door check strap popping - any fix?
 

metal check strap on driver's door is popping every time I get in or out. Is there a way to fix this?

I am guessing this might be a common problem with age of the car. 1982 300SD. Looks like it may have come loose inside the firewall side.

Thanks. Haven't been on here in a long time. Moved to a new job and in a rural area. Dialup sucks. Satelite internet my only option for high speed. Hopefully will be hooked up soon. Hope everyone is doing great.

290k miles and the 300sd is still running strong

Do you have cracks in the door jam pillar area where the strap comes through?

You might consider replacing it. They do wear out.

Steve

Open her up and take a look. My '95 did this when I first bought it; I removed the door panel and the check had cracked. Put in a new one (very easy, removing the panel is the hard part) and pop was gone.

Fix it soon or you may come to a time when the door will not close.

Len

Or worse. Mine tore a hole in the sheet metal of the dorr and I had no idea until the situation caused a broken window.:(

If it's the strap replace it. If it's the mount on the door frame/body I ran some screws in mine about a year ago and it still is ok. There is a backing plate inside the door frame that you can snug up with some screws. Try moving the door back and forth while looking at this area to see if the original welds are popping.

Call or email:

Phil 1-888-333-4642 - philip@peachparts.com 9AM-6PM ET
Roy 1-800-970-7027 - roy@peachparts.com NOON-9PM ET

You are looking at a $20ish part. Replace it before you door is stuck open at 12am on a Friday night with a -15 windchill. Don't ask how I know.

If you need to replace it, use the early 123 style. It is a MUCH better built unit and they are interchangible.

Good luck,

same problem - see photo
 

willrev, does your's look like this? I'm having the same problem you describe on my 82 300SD. It looks like the outer two weld spots (A) have broken, leaving only the inner two (B) to hold the backing plate. Note stress cracks in the paint (C) where the door pillar sheet metal is flexing. If I put my fingers on the hinge at (D) when I move the door, I can feel the 'pop' pretty strongly, although it feels like it's coming from the hinge itself rather than something inside the pillar.

Phil, looking at this photo, where exactly would you recommend putting screws? If I put them right at (A), the heads will hit the weatherstripping when closed.

pjc

If you look closely at the picture you can see where the 4 spot welds are. I would say run in screws inside of the line of welds. When I did this on mine I had the kick panel off and I could just put my finger in to touch the back of the backing plate. I always thought if it gives me anymore trouble I will put in a machine screw and nut to hold it as that would be even more secure.

Yeah, I was just reading that thread over this weekend. Twas lucky you were at home when it happened :).

Lots of interesting bits of info and member history in those old threads.

It wasn't him, it was me, I was stuck in my driveway at 2am dremeling off my door check with an outside temp of about 6F. Not the most fun thing to be doing...and I am still waiting for my new check to come....I ordered it saturday....thank you for the sympathies though. :)

buy two
 

Replace the check strap to be done with the issue. Buy two to have an extra for when (Not If) the next time one of them begins to fail. My experience is the driver's door fails first followed soon by the strap on the right rear passenger door. If they have not been cared for properly (at least occasionally lubed) the least used doors are particularly susceptible to failing when metals are frozen.

Oh, you do know that too much lithium grease just wears those things out. The book indicates lube at every 15k...:book:

My old check strap's grease had turned into a hard, gum-like substance that certainly had no lubricant value. It felt absolutely horrible opening my door when the temperature got under 40 degrees.

I lubed up the new one and stuck it in and unfortunately opening the door is still notchy and not totally smooth but much improved.

Surprisingly my front door checks seem to be the originals...:confused: Maybe its because they're used more? Both rear have failed....:dizzy2:

Definitely the strap. Replace it. They start popping before they go. When it does go, you won't be able to close the door. And if you try hard enough, you'll break something else.

Nope, mine was coming out of a meeting and putting my notes in the back seat.

cdplayer
 

Your body style is W126. Go to EBay motors online. Click on car,truck link.
In the search bar type in Mercedes door straps. You can get them for approx. $10.00 each new plus shipping to your door. Very easy to install once you get the door panel off. Good time to clean and lube the window track. Also spray in some lithium grease on the window motor gears. They tend to gum up over time.:kid:

Call me Noon to nine PM
 

It is an easy job.

All is normal, the Ebay part number is a typo 12672000516.
Almost right does not count.

The correct MB# is 1267200516

Hmmm?
$10.00 for the Ebay part + $11.00 USPS shipping = $21.00


Have a great day.

door check
 

After reading this thread I picked up a door check yesterday. So... Anyone figure out how to reinforce the area inside the fender? I'll take a pic soon, but it looks like one of the four welds on mine has already popped. Can a steel plate be placed inside the fender (someone said maybe through the kick panel? If it was larger in surface area than the backing plate in the fender, maybe I could tap and then screw into that and reduce the flexing? That whole area on the fender (where the pin of the door check connectes) flexes more than I like (maybe it's OK and I'm paranoid, but it already popped one spot weld).

Hi there fellow SL owners! This is my first MB (86 560sl). Last year when I bought the car, I replaced the door strap on the drivers side because it was popping and it had about 84k miles. My question is...how long should this part last? It has been popping again, about 2 months now and probably put on 10000 miles (drive it daily). Just curious how long this part should last. I know I bought an older car with older parts but I am surprised since I replaced it with a newer part. Could anything else be wrong? Thank you all for your help.

your sure you couldnt just hit that real quick with a mig welder?

The strap assembly came loose at the end that is inside my driver side door. However, whatever it is that is on the inside of the door that I am supposed to screw the bolt into...is not there.

How do I disassemble the door so that I can fix this?

Answer
 

Inner Door Panel Removal DIY Links
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diy-links-parts-category/150747-inner-door-panel-removal-diy-links.html

Note:
The check strap assembly is broken.

I replaced my strap and it broke within two weeks. It still keeps the door from going too far but it does not hold it open...I can live with that.

I have had several fail, most likely from a lack of lubrication. Junk yard parts to the rescue, along with a little lithium grease.