Is there a non-weld repair for the door stays?

asummers · Post by **asummers** » 18 Aug 2010, 11:47

Has anyone developed a non-weld repair for the door stays on the 850's and S70's? After looking at mine I can envision a backing piece that goes inside the hole and a front piece with the tab to bolt the arm to. These two pieces bolt together, and the bolts are threaded into the back plate with self-locking nuts installed from the front. It would take some filing or drilling to get the bolts in the right place. Maybe it's time to start cutting and heating up some steel and see what I can make.

C@lvin · Post by **C@lvin** » 18 Aug 2010, 12:25

I have seen a post somewhere (sorry, don't remember where- may have been here.....) where someone used a couple of large machine screws to reinforce the mating surfaces of the stay and the door frame, but from the looks of it yours is too far gone. Mine looks just like yours. I have kept it on my to-do list to remove the door and find a solution but just haven't been motivated enough to carve out the time for that project. After living with a free swinging driver's door for three years, it has just become second nature to hold onto the door when openning it.

Post by **holler1** » 18 Aug 2010, 13:11

asummers wrote:Has anyone developed a non-weld repair for the door stays on the 850's and S70's? After looking at mine I can envision a backing piece that goes inside the hole and a front piece with the tab to bolt the arm to. These two pieces bolt together, and the bolts are threaded into the back plate with self-locking nuts installed from the front. It would take some filing or drilling to get the bolts in the right place. Maybe it's time to start cutting and heating up some steel and see what I can make.

I think that's a good idea and should work. I've thought about something like that but never put the time in to do it. If you come up with a design, I would be very interested. Mine is like yours-not much left of the sheet metal that used to hold the stay. The back plate would have to fit really well against the remainder of the sheet metal.

oughorian · Post by **oughorian** » 18 Aug 2010, 15:15

It is possible to repare the door by using machine screw but you have to have some bases to do I did my passgr. door with a very good result, there was a crack around outer side of door stoper in early stage of this common problem so I made five proper size of hole and used high strenght alloy machine screw, in this case i'm not sure you can repare yours without welding I mean in this case welding is a easiest option.

C@lvin · Post by **C@lvin** » 18 Aug 2010, 16:39

[quote="holler1"]. The back plate would have to fit really well against the remainder of the sheet metal.[quote="asummers"]

If you figure out how to flatten the sheet metal back out, let us know. seems like that would be pretty difficult. But if you could get it to fit flat against each other like holler1 says, you could also reinfoce the whole repair with some JB Weld. I don't think the JB Weld would do much good by itself, but it could act like some pretty serious glue to help hold all the other repair pieces that you'll bolt together.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 18 Aug 2010, 17:13

Your post looks very bad and I can't imagine a fix that doesn't include welding. Try to find someone who has done it before or at least can figure out that there is an electrical connector directly next to the door check. Sometimes wet rags around the welding surface can prevent damage to the wires to the door but don't let someone just fire up the mig and go after it.

The risk of damaging the wiring is high and it is a bigger PITA than the door check was in the first place.

...Lee

Post by **JRL** » 18 Aug 2010, 17:23

That jam is the worst I've ever seen
If it's just barely split out of the door yes, (which is what I thought you were going to post), that one is major surgery!
(That was me. I've secured them with large bolts and washers, but this one needs to be welded or don't do anything at all)

Post by **thecheat** » 18 Aug 2010, 18:09

You may have to cut the mount out of a donor car's A-pillar and weld it into yours.

crh · Post by **crh** » 18 Aug 2010, 19:11

Man, that is a serious hole in yer A-pillar... and *right* where the most strength should be retained... here's the deal... I'm not a pro welder, but have a few friends who are- from a 30- year veteran offshore oil rigger welder/diver to a grandfather who learned welding from guys who helped build the Empire State Building... I may just kite your pic, with your permission, to 'em. That said, if you're serious about keeping your ride for awhile, half-measures like a 'no-weld solution' are an oxymoron (no pun intended, brother- seriously!)... that bad boy needs a MIG solution and right away... it'll take a MIG welder to get you on a bus *back* to f*cked...

Get over to a shop that you or friends trust to be a no-bs, top-notch body shop. Make an appointment so that you can have the car in front of their 'senior' MIG guy- the guy they call to get the 'regular MIG guy' out of a jam, when you arrive at their shop. I know- $$$... but they'll know how to deal with wiring and all those issues quickly and safely while fixing the metal, because *that's what they do*... that hole needs a pro's hand, asap.. the structural integrity of the A-pillar been compromised and the door, no lightweight on a Volvo anyway, isn't exactly gonna get lighter anytime soon- IOW, it can only go one way- down, and literally. The road to the ER is paved, literally, with no-weld solutions and the like... I outta know, I've been on that gurney for my *own* 'no-weld solution' or two myself in the last 40 years...

Before any more damage occurs and the A-pillar becomes any weaker, do the above. Get a few quotes, if need be- check with yer IP- they may be able to cover this, maybe not- but FIX IT, and SOON. Best-case scenario: the door's fixed for a few hundred bucks structurally and they leave the area in a 'masked-off' primer condition for you to finish as you wish, somewhat preserving the RV of your ride and TOTALLY preserving you, yer door, and the reason Volvos are so good at passive safety when the active safety's done it's thing... they <rock> at saving your *ss in an accident.. but only if the A-pillars aren't torn all to hell!

EDIT/UPDATE- Hope ya don't mind, but I DID forward the link to this thread and that A-pillar pic to one of my MIG-wielding friends who's familiar with Euro-body-shop job rates... put his MIG thumb on the shop's 'scale'... rough estimate of maybe 3 bills, give or take... and of course *take* that with a grain 'o salt, but it sounds like a decent investment in yer beauty's health if ya ask me... and, well- you did!

Post by **holler1** » 18 Aug 2010, 19:18

asummers,
My door is like yours. I agree a good welder should be able to fix it but I talked to some and no one wanted to do a small job like that in a difficult place. I'm rooting for your fix to work and I think it can with some imaginative engineering! Good luck.