Hello, I have a problem with my door panels. Over the years they have been off by different shops. Its hard to believe that would not have known how to take these off without damaging them. What has happen the hooks top and bottom have been broken off. These were part of the original door moulding. Not all the hooks have gone, primarily the top ones. My question for the list is has anybody got a good solution to fix these. The ones at the top are particually critical because they hold the panel in. Otherwise you will get a gap at the top. Then squeaking and rattling. Please advise. Brian

Hi, Brian, I broke one once and I used Gorilla Glue to put it back, and it seemed to be strong enough to survive the reinstallation of the panel, anyway. Of course, this won't work if you don't have the broken pieces; in that case salvage panels from a donor car would be my next step. If you can devise a simple repair you might share it with us. Regards.

Go to Ace hardware and pick up a package of metal corner braces. They have some that are about 1 1/4 inches wide and 3/4 inches deep on each side that work perfectly. Get some JB Weld and some short screws to attach the braces to the plastic on the inside of the door.

Spot where you are going to put the braces and drill a couple of holes in the plastic (carefully so that you do not go all the way through. Mix up the JB weld and put it on the panel, then attach each brace with the short screws and cover the top with JB Weld.

Let it set overnight and then carefully bend the braces out a little bit to conform to the tabs that are still there.

It will be stronger than new when you hang the panel on the door.

While you have the door panel off you might want to renew the thin foam cushion behind the center part of the panel. Just pop off the clips that hold the masonite backing board to the door panel. Peel the MB Tex back and sweep out the old crumbs that are left from the original cushion and cut out a new cushion. Then reinstall.

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Tom Hughes
St. Louis
84 300SD
92 300D
86 300SDL