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My new door panels should be here today . Is there anything i should know when installing them . They are the standard ones and I think my originals were deluxe ,they have the wood insert and carpet at the bottom .
YES...the door panels can have curve to them and make it so it is really hard to get it to allow you to get the bottom of the door panel to be secured at the bottom at the front and rear.
I often times heat up the black ABS plastic and install the door panel while it is hot and then allow the door panel to cool so it takes the shape I want.
I also use longer screws of the same design at the top at the front and rear with some sleeves so I do not distort the vinly and ruin it.
If you need to swap over some of the hardware, be precise in straightening any bent-over pins to remove such items. Also be precise in locating matching holes for those pins/tangs on the new panel, so that they look good when assembled to it. If you need to remove the lock plate, you will find that it is roll-swedged (similar to riveting) on the old panel. The only way to remove it is to [Dremel] grind off the swedged heads. To assemble them to the new panels, you will need to drill/tap those posts for small screws. Or, you can drill a "filler" hole in those posts and, once located on the new panel, use stick type JB Weld epoxy to fill into those holes and make a head to retain the lock plate.
The screws are probably a better way to do it (use low-strength LocTite to retain them); but the epoxy method works well too.
2025 c3 ('74-'82) of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2019 C3 of Year Finalist (appearance mods)
Originally Posted by upnorth
Is there anything I should know when installing them.
You must be bubbling with anticipation.
The new panels will be a great finishing touch to your interior.
The new panels have a metal lip along the top and it holds the panel top securely without screws.
Once you have the top straight confirm that the LOCK hole is centered.
Hold the door pull in the final position and drill (#25 bit) and tap (10/24) the new screw hole.
Here's my door without the front and rear top screws.
Can you post a picture of where you drilled the new screw hole .Also when I went to transfer my wood grain insert . It is almost 3/4 inch longer then the pattern in the new panel
2025 c3 ('74-'82) of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2019 C3 of Year Finalist (appearance mods)
At the factory they had special door pull screws.
The tip of the screw was shaped like a drill bit with threads after that.
The worker fitted the door pull in the door panel and put the screw in the center of the door pull and shoved it in.
After fitting on my door panels the original hole was way off center.
So I drilled a new hole dead center in the door.
No photo on that.
There is a high probability that when oyu get the door panel to clip over the top of the door frame that teh curve in your door panel is so great that when you try to pull it flat against the door frame...it will want to pop off the top.
So..putting screws in the area where the red arrows show in the photo below may be needed.
Then I use longer screws of the same design and sleeves to hold it at the top so the vinyl does not get damaged but it will pull it to the door frame.
DUB
Also when I went to transfer my wood grain insert . It is almost 3/4 inch longer then the pattern in the new panel
I have the same question. Does the deluxe trim piece (the one with the woodgrain) just go right over the base door trim? Simply drill the holes and it is secured right on top?
YES...just drill holes so you can secure the wood grain trim part on the door. NO cutting or routing out of the vinyl of the door panel is required. It just simply lays on top of it.
All done took about 2 hours total .Only extra thing I had to do was drill and tap the bottom holes on the pull handles . Top one was dead on but bottom when I centered the handle in the hole was off which was good because my old ones were striped .
New door panels
