Cheap fix for a door panel screw up?

[FishinCricket]

Everyone feel free to chime in and laugh at me, I think I just cost myself what I was trying to save myself!

I was replacing the power window motor and regulator on the driver side of my 2003 GMC Yukon and somehow managed to screw up the ideal sequence of events and tried to pull the power window switch out of the drivers door too early.. I ended up breaking the little clip at the bottom of the window switch panel that clips into the arm rest portion of the door panel...

Now that I've put it all back together the power window switch panel is just hanging loose with nothing to clip into. The armrest is removable but the parts department can't get just the armrest..

I can probably epoxying the part or something, is there any other inexpensive fix you can think of?

 

[BaMaDuDe87]

I'd say junkyard or epoxy are prob your best bets.

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[Rivieraracing]

Got a pic of the damage?

 

[FishinCricket]

Got a pic of the damage?

I didn't think to take a photo before I put everything back together..

I'm sure I already know the fix.. I spose when I get the part found I'll come back here and show how I fixed/ replaced it. :feeling_ dumb:

 

[Gzes]

Plastic weld

 

[FishinCricket]

Plastic weld

Yeah, I'll definitely give that a shot first, I just don't have much hope for that thin piece of plastic...

 

[YukonXL04]

From your description it sounds like the damage is on the panel that holds the switches, that clips into the armrest... right?

 

[FishinCricket]

Yes, the end of the armrest itself, past the foam is the white square plastic clip housing.. Here's the broken end of it:

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[Rivieraracing]

Ouch, that sucks! Was hoping you were talking about the tabs on the switch itself and not the armrest but I figured it was something different than I was reading! If it's hard plastic, epoxy might be your best bet, super glue won't be strong enough!

 

[YukonXL04]

Yea that's not going to stay with epoxy... lol... you can lift the switch up and shoot some hot glue under there... won't be permanent And still stay in place. I have done it to others before

 

[Gzes]

I think plastic weld will work just get it hot enough to bond. I had to remake where my under column panel goes and it turned out great. I used zip ties as the material and a torch and metal strip as the heatin element

 

[FishinCricket]

The offending part.. I may as well try and epoxy it first, see what happens...

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[JochenWoern]

The offending part.. I may as well try and epoxy it first, see what happens...

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Good luck.

 

[YukonXL04]

It will probably hold as long as you don't take that panel off ever again lol. Good luck. I hope OT works for you

 

[FishinCricket]

Luckily for me I've got access to a body shop and the stuff I used is the same stuff they use to deal body panels together...

Still feel free to wish me luck though. lol


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---------- Post added at 02:29 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:58 PM ----------

The epoxy appears to have done the job! . This 3M stuff:

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[FishinCricket]

Update: the epoxy quit me...

Back to square one!


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[YukonXL04]

You could try cutting a piece of thin metal to cover it, spread the epoxy all over, lay your metal down then after if dries cut the slot back out and that should hold.

 

[FishinCricket]

Yeah, that's what I was thinkin...

For now I double sided sticky taped that lil bastid.. It'll hold for now.


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[YukonXL04]

Haha whatever works.

 

[Jlaughtr]

I have broken the same piece just from using the door handle to shut the door i guess. Can you not just buy the piece or do you have to buy the whole door panel? I'm even thinking of just running an epoxy or glue on the rim of the panel and just sticking it on there without using the clip..