The Daytona: December 6, 2002
by Russ Knize on Dec.06, 2002, under Daytona
I managed to fix the driver’s side door and the passenger side window (regulator tape cut too short). The door wouldn’t open because the striker bolt hammered out the steel on the latch housing, causing it to mushroom and bind up the latch itself. I soaked the whole thing in gasoline to clean the grime, used a Dremel to remove the mushroomed metal, and oiled the latch with motor oil. The door opens fine now, but still doesn’t exactly “pop” open the way it should. The worn hinges may have something to do with that. The doors need weather stripping as well. The driver’s side window tends to bind sometimes on the way up. Looks like it’s not being guided properly.
I cleaned the armrest when I put the door back together and it no longer matched the rest of the dirty interior. So, I took some time to clean the dashboard, center console, steering wheel, etc. Looks much better now. I also fixed the power mirror wiring and properly attached the center console to the dashboard. There are a lot of broken pieces in there, so hopefully I’ll get them from Bill’s Lazer.