T5 door lever repair?

[minniemousey]

Hi there, a while back I remember reading a how to post on repairing a broken door lever including instructions on how to get the door panel off. Can anyone post the link please? I've looked in the how to section but can't seem to find it.... Cheers!

[Ivo]

I think I did a post on my repair. Not sure where it is though lol.

[minniemousey]

Bugger! I tried doing a search of your posts but couldn't find it either. Anyway, how did your repair go?! Was it successful? I got the door panel off to find that I need to replace a not very well designed part! The one holds the cable to the door trim.

[Ivo]

Its worked well.....after I got it in the right position! I will have a look and see if i can find the post. If not I will write it up again.

[Ivo]

http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/forums/f136/multivan-t5-door-lever-broken-51139-2.html

copy and paste:

Been there done that.....twice!

I broke mine, pulled it all apart gently to discover the crappy design. Glued the clip back on that holds the cable and it worked fine for a few months. Glue was a special u-beaut plastic stuff but just did not last and it broke again.

The door has three layers (maybe even more). They are trim, then metal panel then the external door skin. In between the metal panel and the door is the window.

I undid one of those bolts that holds the metal panel in place and used a heavy duty mounted head ziptie to hold the cable in place. Unfortunately it took me about 5 attempts to get the cable in the exact position so the mechanism would work. 5mm +/- and either direction and the metal hook was either to loose or to tight.

( 5-inch Mounted Head Cable Ties, 40 lb. Nylon Ties - CableTiesPlus.com )

I also had to grind down the bolt mount on the cable tie itself as the bolts are relatively short and would not get started.

To remove the door trim, you need to carefully prise up the switches and unplug the cables. Then undo all the bolts around the lower section of the door.

Then grab the piece that the switches were mounted to where it curves up to meet the dash and firmly lift it vertically and pull it off. Then undo the bolts that hold the handle in place. Then pull the trim out from the bottom of the door and then upwards....it should come off but be careful as there are to more wires attached and they need to be unplugged before the panel can be completely removed.

Hopefully that worked and you can see how little room there is to try to fix the problem.

If you don't have any luck I could probably pull mine off again and take pictures to show it all.

[minniemousey]

Cheers for that! I'll give it a go on the weekend hopefully.

[minniemousey]

Hey Ivo, just wanted to thank you for sharing your info about repairing the lever - the hardest part was finding the cable tie (no one knew what it was)!!

[Ivo]

No worries mate, hopefully it lasts! I should have taken a few pics when I did it. Would have made it much easier to understand lol.

[Cousin]

I'm gradually ticking off all the things that go wrong on a T5

Up to the door lever now

Broke the other day as I went to get out, pulled it apart today and unclipped this bit off the end of the door release cable






This is where it came off, and it certainly is a poorly thought out design
This bit breaks off, it looks like a complete new door panel. Bloody waste







What I want to do is mount the broken bit back where it came from, but to be strong enough to stay I'll need to glue the two broken edges together with something that melts or fuses plastic together
But I also want to glue the back of the broken bit to the panel behind it
Then just to make sure I'll glue a piece of thick(ish) plastic over the front of this repair







But I don't know what glue I should be using
I need something that basically plastic welds, that is, melts the plastic surfaces to each other
Also need it to be able to span a 1 to 2 mm gap on the back, and not shrink or go brittle

I'm really not up with my glues

Anyone have any ideas what will do the job

I'm happy to leave the door panel off for a few days, or a week even, to make sure it sets properly

Thanks in advance



M

[Transporter]

Try Qbond, you can get it from the Bursons Auto Parts. I fixed shattered door handle on the sliding door (in the house not van) with it some 5 years ago and it's still good.

http://www2.blackwoods.com.au/infoBANKProduct.aspx?SG=2000165&S=4084748&G=2004226&P=2027380

[Ivo]

I glued mine the first time, cant remember if it lasted a few weeks or a few months, it broke again though. I used Araldite. Hopefully that Qbond stuff works, give it a try and report back.

[Cousin]

Thanks Transporter, I'll hunt down some Qbond

Ivo, I thought of an epoxy, or Araldite, but it's not reknown for it's shear strength, and I wasn't really sure what section cops all the tension, hence glueing the back as well

I'll let you know



M

[minniemousey]

i used a mounting cable tie (bunnings have them,22kg strenth) attaching it to the bolt oppisite on the door. i had to cut down the mounting hole as the bolt is short. fiddly but works well so far.
Dan

[minniemousey]

I'm gradually ticking off all the things that go wrong on a T5

Up to the door lever now

Hey Cousin, what else has gone wrong with your T5???! My mirrors keep breaking but that's the missus...

[Cousin]

Hey Cousin, what else has gone wrong with your T5???! My mirrors keep breaking but that's the missus...

Had all the problems in the world getting the wiring right for the towbar, but in all fairness to VW they weren't installing it

Exhaust manifold cracked and had to be replaced

Auto went, left me short a house deposit

And various other niggly bits that are nowhere near as serious or costly as the above


But on a positive, got the door back together tonight, and all working well!!

Here's a pic,





It's not pretty, but if the glue holds, it isn't coming apart again in a hurry


M