1988 735i Doorpost Repair.

[bill7351]

Hey bimmer specialists-can you advise me how to go about this-the welded bracket for the door retaining arm has torn away from the doorpost?I suppose the obvious is just weld it up-any& all tips welcome.
This door must have had few thousand cycles.

[nuts4bmw]

ooooooh! That'll be a nasty job. Good luck with it!

[bill7351]

Originally Posted by nuts4bmw ooooooh! That'll be a nasty job. Good luck with it!

Thanks.Ya,it dont look too good,but I hope it is straight forward enough to weld on a plate over the door post and place the bracket back.
Have you seen this before?

[nuts4bmw]

No I haven't. Is it rusted through or is it metal fatigue that caused it to pull through?

[bill7351]

Originally Posted by nuts4bmw No I haven't. Is it rusted through or is it metal fatigue that caused it to pull through?

It appears to me it is metal fatigue-there may be a little paint blistering around the tear dont know how old this is or if any rust inside-I'll have a closer look.

[adrian_325]

i am no welder myself but my brother is by trade. having seen some of the repairs he has done restoring cars and from looking at your photo, it looks very doable to me. are you planning on tackling this yourself or having a shop do it for you?

[bill7351]

Originally Posted by adrian_325 i am no welder myself but my brother is by trade. having seen some of the repairs he has done restoring cars and from looking at your photo, it looks very doable to me. are you planning on tackling this yourself or having a shop do it for you?

Hi Adrian,
I'm no welder either-I was planning to have my brake shop mechanic have a look at it,unless your brother lives in Calgary.I agree with you brother.
Bill.

[rottenal]

Give this a looksee,may be of some use to you.

http://www.koalamotorsport.com/e32e3...ate.asp?cat=78

and here's some pics of what the arm attaches to INSIDE the door.The piece was removed from inside the door for display/info purposes.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...s/IMG_5186.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...s/IMG_5188.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...s/IMG_5190.jpg

Good luck,hope this will help you cobble something together.

[bill7351]

Originally Posted by rottenal Give this a looksee,may be of some use to you. http://www.koalamotorsport.com/e32e3...ate.asp?cat=78 and here's some pics of what the arm attaches to INSIDE the door.The piece was removed from inside the door for display/info purposes. http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...s/IMG_5186.jpg http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...s/IMG_5188.jpg http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c1...s/IMG_5190.jpg Good luck,hope this will help you cobble something together.

This looks exactly what the fix should be-I was thinking along these lines-Thanks for the info & photos-very helpful.I'll post a photo in a few weeks of my fix.
Bill.

[Babbitmike]

From the way the paint is blistered it looks like you may have a good amount of rust around the hinge. Can you get into it from the back side? If you can I bet it's in pretty bad shape. Water however shouldn't be getting back inside there unless a seal has broken.

[bill7351]

Originally Posted by Babbitmike From the way the paint is blistered it looks like you may have a good amount of rust around the hinge. Can you get into it from the back side? If you can I bet it's in pretty bad shape. Water however shouldn't be getting back inside there unless a seal has broken.

Hi Mike,
I don't think there is much or any rust behind the post-the car is pretty free of rust anywhere.
Dont know if you have seen the other replies, but I got the answer from Rottenal, he sent me this link-that's the way to go.
http://www.koalamotorsport.com/e32e3...ate.aspcat=78

[Shocka]

I had a real shitty jetta once, the hinges sagged and eventually broke the part on the body frame where the catch on the door grabs it. They just cut a square out and remounted the "post" onto the square and welded it in place worked great after. Doesnt look too different from your problem.

[bill7351]

Originally Posted by Shocka I had a real shitty jetta once, the hinges sagged and eventually broke the part on the body frame where the catch on the door grabs it. They just cut a square out and remounted the "post" onto the square and welded it in place worked great after. Doesnt look too different from your problem.

Hi Shocka,
Sounds like your Door hinge fix turned out ok.
For the Door brake bracket, a weld-on patch should be no problem. Did you see this link I got from Rottenal-its perfect-I am going to order this bracket kit from these guys.Cheers,Bill.
http://www.koalamotorsport.com/e32e3...ate.aspcat=78

[bill7351]

Hey rottenal,Happy New Year!
No news on my door post for now-it's been friggin freezing,getting better though.
Can you help me with a radio code? I am looking at another 735I, but it won't start: The battery went dead, its recharged, now the car alarm goes off then shuts the car down? Can't start it?Any ideas.
Thanks buddy.