Heater Flapper Box Wire Retaining nuts?
 

OK, after using my 86 as the daily driver for a while (50 miles each way) as long as there was not snow, I got tired of freezing to death (as some of you other Coloradoans might know, it got a little cold last week) so I did a bunch of searches, printed off all the threads that had the info in them that I needed and jacked the car up to take a look.

Well the passenger side lever would pull up but the flapper wouldn't move, ok wire broken somewhere in between lever and box. Drivers side would move, but only close the flapper about 50%. No big deal, just adust the wire.

Yeah thats not happening. So after getting the dremel tool out and "removing" the little Wire retaining nuts and pulluing out the original cables, I order the new cables and rubber grommets from PP, but I cannot find the nuts that the wires go through on the flapper boxes.

Did any of you that have done this before, just run to local auto parts place and pick up some? I am sure the local NAPA has them, was just hoping someone could point me in the right direction.

Bill

I love the search function, then prininting off the threads. Its the same way I got my cab top mores re-sync'd.

I was able to salvage the nuts and bolts when I did this job, but from what I remember:

The nuts didnt look to be a special item, so any decent hardware store should have them.

The bolts on the other hand are a special item, but dont see why a similar metric bolt can't be modified to work by drilling a hole in the correct location.

Thanks Charlie,

I didn't think they were. I can just pick up a small bolt and drill a hole in it.

Bill

the bolts have a shoulder, so they are a dealer item. without the shoulder, they won't pivot. the nuts are regular 4mm hex.

John,

Can I just use a regular bolt with a washer or someting?

Bill

I twisted one into two pieces a while back! Erg. So, I bought one from a local P-car mechanic/parts store. Cost...... $3

Wow, that has to be a 1,000 % mark-up. Hahahaha

Part no. 901.211.683.00; Pelican can get them: $3.01 each. You may be able to find a shoulder bolt (sometimes also called a stripper bolt) that you can modify but it would really be just a lot easier to order the correct part. The rest of the parts in the assembly are just a common washer, a split ring type lock washer and a 4 mm hex nut. Cheers, Jim

Thanks Jim, I just got off the phone with Pelican and had 2 of them added to my order.

Thanks for the Part Number.

Bill

I tried making my own bolts because I didn't want to wait. 3 broken drill bits later I gave up....
-Chris

cool, thanks Chris, glad I just ordered some. $3 a piece a steep, but thats to be expected, smile.

Bill

Barrell Nuts...
 

Yes, you can make your own barrell nuts to hold the heater wires. I was faced with the same problem as the ones on my car broke when I tried to remove the nuts. I took a 4mm bolt, measured the distance from the bolt head to the hole and used a gas orifice jet drill (about 2mm) to drill the hole. I then found a small piece of nylon tubing that was the right diameter inside and out to use to make the "shoulder" for the bolt so it would pivot correctly. Then it was simply a matter of putting the newly made bolt into the lever and installing a washer, the wire, another washer and the nut. It has worked perfectly ever since!

Fred Cook
'80 911SC coupe

damn everytime someone mentions flapper boxes, i shudder. one day i am going to have to tackle changing mine out. i got new ones, but i dont have the nerve to work on those rusty nuts...i know they will break.

cliff

Soak the nuts on the studs that secure the flapper boxes to the body with a good penetrating oil (Aero Kroil or PB Blaster) over several days. Then be very patient working the nuts off as you do not want the break off the studs as they are welded to the body and are a "pain" to reweld. Cheers, Jim

thanks jim, i got a can of pb blaster with their names on it. i have actually jacked the car up, put on my jumpsuit, slid under the car,,,and looked at them, and then, "naw, lets do something else. hmmm, like install an entire oil cooler system!" i guess i will start the soaking process soon. shuddder! does anyone make a stainless steel version?

cliff

UNFIXED, I changed my flapper boxes and soaked the nuts for days but still broke 4 of the 6 studs. All I did was delete the cork gasket and used high temp silicone around the flapper box base. This gave me enough of the broken studs to have the nuts grab. No problems since.

I used stainless steel nuts, bolts and washers to make the shoulder bolt setup. I used 4mm bolts, washers and nuts. I have a set of carbide tool bits that go as small as a hair, used the correct size bit, drilled the bolt at the correct depth, then used a brass tube spacer for the shoulder part of the bolt. I only used metal parts due to the high heat. when I assembled, used anti seize compound on the threads. Works great.