My left hand side door is pretty bad. The door frame is the part thats bad so re-skinning it won't help. Anyone have a decent mk3 door or know where I can pick up a decent used one. I can't see spending $700+ for a new door when I could spend that money on other goodies for the car.

I see that theres a repair panel for the bottom of the door frame but the panel won't cover the sides which are about as bad as the bottom. Anyone have any ideas on how to fix mine if I can't find a used one. The pitting you see in the photo is all the way through and theres rust between the door frame and the skin that I can't get at.

 

You should be able to buy item C below for your roll-up doors. That & a skin (B) should do you.


Check
http://www.m-machine.co.uk/
http://www.minimail.co.uk/products.jsp?q=door

Otherwise, grind the skin off. Weld in new metal. Put on a new skin.

 

Item see is a beatch to fit. good luck.

 

I assume that you have done this repair before then. I figured it was going to be a pain, especially with the raised part that goes around the door cards.

I have door skins on the way and part c is going to come in 7 enterprises next container from the uk. I figured I'd change the skin on the other door as well since shipping is the same for 2 skins as it is for 1.

I'm thinking about just cutting out the flat part of the frame where the holes are, that goes against the door skin and making a new edge with some sort of 90 degree flange that I will weld to the inside of the door frame. And then just fix the 2 or 3 little holes where the rest of part c would go. I guess the worst that can happen is I scap the door and have to get a new one.

 

Unless you have experience with door skins, i would take it to a body shop.

I did my own and it's difficult to gauge the en result without the proper tools.

 

If you take accurate measurements and bring samples of the profile, some sheet metal shops will make you a repair piece to fit. I've done that with inner sills.

 

How much does THAT run??? I need new sills and lower skins on my car as well...

 

If i get this priced I will let you know what they say about pricing on this kind of stuff.

As soon as the skins come in I will take the old one off and tinker a little before I cut anything out. I can get a 3' x 4' sheet of 20 gauge for under 20 bucks so I' may try to make the part myself and then if it doesn't turn out get someone to do it.

 

Just that a sheet metal shop has large brakes to form the bends that you need in a very neat manner. Makes life much easier

As far as complete sills, they are cheap to purchase already formed from any Mini supplier. I suggested the sheet metal route for repair pieces that are not easily available.

 

hardest thing to do is keeping the bottom looking straight and the corners looking round.

 

I've been using a 2 pieces of 4x4 lumber and clamping them together as a homemade break. It works well enough, but I know what you mean about the bottom being straight. I was going to try to use the old skin as a template if I don't totally trash it when I take it off.

 

In case anyone else runs into this problem heres how I fixed it.

1) I peeled back the bottom edge of the old skin slightly and carefully.
2) I cut out the rusted metal along the curve of the door frame.
3) I then pried out the rusted piece from between the skin that I had previously bent back
4) I made a new piece to follow the outer edge of the door frame.
5) Welded the new piece along the corner of the door frame and as elprofe mentioned it was not perfectly straight.
6) I then made a piece of wood the width of the bottom of the frame to the bottom of the skin. This was so I could lean the door against a wall and use the floor as a straight edge when I installed the new skin.
7) I removed the old skin.
8) I used my board to line up the new skin with the floor as my straight edge.
9) Clamped and installed skin.