I’m helping SB914 get his passenger door handle to work. The interior pull works fine; the exterior pull will not work unless I push in on the door first.
Took the handle out; it’s ok
There’s not a lot of adjustment for the mechanism and i’m Trying to not remove it.
Anyone else had this problem ?

I have always considered the 914 door handles to be a week link in the chain. Keeping in mind this was an "entry level" Porsche with a lot of VW parts. I'm not sure what adjustments can be done. This isn't a problem I have experienced. The only advice I can give as far as door handle parts would be to take some time and clean them up good, then make sure everything is lubricated well. I do this once a year just as a preventive measure.
Cheers, Elliot

Jim,

The handle looks to be very dirty. It needs to be cleaned or otherwise it will stick.

The striker plate....shown on the door is adjustable via the large screws in the jamb.

Others will chime in.

its been rebuilt. Notice that one side is a philips head the other still has a rivet~? not stock

Your door looks like it needs to be adjusted. Sounds like the latch isn’t lining up and it is binding.

Thanks for those tips: I’ll clean the handle anyway. With the handle out of the door, I have push against the door to get the arm (?) on the mechanism to move and open the door.
Will try loosiening the screws that hold the mech. To the door and see if it helps.

Please post the solution when you figure it out. I have the same problem.

Sounds like the plate that is on the door jamb needs adjusting.

That's the only thing that would explain why you have to push the door in before it opens.

The door gap sure looks tight. Also, the door could be moved up a couple of mm to match the rear quarter. That might give you a little bit of wiggle room.

Not the handle. The latch on the door is dirty

Loosened and reset the catch on the door jamb, working 90% better . Gonna take a closer look at the door height

First adjust the door at the hinges so you've got a good edges alignment at the top & bottom, as well as even gaps at front & rear.

2nd clean the handle & make sure it's operating properly then reinstall it (you may want to make sure that phillips screw is tight - it may have been rebuilt, or maybe just the rivet popped-off/broke & the PO fixed with the screw, which may not hold properly & be causing the problem (see replacement options below)).

3rd your can tweak the adjustment at the striker, after the handles & linkages are all in & adjusted properly, & after the door itself is adjusted properly at #1 & #2 for the handle.

If it still isn't working properly after all adjustment ends up being a defective outside handle, then SB914 may want to get either a new genuine or repro handle - & it looks like a new resto/repaint - so IMHO go original, since they're better for the money.


Tom
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There is good info in the factory manual on adjusting the striker and it wasn't intuitive to me so might be worth a look. Here are some screen grabs. Maybe they will help?

Click to view attachment
Click to view attachment
Click to view attachment

And... Looks like the whole door needs to be lifted at the hinges. That alone might cure the binding.

Thanks Tom; Is there a trick to loosening the door hinges so the door can be moved up 1 -2 mm ? Seems like the weight could result in the door moving downward ?

Loosen the 6 bolts at the front hinges and move the door up. A helper is probably necessary

The inside of the door latches work SO much better (like butter) when you take them out and really soak them in a degreaser. I used gasoline because I had it handy.

The mechanisms are fairly bomb proof inside the door, they just get dirty and mucked up.

Don't loosen the door hinges ...

The best and easiest way to move the rear of the door up a few mm is to open it about 1/4, grab it at the lower rear end and slowly pull it upward until it rests in the desired location.

The only time you need to loosen the door hinges is if the front top of the door triangle does not fit in the top/windshield seal, either being too low or too high.

I bet your door is the correct height in the front but sagging in the rear (most of them do) and simply lifting it up in the rear (slowly) will bring it back to where it needs to be.

How hard is it to turn the latching piece by hand?

The rubber block is on the jamb part, not the door part ...

Right. You captured it while I was editing. Senior moment. I suspect the latch plate and assem. The door should easily open with a finger thru the handle hole.

I agree, but I used a non flammable degreaser.

Don't use a graphite lube, it causes undue wear.

Use a derailleur lube like Tri Flow, real slick and doesn't attract dirt.

Yup, it’s only at the back. Great tip !

The latch portion in the door needs a DEEP clean. I use old school carb dip tank solution in my air powered rattler. Then get PB Blaster into the pivot shaft. Once you get the shaft freed up and lubed it will be better magical.

I had a similar problem with both of my doors. Even with new plastic levers from 914 Rubber, they would not work correcetly and kept breaking the plastic part, while the inner door handles worked just fine.

The first thing I suggest doing is to simply loosen and remove the screws holding the latch mechanism inside the door. Then remove the latch mechanism from inside the door and soak it in parts cleaner or paint thinner overnight to clean out 40+ years of congealed grease and grit. I was amazed with how much easier the latch mechanism worked after it was cleaned. I suggest doing this before you start changing the door striker adjustments and hinges if the door closed OK before you took the outter handle off for repairs. Messing with the door striker adjustments and hinges is a slippery slope that will consume a lot of trial and error time.

(And no, you cannot simply some spray parts cleaner into the latch mechanism while it is still mounted inside of the door. Been there; tried that first; it didn't work. The plastic lever on the outter door handle kept breaking anyway until I finally took the latch mechanism out of the door and soaked it overnight in parts cleaner.)

72 914 cannot unlock the driver side door with key with door closed. Removed panel, cleaned and lubed all internal components. Key easily locks and unlocks door IF the door is open. BUT, if door is closed and locked, the key won't unlock the door. What is the adjustment necessary? I'm thinking need to adjust the door jamb piece???

Thanks!

Thanks for reminding me ofmy own thread !

There's nothing wrong with the handles, or the adjustments. The latch mechanism inside the door is dirty, and the 50 years old grease is like modeling clay. Remove it and give it a thorough cleaning and relube with white lithium grease. Dirty latches are the #1 cause of broken door handles

Did this to both sides while doors were apart. Everything works like butter now. Even lock, unlock with the key is easy and smooth.

A trick I used when re-installing the latch at the back of the door. It’s really tight fit trying to manipulate the latch and attach the rod/clip.
I screwed a 40mm long M6 bolts into the latch through the door just enough to hold the latch. Then pushed the latch forward with the bolt preventing the latch from falling and freeing up my hands
Now, the rod and clip can easily be attached; pull the long bolt to reset the latch and install the short M6 screws. The long screw is removed

remove the catching mechanism and clean it thoroughly and all will be fine. Typical problem

Well, I've been fighting the same problem on my passenger door and it is not a dirty mechanism problem. The door handle was cleaned meticulously during full resto and lubed with Tri-flow. The catch on the door pillar was stripped and re-plated. The driver's door works like butter but I have yet to adjust the passenger side where I don't have to push in or the door before pulling the handle to release. Works fine opening from the interior door release though. Sorry I don't have any tips to share. Just some company being in the same boat.

how can the rear of the door be pulled up when you let go wont it just go back down again ?