Jammed Doors

[Dame]

I've just bought another MK2, It's been sitting in a garden for the past 12 Months, and unfortunately both doors have rusted shut, we had to get in by smashing one of the quarter windows and then open the sunroof etc.

Does anyone have any idea as to how I can set about opening these again? It seems impossible to gain access to any of the lock linkage without literally sawing into the door trims, which considering they're in perfect condition I dont want to do. The central locking tried to open the doors, but since everything is seized nothing happends :(.

[Kelvyn]

Will the windows go down?? If so you could try winding them down then get a longsish piece of vacuum pipe stuck onto a can of good old WD40 so that you can lube all the mechanisms. Even if the windows wont move you should still be able to get past the weather seals..

[Avatar]

detatch the Battery so the central locking does not relock the car after failing, then unlock the door. You will need to push the door from the inside while someone holds handle from the outside.

Don't ask how i know this.. I had a few problems with my drives door after a custom mod.. *cough*

[JappyBeast]

Never seen 'Mk2 MR2' and 'rusted' in the same line before!

[ZeroBlade]

Never seen 'Mk2 MR2' and 'rusted' in the same line before!

not in a maintained car, but keep in mind its bin stood in a garden for a yr!

-Z

[Dame]

Cool thanks for the feedback guys :). Jappybeast, what Zeroblade says is absolutely right, if a car stands for some time, you would be amazed at how quickly parts can go rusty. This one has been exposed to a fari amount of damp, hence problems inside. On the ous side, it only cost me £200 (1994 Rev 3), so TBH these little problems aren't half so bad. I just wish it would stop !Removed! raining!!!!

[JappyBeast]

I want a rev 3 for £200!!

Where did you get that from?

You can pay £200 just for the rear lights these days.

[Dame]

I picked it up from a work collegue. Its been off the road for a couple of years and needs some work i.e. some bits have seized but everything electrical etc. is in good working order. The main problem is that it blew a spark plug which has stripped the thread in the head. I am hoping that I can use an insert and rethread tool to fix this problem, though TBH it will be better to get a specialist to do this since the thread will have to be dead straight. The affected plug can be fitted to the car (the AA assistannt removed the washer, but only as a very temporary solution. I am keeping diary of the restoration project, and it will be going up with piccies on my website in due course. Hopefully it will be inspation to those who never felt confident about working on their cars. It can be a pain at times, but when you get it right, the feeling of achievement is awesome :)

I'll let you know when the first installment of the diary is ready.

[mattmr2]

Sounds like a good project dame...whats your plan for it when its done?

If you need any help then just give us a shout - I'm starting to rebuild a rev 3 Turbo that has blown a piston, just need to work out if the block is rescueable - it needs some serious boring, should be good when its done though.

Good luck mate...

Matt

[Dame]

Hey Matt. The plan for it when it's done is to give it to the other half. She's finishing a Psychology degree at the moment so it will be a pressie for finishing. From my perspective, i want to learn as much about the cars as possible. My background is Landrovers and Range Rovers, know lots about them, but until recently very little about the MR2 (scandelous considering I've had the Tubby for 5 years!).

It's kinda strange that my Tubby has started playing up today. There's something amiss in the top end - rattling - I think there's a problem with the cams or the valves. Hopefully we'll be able to get the top off next weekend (I have a mate who a qualified mechanic and very knowledagable on Turbo charged cars). I'm planning to help him out and learn learn learn......

Thanks for the offer of help Matt, I may well take you up on that. As you know we're already hunting for a replacement engine for the White MR2 (as I will call it from now on....) so any help on that front would be much appreciated. As far as I see it at the moment, if there is something seriously wrong with the Tubby, the white MR2 may be going on the road very soon (if only I had loads of cash eh?)!!

At the end of the day it's all about having fun, and I'm, fortunate that we have a few cars at home so having (now a couple) of MR2's off the road isn't really an issue, but I want to get the tubby fixed soon cos she's so much fun..... :)

[Dame]

Hooray, doors are finally unjammed! We had to prise open the door panels to get at the lock linkage, it was rusted solid on both doors. Bit of good old WD40 did the trick..... Once the door was open, I removed the opanels and applied liberal amounts of greese - so no more sticking door for me..... Door panels bend back into original shape easily - tough little blighters :).