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door moan and creak?!


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Hi all,

I know the door creaking and moaning is a common problem but cant seem to find anything on how to fix it!! its my passenger door and i dont want to ask my fella and want to have ago myself how do i fix this problem? apologies if there is a thread!!

thankyou xx

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Hey,

The door creaking thing is really common due to the bush in the check strap wearing. The Volkswagen fix is to buy a new pair of check straps.

However, if you're like me and prefer the ghetto fix this is how I did it this weekend just gone (i'll upload a video I took of them completely silent now):

Buy yourself a pack of heat shrink tubing. I suggest going for cheaper heat shrink rather than more expensive. More expensive heat shrink tubing is soft, and very nice to touch, which is why it's commonly used when binding wires and what not together. Cheaper heat shrink is tough and not so nice to touch, which is why it's used as insulation to prevent short circuits etc. I imagine the cheaper stuff will be harder to wear and last a bit longer. This bag from the bay should do nicely:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/150-Pcs-2-1-Heat-Shrink-HeatShrink-Tubing-Tube-Sleeving-Wrap-Wire-Black-New-/171012524297?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&hash=item27d1240909

Remove the pin in the door using a socket wrench.

Part of the pin you will see has no thread, and this is the part that is clattering loudly. Depending on the wear in the bush, you will need to wrap it maybe 2 or 3 pieces and then heat the tubing so that it shrinks to fit nice around the pin. Do it one by one. So wrap, then heat it, wrap then heat it, wrap then heat. If you do too many, you will find it will ruck up and you will struggle to get it in the hole properly. If you do too few, you will reduce the noise but it will only last a month or two as the impact will still cause problems. So if you still get creaking after you put the pin back, you need to wrap another layer of heat shrink.

To heat the tubing you really need a heat gun, however some people reckon a hair dryer would do it. If not, your hob is fine.

I will upload a video to YouTube now that I took this weekend of the difference it made. You will be very surprised at the difference it made.

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thankyou guys very much appreciated will get on with this soon and let you know how i got on! :thumbup: xx

I should have made a video lol! It's really not that hard to fix, either way. If you decide to replace, you'll need to remove it from the inside which takes about 20 minutes at most. If you want to do the heat shrink method, it'll take you about 10 minutes.

Edited by Skezza
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Good luck. If you need any help let me know. You should find it fairly straightforward though. All you need to make sure is that you put on enough to reduce the impact, but not too much so that it rucks.

If you have a heat gun, that's probably the best way to shrink the wrap around the pin. A hair dryer might do it, but if not, your hob will. Not sure of the best way to suspend it over the hob, but remember, the heat shrink won't melt and shouldn't burn so you can hold it pretty close. An electric hob would probably be better but I can't see why a gas hob wouldn't work.

Oh, and one last thing, heat shrink decreases in both length and width ;) so don't cut the length precisely, give it a mm or two more. If you do cut it slightly too far, you could trim away the excess although I imagine screwing it back in will chew any excess anyway, so I wouldn't worry.

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Good luck. If you need any help let me know. You should find it fairly straightforward though. All you need to make sure is that you put on enough to reduce the impact, but not too much so that it rucks.

If you have a heat gun, that's probably the best way to shrink the wrap around the pin. A hair dryer might do it, but if not, your hob will. Not sure of the best way to suspend it over the hob, but remember, the heat shrink won't melt and shouldn't burn so you can hold it pretty close. An electric hob would probably be better but I can't see why a gas hob wouldn't work.

Oh, and one last thing, heat shrink decreases in both length and width ;) so don't cut the length precisely, give it a mm or two more. If you do cut it slightly too far, you could trim away the excess although I imagine screwing it back in will chew any excess anyway, so I wouldn't worry.

Oh god, d'ya know what I'll give this a crack, but I can almost certainly say I'll bugger it up one way or another!!

Hahaaaa!!

But I suppose you never know till ya try!! I might be doing it this weekend, so hopefully it'll all be good!! If I get stuck I'll certainly be asking for help!!

Fingers crossed....

xx

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Ok, so I've tried giving it a go just now....tried taking the bolt out, but, it just keeps spinning??! I can't see anything else that I need to get a spanner onto to stop it just doing so....

I told you it wouldnt take long for something to not go right....

HELP! Lol

X

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Apologies for not getting back sooner, I've been out the last few days and my phone died as I was writing a reply.

It should not be spinning in the hole, but if it is, then you should just be able to pull it out. Have you definitely loosened it or did it just spin to begin with?

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Just buy a new door check strap! The latest ones I just fitted to my passenger door has no nylon bush, just a metal washer inside and the hole is much smaller therefore there is no play. Once fitted it is now completely silent. I did put a lot of grease round the moving bits before fitting the door strap though.

The strap itself costs just over £20. It is the driver side that I am a bit concern, the bracket that the door strap bolt on to has detached from the body, fitting a new strap did not help. I am waiting to see if the mechanic can weld it back to the body in order to stop it moving.

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Just buy a new door check strap! The latest ones I just fitted to my passenger door has no nylon bush, just a metal washer inside and the hole is much smaller therefore there is no play. Once fitted it is now completely silent. I did put a lot of grease round the moving bits before fitting the door strap though.

The strap itself costs just over £20. It is the driver side that I am a bit concern, the bracket that the door strap bolt on to has detached from the body, fitting a new strap did not help. I am waiting to see if the mechanic can weld it back to the body in order to stop it moving.

Yeah, my passenger side has a replacement check strap with the metal removable washer......... which creaks and cracks even louder than the driver door (before I heat shrinked of course). I agree that greasing it can help reduce the wear though.

The fact is, the hinge on a Lupo is quite a poor design. A rare miss so to speak on VW's part. Doesn't matter how many check straps you fit, you'll never cure the fact the door is far too heavy for the hinge design, which is the reason they used a check strap in the first place. The reason they wear is because their is quite a large impact each time the door notches, even the new ones. You can see it for yourself, just the same on a new one, you'll see there's an impact. Feel free to buy a new one, at the end of the day, it's up to you, but by purchasing a new one, you're spending money unnecessarily on a problem that's only annoying and that WILL return... fact. Using heat shrink is a cheap, easy fix that probably takes even less time than fitting a new check strap.

If I was to buy a new one, I'd still wrap the pin in heat shrink simply to reduce the impact.

Edited by Skezza
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I am surprised your passenger side moans louder after you have fitted a new door check strap. Does your passenger door has the same problem as my driver's door, i.e. the bracket that the pin bolted on has detached from the body and it moves? I did fit the new door check strap to the driver side first and it did moan much louder because the bracket that the pin fixed on to is loose!

I took the old strap off the passenger door and realised the strap was really worn, the strap itself wriggle about comparing with the new one that has no play at all. After I fitted the new one it was really quite although it does make a bit of a noise when it catches the notches but now with the grease working in the joints I can hardly hear a noise. Amazing considering both door made the clonking noises ever since I got the Lupo for my younger daughter quite a few years ago and I always thought it was supposed to make such a noise until the hinge of the driver's door broke!

Did you get a new pin when you changed the door strap? The new ones are now made of alloy and the head is slightly thinner. I am not sure if it is the new pin that stops the clonking noise!

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It was the previous owner who changed the strap, so it probably didn't moan to begin with, but as the metal washer inside began to wear (in a similar fashion to the nylon bush) it began creaking and cracking. What I noticed though was that the passenger door was considerably louder than the drivers door. The drivers door was a very loud but deadened thud, whereas the passenger door was a very tinny noise that sort of clicked, if you get me. It easily woke the neighbours late at night. If I get chance one weekend, I'll remove the heat shrink to demonstrate what I mean.

The bracket seems to be fine with regards to being attached to the body. The impact is coming when each notch is hit, the latch is slipping and whacking the pin very hard. It was exactly the same on my previous Lupo which I just regularly oiled. It didn't remove it, but it helped reduce the sound.

No, the check strap pin in the passenger door is identical to the one in the drivers door, or at least it looks it. I probably should have looked more closely though. The noise is coming from the strap hitting the pin, so the change in metal could definitely make an impact in the amount of noise.

If you're getting noise, on a new check strap, I definitely recommend just one or maybe two if you can layers of heat shrink. You'll reduce the wear on the check strap and you'll probably kill the noise completely.

Edited by Skezza
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OMG this is alot to take in!! Hahaa....

Well I'll be certainly giving it a good go this weekend....

xx

If I get chance jamjar, I'll record a video of how to do it. It really is just a case of taking the pin out, three or four layers of heat shrink and boom, screw back in and you'll be sorted.

Just take it slow, I'm sure you'll be fine :D

Edited by Skezza
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Oh, and remember to grease it up at the end! That'll help. WD40 will probably do.

Edited by Skezza
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If I get chance jamjar, I'll record a video of how to do it. It really is just a case of taking the pin out, three or four layers of heat shrink and boom, screw back in and you'll be sorted.

Just take it slow, I'm sure you'll be fine :D

Awwww you're such a doll :D thankkkssssss...

I'm not really much good at doing things first time round and end up looking a spaz tryna do it on only a description, I work far better from actually seeing it!! Hahaaa!!

xxx

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The Lupo was in the garage today and the loose bracket had been welded and guess what, it is now silent when I open the driver's door! It is even quieter than the passenger side. I had to double check to see if it is ok because there is now no noise even when the strap hits the notch inside the strap.

I fitted the new strap to the driver's door only a couple of days ago and it was making a hell of a noise. The mechanic called me to check if I had fitted a new strap before he welded the bracket to the body because it was making a lot louder noises than when I shown him the problem a couple of weeks ago.

The

As I said, the passenger side was making cranking noises before I fitted a new strap. I discoered the strap was really loose comparing with the new one.

It would appear to me it is the strap or a loose bracket that causes the problem.

It is amazing that everything is silent. Both door were making noises when I got the Lupo for my daughter a few years ago. I just assumed that the noise was supposed to be there!

The bracket on the passenger side is solid but the one on the driver side moves in and out when opening or closing hence it made a hell of a noise.

I have replaced the pins but they were not the cause of the problems. It is not too pretty with a huge amount of welding around the bracket but it is out of sight and well worthwhile with silent doors!

When researching the problems I found a member posted the same problem with his Arosa and he posted a photo that shows the same problem as mine, a detached bracket.

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Would you mind posting the link to that. I'm quite confident mine isn't to do with that and with a bit of luck, so is jamjars. Yours was quite bad by the sounds of it.

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http://forums.clublupo.co.uk/index.php?/topic/85709-horrible-noise-from-door-after-new-check-strap/?hl=+door%20+check%20+strap

This is not the same link but this member did post a video of his bracket, if you view the video you will see the bracket moved in and out when he closed the door hence the loud clonking noise, made worse with a new strap!

My driver's door was the same until I got it welded. The passenger door bracket does not move when I open or close the door, once a new strap was fitted, there is hardly any noise although the driver's door is quieter than the passenger side now, probably because it is now absolutely solid with the weld!

I can insert a photo of the welded bracket when I can find my camera cable.

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That's interesting. I could do with a photo of where you had it welded to get a better idea.

Thanks :)

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