A new Idea for Attaching Upper Door Panels

[dvonk]

So I thought I would post an update on my "magnet mod" for the upper door panels. The panels are still holding nicely. I've only had one magnet slide a bit (most likely due to heat), but it didn't affect the functionality, and I wouldn't have noticed if I hadn't been nosing around. I just simply re-gooped it and all is well. I still recommend this mod for cars with the fiberboard door panels.

wow, its been a year already!?

thanks for an update, good to hear that they are still functioning properly.

[darylfelsberg]

Just ordered the same magnets. My driver side upper panel, had it's fir tree placements ripped out. So this sounds like a great way of fixing it. Thanks for the idea!

[Chris 16409]

I just had to remove my panels to install new outer window seals and to get the windows back on track. The magnet mod made the job much easier since I didn't have to waste time with fir trees.

[Chris 16409]

It's hard to believe I started this thread back in 2011. Anyhow, a recent private message about the topic allowed me to revisit this thread. I wanted to provide a current link on where to purchase the magnets:

http://stores.ebay.com/CMS-Magnetics..._sid=110276065

The same seller is still active on eBay and has a huge inventory. I took the liberty to include the magnet size I used in the link above. There are many options with stronger magnets available then 5 years ago. Any yes, my door panels are still holding on tight. No issues to date. If you do the mod, you'll be wondering how you ever lived with the fir trees.

Magnets.jpg

[Chris 16409]

Some people were interested to see the door panel fitment and how they laid down. This is from the driver side door:

IMG_2845.jpg

IMG_2846.jpg

IMG_2847.jpg

[BladeBronson]

Fits better than my panels with fir trees.

[lazabby]

I'm about to do this mod. Any problems using Super Glue to do it? From the pictures it looks like the magnets are glued next to the fir tree holes.

[Chris 16409]

I don't think super glue will have the strength or be able to bond well to the fiber panels. Although some upper door panels are plastic. I use and recommend Goop Adhesive. It takes a day to dry completely, but is very strong. I glued them next to the holes because it provides more surface area for the magnet to be glued down, and attach to the metal bracket. Also the holes on my door panels were pretty chewed up so the magnets wouldn't have stuck anyway.

51uU9L3Ij0L._SX466_.jpg

[lazabby]

I used what Superglue I had for the panels and ended up going to the store to buy Goop. I used that for the magnets. Everything looks good. I'm workoing on refurbishing the door handle now. There is a back cover on it that was separating from the rest of the handle due to the 30+ year glue. I cleaned all that off and used Goop to glue it back together. There is a metal plate (not the bracket) that's part of the handle and it's rusted so I need to fix that. There is a lot of "while I'm in there I might as well take care of ..."

[volkstony]

I am planning on doing this mod. I was wondering if JB weld would work for the magnets