Hi Group,
I am fairly new to the club, and so far, I have depended on Bill,
Miles, Merciless, Michael, and a few others for any offerings into
getting my little gem back into shape. I now have something to offer
back to the group, and I believe that it will affect quite a few of
you out there. Here goes:
I tried to locate new inside vent doors for my 1970 N600, and was
told that they are nearly impossible to obtain, being that they
haven't been manufactured in over 37 years, the inside of the vehicle
can get over 100 degrees, but on the outside, cold air is what comes
into the cab, making the hot/cold/hot/cold effect the culprit for
making those vent doors brittle. Further, the design was flawed
originally, since the spring metal would last 100 years, but the
plastic it worked against (now brittle) is much weaker, causing them
to break when operated.
After not being able to locate those covers at a decent price, I
came up with a fair substitute, installed them, and other than 3
small problems, they work wonderfully. They are obviously not a
stock item, and those of you who are into absolute restoration will
ignore this post, but for those of you who just want to enjoy the
little "funmobile" every minute you can, this is for you!
I decided to try a (Bell type) gang box electrical cover (grey
color) to replace the vent cover in it's entirety. I purchased the
Red Dot brand, item number R2CWPRM (S433E), single cover (2.25") Two
Gang, Device Mount. I first tried the pre-drilled option, but found
that the two top screw holes didn't line up, so I exchanged it for
this one, used a laser over the original plastic vent cover, marked
and drilled the holes into the new covers, then mounted them. As for
the rubber inserts that I had been trying to purchase on Ebay or
through some of you members, I had to scrap it completely, and use
the rubber supplied with the electrical cover, and it works
perfectly. The reason I had to scrap the original rubber insert for
the AN600 (which, by the way is also nearly impossible to find), is
because with it inside, the bolts had a really tough time finding
their mark in the little area just in front of the door. I decided
to go with 3/8" bolts and nylon backed nuts in place of the self
tapping screws that Honda used, because I liked the idea of hex heads
showing, and the nylon would not back out while driving and vibrating.
Now here are the 3 problems:
1. It is not stock. It is a substitute for original parts (But it
keeps cold air from entering while you are driving at night or on
cold days, and it is insulated well. The door closes by a spring, so
it seals tightly).
2. The bolts/nuts idea is inferior to original self-tapping screws in
that the upper bolts closest to the doors are nearly impossible to
install, unless your hands are the size of a Norwegian tree monkey! I
tried for nearly 6 hours to install the nut on the back, but my hands
(and even fingers) are much too large to get back there to work it
on. I tried pliers, crazy glue, a piece of electrical wire, and lots
of patience, but was unable to get it to go, so I finally went with
tightening 3 of them, lock-tite on the 4th one for show, and moved
on. If you go with the self tapping screw idea, you may be able to
keep the original rubber insert also, and screw right into it, but
with the bolt idea, the tabs on the rubber insert got in the way, and
besides, I only had one on my car anyway!
3. I have yet to figure out the best way to keep the door open when I
want air inside the cabin. Since the new doors are spring closed, I
have experimented with little plastic picture frame corners (up near
the spring) to hold it open, but then when I closed it, I had those
pieces to contend with. I also tried a small wire hanging from the
support bar below the dash, but when not open, there are these two
wires hanging down, and that is shoddy. I'm not sure how I am going
to remedy this just yet, but I'm sure I will.
They look great inside the vehicle, but unfortunately, I don't have
a digital camera to show you. When I get one, I will. Admittedly,
they are not a PERFECT solution to replace those hard to find vent
doors, but they are kind of cool, work great, and look way better
than even I could have imagined! If any of you want to give it a
try, maybe you can take it a step further, and we'll all share in a
great fix!
Minitin