Door Handle trigger & hard to open door
 

When I pull on the door handle trigger, it moves almost all the way thru its arc before the door will open.

THe door has been moved around some - too far out; flush; too high, not so high, etc. Still hard to open.

Could this be a lack of lube as I've seen posted in some threads?

This is a '73. Seems like P AG chaged the mechanism every few years; maybe the way it operates is the same. I'm wondering if something could be worn in the mechanism and needs to be replaced. The part was superceded to a 964 p/n which Pelican sells for $761. I'd like to avoid that.

Or maybe the door is incapable of being aligned right for some reason...

I know 911 doors can do better than this - the '75 I owned had almost perfect doors.

If I think it's the door, what are the first things to check. Damon posted re a warped door on one thread, but I wonder what are the easiest things to check and adjust first.

Check the matching latch plate on the body door post; how do the plastic internals look?

The plastic spacer on the body door post looks fine.

Or is that what you meant?

Not exactly; the fixed portion on the body door post of some of the latch systems have an internal plastic part that the moving piece on the door engages. This is what I meant.

Hi Randy,

Did the door open ok before it was adjusted?

When you pull the trigger it pushes a pin on the door handle against the door catch mech. Sometimes this pin can become damaged or even brake away from the rest of the door handle. I have seen many handles held together with cable ties and alike. The pin pushes against the catch which moves until the catch clears its locking positions and the spring pulls it back, and hence the door is released. So, maybe the catch section is bent and thus requires a lot of movement to pull open and or the spring can become caught/blocked.

Easiest way to check: With the door open push the lock by hand so it shuts (2 clicks). Then pull the trigger to see when it opens. If it still takes a lot of movement on the trigger, the issues is one of the above.

Hope this helps. If you need I can get some pictures for you tomorrow to help explain.

Cheers

Alan

pics would be great - I will try to post some also if I can get the car back from the painter who was supposed to fix the doors. He apparently can't - maybe b/c of the latch problems.

IIRC, the door worked better before than it does now. The painter has been screwing around with the car for 1.5 years so I really can't remember exactly. But I know it is nowhere near the way the doors opened/unlatched on my '75.

We tried turning the catch (the cam shaped thing that rotates on the door edge) until it locked, and then pulling the trigger. On both this car and another car, on the 2nd try the catch would not release at all with the trigger pull. I don't know what that means.

I don't understand "push the lock by hand" - maybe that is what we did.

I'll look for the internal plastic part when I get the car again - should be Monday.

My door handle trigger did this before it broke. The trigger is articulated on a pin at two points. It pushes the pin mentioned above, which is controlled/retracted by a spring mounted over it. My trigger broke on one side and became hard to actuate, somewhat like you describe. Then it broke fully and will not open the door anymore. Gotta crawl over from the pass side :(

New handle is on order.

todd
86 coupe

"We tried turning the catch (the cam shaped thing that rotates on the door edge) until it locked, and then pulling the trigger. On both this car and another car, on the 2nd try the catch would not release at all with the trigger pull. I don't know what that means"

Sounds like the catch is sticking/faulty. Its very easy to take out and clean. I will get some pics tomorrow.

Hi Randy,

Sorry I didn't manage to get those pics. I should have some time tomorrow to get out into the garage, if that still helps?

Alan

Sure they will. Thanks.

Jim - I think I may have found what you were talking about. I am going to try and take a macro photo of what looks to be the damaged part in the middle of the latch reciever and will post it if I can get a good photo.

Make sure the white plastic part of the door catch is not split. It is behind the steel cover plate. Mine split and moved slightly out of alignment, making the door difficult to open . Moving it back and fixing it in place restored correct operation of the door.

Here is what I think Jim and Paul are talking about. The tan to brown stuff between the steel plates is the plastic spacer (the top is still white).

You can see the jagged edges where it broke and an apparent high wear area below that. I guess we can't expect plastic to last for 33 years...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1152662332.jpg



The new ones are superceded to a 993 p/n (993 531 029 00); cost > $100; and are black, not the orignal plated metal. I'm told they are all riveted together, so black it is.


BTW - you don't see this just looking at the latch. You have to kneel or sit down below the level of the latch to look up in there and see if it is damaged or not.

Just a thought: if you have more time than money, could this part be replicated from a block of the same or similar plastic?

timely thread. thanks. subscribed.

Paul - My first thought was to carve another one out of a block of Delrin or something - maybe the high mol. wt. plastics they have now. Then I realized I don't have access to a Bridgeport (not that I was ever any good with one). So, I briefly thought about using my router... The new part is just a lot cheaper when you think about it tho.

Dave - I'll post some more info I dug out of the threads I searched. I didn't save the pics or URLs tho, so might still need to run your own searches...

The real question to me is: Given a problem with the door closure &/or fit, what is the best way to parse the tests or diagnostics? You can do the cheapest stuff first or the easiest (labor) first. I'd say kneeling down before your 911 is an easy and cheap genuflection, so do that first.

Here we go:

Door Adjustments

1. Door is harder to open when aligned with tub/fender.

2. Door doesn’t want to open until door handle trigger is almost all the way pulled.



Do you have to take the window frame out, in order to take the door locking mechanism out?

it has three screws on the back side of the door(by the striker) that need to come out, and the release handle and the push lock have bolts that are readily apparent on the door.

P/n’s change over the years; misc. advice – most for unknown years:

The best way to adjust (in and out) is to loosen those bolts with an 8 mm triple square socket tool, until the plate can move around, but not too lose to where it's sloppy. Then gently close the door while holding the trigger in, so that it doesn't latch. Then gently push on the door handle until it the door edge lines up with the body to your liking. Then while continuing to hold the trigger in, gently open the door and tighten the plate where it is. I hold it slightly; pushing against it so it doesn't move while you're tightening the bolts.

Be sure the large phillips head screws that hold the latch to the door are tight. If they are loose, you will have trouble closing the door. Use a large phillips head bit in a socket/ratchet and snug them down "firmly".


Soak the latch in oil – if dry the door will not close correctly.

You could end up chasing your tail - realigning the latch to an out of whack door fit?
I'd check the hinges first - door fit panel gaps - has the door dropped a wee bit? Does it move up and down on the hinge pins?


How? Where do you lube it? On the rotating parts where it bears on something in the door? Or do you lube the part that hits the receiver mechanism on the B pillar?

Try just lubing the small part that sticks out from the door (looks like a small cam) where it pivots before doing anything radical.

door alignment, use a floor jack , and a friend named Jack too, and a block of wood to help support the door when bolting up, tape off your door edge HEAVY! this will help prevent knicking the paint, tighten the bolts, swing the door and check alignment, up/down by bolts, in out by bolts, fore/aft by shim, thats it....once the door is aligned, the pins loose enough for removal/insetion, door removal will be a pice of cake, pop pins, do your work, insert pins, door stayed in alignment. You may remove the striker latch to remove any forced alignment, thus allowing the swing of the door to be unhindered. after the door aligns, adjust the striker to match. Make any sense out of that?

Diassembly:
The handle is held in by 2 - 10mm nuts. Don’t break the studs. Window must be rolled up. The rear-most nut is accessed through a hole in the door that has a little tape over it from the factory. Use 1/4 drive socket and extension. – Tyson/Sclarke/

Common for trigger mechanism to break.

handle mechanism almost working. There was just not enough movement on the trigger to trip the release mechanism, which i think with age and use has deformed slightly.
to solve problem i glued a piece of aluminium (3mm thick) to part of mechanism which makes contact with door trigger plunger and trigger working perfectly.

one tip for re installing door panel - tape your 10mm socket to your extension bar when tightening the bolt at the bottom of door handle as it you socket can easily get stuck in the panel itself.
- ’87 coupe

Just come in with the pics of the latch, but it looks like you have already sorted it. Well done.

The most common problem with the catch mech it self it either the pin on the door handle brakes (they are a separate and replaceable piece), the part the pin touches on the mech becomes bent or the spring itself becomes bunged up.

Alan

Alan - post any pics that might help others, if not too much trouble

You list 3 common problems with the locking mechanism itself (you say 'catch' but I use the term catch for the thing on the door post - on the body itself).
1. the pin on the door handle breaks (is this the 2 pins you can see move inside the door when you pull on the trigger?)
2. the part the pin touches on the mechanism becomes bent -- which part is this? Is it inside the door?
3. the spring itself becomes bunged up. -- This refers to the flat wound spring inside the door, right? I've seen where the inner portion (the center of the concentric winding) that is supposed to be attached to the mechanism has come loose. That is something to check everytime you take the door apart.

Sorry I mean the latch in the door itself. Pics to follow shortly

I have just quickly put the text against the image. This latch is a SWB version but the later versions are much the same. I hope they might help.

Thanks

Alan



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...sale/door1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...sale/door2.jpg