defender door rebuild

guys

does anyone know what the thin strip of steel is for which sits behind the window guides on the front doors?
ta

They're shims to compensate for the shoddy Land Rover manufacturing discrepancies ( seriously, they are ! ).

lol...
so they could be fitted without as mine have rotted out anyway.

justin king said:

lol...
so they could be fitted without as mine have rotted out anyway.

Click to expand...

Should be alright, although I seem to recall they may help keep the bottom of the guides straight, as I think they extend down a bit further than the part of the frame they screw into ( if that makes sense! ).
Could be wrong about that too!

When I rebuilt my doors I didn't put them back in. I put new window guides in, bought from SP Land Rover, and my windows are nice and tight.

When i rebuilt mine I just used the old shims. I guess at worst the windows would be loose. I think I've got some spare ones somewhere if you are desperate

Fitting new channels makes a big difference, holds the window nice and firm, assume you'd be doing this as you're rebuilding the door.

thanks.

yes all the original plastic trim / channels needs to be replaced. some got damaged due to rusted fixing screws.

Hey all,

As I have sprayed the whole car I also removed the internal lining of the doors to check their state and all doors are in pretty good shape (1996 built) I am not stripping off the skin nor repainting the steel structure and the skins separately - I just left it as it was and sprayed it inside out.

Now before putting the lining back I have been thinking of what to do to lengthened their lifetime and reduce the noise they do during travel

I plan to:

1) apply PU sealant between steel and alu where I can see some gaps so to 'isolate' the two materials OR do you feel is better to leave it alone ?
2) apply Waxoyl across the structure door through the various holes present
3) apply insulation material across the door (see pic attached)

Would appreciate to hear your thoughts on this?