Diy video tutorial

[mytrplseven]

Does anyone know about a tutorial or video that explains the workings of the 944 door opening/closing mechanisms, including one with locks. After the paint shop put mine back together, they screwed it up so once the car was locked, you were permanently locked out. Crawling in via the rear hatch looks suspicious the the casual observer.

[jjeffries]

I don't know of a video, but I did go thru some pain-in-the-arse lessons when I replaced the door handles in my 87 924S (car came with no keys), and one thing I learned was that the recommended tactic of removing the the door card, then the door glass and its rear channel, in order to be able to see both sides of the of those parts that cause it to all function (handle and latch) is THE way to go. I'd initially tried to do it all from the outside but found, for me, that was a fool's errand, whcih also taught me how easily dimpled these door skins are ... my car will need some PDR once its back together as a result.

Your root cause issue may be different but taking this route will allow you to see what you need to see and access in order to clean the inside of the latch (very important, it turns out) and adjust the linkage. Remember that linkage repair kits are available if your is broken.

Pulling the window glass turns out to be easy. Making some circles with a Sharpie around all the 6mm screws (10mm heads) before removal will make re-installing the regulator easier. And don't forget to reinstall, or (if there is one but its ripped, or isn't one at all) replace the vapor barrier/shower curtain before putting the door card back on.

Bodyshop dirt, comprised of bondo dust, excess polishing compound and residual abrasives is pretty evil stuff, so you might want to have your shop vac ready.

Best of luck to you, John

[TheSecondChris]

Hi John,

Funny you replied before me since I was going to reference your thread where you posted some really great pictures of the door latch mechanism from inside the door. I know this helped me a lot when I was diagnosing my non-working lock a couple of months ago.

Now that the weather is warmer I spent a day in the driveway taking the door apart and fixed my problem. I was pretty sure the white plastic linkage was disconnected at either the upper or lower connection, and I was right. It was still attached to the lower connection but disconnected at the lock cylinder. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to get it re-attached to the tiny ball-like projection - but eventually I succeeded.

[mytrplseven]

This is how the boffins at the paint shop fix things that they can't quite figure out:

[mytrplseven]

Shower curtain ….what a perfect choice for the new replacement moisture barrier.

[djnolan]

It may be as simple as hooking up the plastic lock lever. It can be done from the outside easier than taking the whole door apart. Run a piece of fishing line through it so it can be pulled up as you put the handle in position, then connect the large lever (use needle nose to pop it on the ball) then pull up the smaller lever using the fishing line, then use needle nose pliers to pop it on the little ball. Without the fishing line it will drop down inside where you cant reach it.

I found it nearly impossible to do this from inside the door.

[curtisr]

This should help. Porsche 944 Door Handle Lock Mechanism Removal & Repair

[djnolan]

OK it can be done if you completely take apart the door.

However the small white plastic thing (lock lever - first thing shown in the video) is probably unhooked and as I said above it can be done without removing so much as the door card. If you do decide to take the long road, one benifit is you can grease the window regulator before reassembly.

[mytrplseven]

Thanks for the REAL techniques. I can't wait for the two new door links to arrive. While I was waiting it gave me time to clean all the gunk from the mechanisms and re-lube them. It really made a big difference in their ease of operation.

[azbanks]

I replaced my door handles with 968 handles which requires taking everything apart. The handles, locks, etc can all be put back together without taking the glass out but it is not fun. A long thin, flat blade screw driver helps a lot in popping the little plastic piece onto the little round ball.



One word of advice. Go out and buy a really big jar, write "swear" on a piece of paper and tape it to the jar. Every time you say a swear word, put a penny in the jar. You will be able to retire on this one job.

[djnolan]

A door handle can be replaced without removing the door card if everything else is ok. Once you have the technique figured out it is a snap or two. Taking the door completely apart will lead to many issues with the window guide alignment, lock adjustments, etc. Try it from the outside first using the string method if at all possible. Using a long thin screwdriver as noted, and needle nose the large hole should provide enough access to remove and replace the door handle.

[TheSecondChris]

I need to remove my handle to replace the broken trigger. I have the repair kit that came with a new spring and seals too. I’m hoping it is not so tricky to disassemble the handle itself.

I want to lube the window regulator so will be taking door apart as part of the job.

[mytrplseven]

New part vs cluged part from paint shop