Door panel repair

[thelews]

In the '71 280 SL I'm detailing for a friend, the corner of the passenger door was wrinkly and an immediate eyesore.  There was nothing there to hold it.  When I felt behind, dust would fall out and I suspected the panel had deteriorated.  So, I took it off and such was the case.  Cut panel material back to solid paneling and then bought some plexiglass of the same thickness.  Good material as it's waterproof and has the flexibility to conform to the curve in the channels.  I didn't overly concern myself with attachment of the splice to the original panel as there is metal support behind the panel in the door and the channels will keep the insert and original panel in its proper position.  Some tape, glue and reuse of some of the old staples and she is as good as new.  Cost excluding what I had on hand, $3.50 for the plexiglass, and my time.  

Pictures of before, repair and after

[tuultyme]

What caused the door panel to deteriorate?  For such a nice looking car where was water getting to the door panel?

[thelews]

quote:Originally posted by tuultyme

What caused the door panel to deteriorate?  For such a nice looking car where was water getting to the door panel?

Beats me.  The car is an older restoration so it must have been before then.

[Douglas]

It's interesting to be reminded that the door panels are not supposed to be straight. There's a pretty strong bend in them that we forget about. Nice work, John.

[al_lieffring]

Originally posted by tuultyme

What caused the door panel to deteriorate?  For such a nice looking car where was water getting to the door panel?
[/quote

Did the car have the vapor barrier film left out after a previous repair?

That is usually the reason for a door pannel deteriorating like this.

[waqas]

quote:Originally posted by thelews

quote:Originally posted by tuultyme

What caused the door panel to deteriorate?  For such a nice looking car where was water getting to the door panel?

Beats me.  The car is an older restoration so it must have been before then.

The likeliest source is through the window felt-lined edges.

I'll bet the door drain holes were clogged at some point (assuming they're clear now). When water enters the door, it tends to gather near the forward section due to the tilt of the whole car. The inner plastic sheet was probably not completely sealed from the lowest edges. The card would easily soak up water, and moisture likely flowed up through diffusion.

You can see evidence of moisture on the entire lower edge of the card.

[bpossel]

Hi John,

Your friend is lucky to have a nice friend like you to help him...
Great repair job!  Very creative!
Bob  

[thelews]

Obviously moisture got in, and the clogged holes theory sounds reasonable.  I'm going to double check them.  The vapor barrier is intact, in fact, I forgot to take the picture showing it as being I think original and how nice everything seemed to look behind it.