I need to replace the door handle on my truck, and I want to be careful when
removing the panel. I got the upper most (small) triangle portion off and
noticed a panel clip that I have not seen before. Is the whole door panel
using these clips? Is there a special tool that I will need to get the
panel off without damage? Will I have to sacrifice the clips and get new
ones?
Any help would be greatful....the book is not helping much here....
Eightupman
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.
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Door Panel Removal 1996 GMC C1500
Group: alt.trucks.chevy Date: Sat, Nov 22, 2003, 9:17pm (CST+6) From:
snipped-for-privacy@newemail.com (Eightupman)
I need to replace the door handle on my truck, and I want to be careful
when removing the panel. I got the upper most (small) triangle portion
off and noticed a panel clip that I have not seen before. Is the whole
door panel using these clips? Is there a special tool that I will need
to get the panel off without damage? Will I have to sacrifice the clips
and get new ones?
Any help would be greatful....the book is not helping much here....
Eightupman
..
..
8-up,
run down to the parts store and pick up a
door panel clip tool. It shouldn't run more than
4 or 5 dollars. It's notched to "receive" the clip
and pop it out the metal case of the door, leaving it attached to the
panel. And it has
an offset to give you leverage.
yes....the clips are all along the bottom edge and the sides.....
When poping them out of the metal part of the door.....be carefull to
get the tool between the
metal door shell and the clip....it's easy to miss
it and put the tool between the clip and the trim panel, which will
result in poping the clip out of
the trim panel and possibly messing up the trim
panel so the clip can't be reused.
You could fashion the tool out of a cheap putty
knife.....just cut a "V" shaped notch in it so it
will slide around the clip, between the metal panel and the clip. It
won't have the angeled
offset for leverage, so it won't work as easy...
but doable in a pinch. If you have a set of
"Long Nose" needle nose pliers laying around,
that works perty nifty too.
good luck
marsh
~:~
If the clips are the same as that of a 1998, then they are two pieces...
a male piece attached to the door panel and female piece inserted in
the door. You can begin pulling the panel away from the door gently by
hand from the top edge where you have removed the triangle and then
slide your hand down along the panel until you reach each clip. A swift
pull on the panel and the clip will release. The clip is a serrated
stud that protudes into the plastic receptacle inserted into the door
itself. I was unaware that there was a formal tool and removed my door
panel several times trying to fix an intermittent window regulator
issue. The door panel in the area of the retention clips is realatively
strong... unlike the cardboard-like panels on my old Chevelle that uses
metal clips.
One thing that will kill the clips is if you step on them after you
remove the door panel. I went to the Chevy dealer and got a new one for
basically pocket change, about $0.75.
Remember the screws in the arm rest where you grab the door to close it.
The plastic cover around the interior door handle has a few tabs that
hold it in place, just find them and press then in with a skinny narrow
screwdriver.
If you are fortunate you are replacing the interior door handle which is
quite easy and straight forward. And accessible as well.
If you are replacing the outside door handle this was a bit tricky for
me. The '98 has a metal panel screwed to the inside of the door that
holds the handle, regulator etc. The panel is a large rectangle that
covers the entire area under the door panel, well almost the entire
area. It is unlike my 1993 was, the '93 had the older style one piece
door with select holes cut in the inside of the door to allow access to
the various features. If your door is like a '98 model, you can remove
the screws that hold the inner metal panel along the rear edge and the
bottom approximately 1/2 way to 3/4 of the way toward the front of the
door. This will give enough access to allow you to pry the rear edge of
the metal panel away and gain acces to the outside door handle.
Note that there is a retention tab in the center of the door at the
bottom that holdes the metal panel to the inside of the door, I guess it
helps combat gravity.
You want to have the window in the full up position. I applied duct
tape to the inside of the window, ran it over the top of the door frame
and then applied it to the outside of the window just in case something
that I did allowed the window to drop in the door. This was not the case.
Anyway replacing the exterior handle took about 10 minutes altogether.
There is only one bolt inside the door and one in the jam of the door.
The one in the jam is visible without andy disassembly.
Good luck and have fun. Email if you have any specific questions, I'm
no expert but I typically ask for help here.
If you are replacing the outside handle I'd be curious as to what went
wrong with it. While cleaning my truck one day, I wiped the door jam
with a towel and moved the lathcing mechanism to the closed position.
When I shut the door the mechanism was already in the latched position
and the force shoved the mechanism further inside the door... the
attached rod shattered the exterior door handle. Duh...
Kip
Eightupman wrote:
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