drivers side to compaire.

Bowtyeguy

Once you find it, its not real easy to get it back on unless you have small hands. Long needle nose and alot of MFERS work.

RatDog

Great story, Roy! Ordinarily, I'd be ROFLOL. However, I have a confession to make. After my wife got her C6, I went out to the garage and got in the car to program in all the setup stuff and personal settings. Apparently, I spent too long doing that and ran the battery down so that the door wouldn't open. I figured I had 3 choices: Call my wife who was inside the house on my cell phone, slit the convertible top, pull the owner's manual out of the glove box. I chose the latter.

BTW, once the battery goes down on a C6 convertible, the top won't function again until you jump through a bunch of hoops to reprogram it. It's all in the owner's manual.

All of this techno stuff makes me wonder what the future holds for these cars.. Will guys be able to restore them? I'm thinking the interest in car restoration may have died out by then, partly due to how complicated these newer cars are.

-- Steve

kenba

That's why the C-2'S are GREAT Corvettes that were made by the KISS method. I don't mind cranking windows or flipping the top up or down. The only thing that gives you fits sometimes is the damn power headlights they should have had cranks like my 36 Cord phaeton. LOL Spark compression & fuel & you go no computers.

Procrastination Racing

My '63 convertible I could drop the top in traffic or put the top up if it began to ran when sitting, without getting out of the car. The front header bar became much heavier in '68 and I could drop it in the '68 but couldn't lift it.

Both of those are so easy, I really wonder about the need of a power top in later models.

RatDog

Good suggestion. Thanks!

I can clearly see that the mechanism attached by a horizontal rod to the door lock **** is flopping around loose down there. It looks like that mechanism is supposed to attach to the door framework with 2 bolts (which are still there) up near the top of the door. How both bolts came off, who knows. Should be an easy fix once I get the door panel off.

Everything looks really clean down inside both doors and everything except that lock seems to work OK so I don't think I will need to replace any parts. However, I think there are supposed to be stainless bezels behind the door cranks and they are missing on mine so I should replace those if I can find them.

My only other question is, how much play should be in the window cranks? I have about 2"-3" of "slop" on both main window cranks (the vent windows seem OK). Is this an adjustment inside the door or does it sound like worn out parts?

Thanks,
-- Steve

SpartyGW

The slop in the window cranks sounds like worn teeth on either the male or female (crank side) side. When you get the window crank off look at the teeth on both. Hopefully it's the window crank that is worn and you can get a replacement easily enough.

This is what the window gear should look like:

toms silver 60

Is your wife blonde and was the top down?

RatDog

LOL! Yes, she's blonde. No, the top was up. I am not blonde. However, I seem to recall telling her if the key didn't work to get the door open, she'd have to climb over to the driver's side to get out. I'm glad I didn't have to carry my flawed thought process any further than that (and that the key worked) because I might have ended up slitting the top so she could climb out <LOL>.

-- Steve

Frankie the Fink

Steve, you may well have a different problem.

But, if it turns out to be your inside door pull mechanism that is an easy fix (but usually the driver's side goes first from increased wear). They make kits to fix the originals and also fully assembled reproduction versions. Fix your original if you can...the repros are crap. My '63 door pull came apart (damn repro) literally yesterday and I re-assembled it, peened the snot out of the big shoulder rivet and then JB-Welded it too.

RatDog

Thanks, Frank.

My door pulls seem fine. It's the door lock mechanism causing the problem. All I can figure is the last person to work inside the door forgot to tighten those 2 bolts that hold the mech to the frame of the door and it's just hanging there by it's actuation rod.

Since that part is flopping around loose in there, I think it got jammed up in the door pull mechanism and that's why the door pull wouldn't work. Somehow, using the door key unjammed it allowing the door to open and allowing the lock mechanism to resume flopping around.

That sucks about those repro parts you have there. But, I bet you don't have any more problems after your fix.

-- Steve