who makes aluminum door panels for 3rd gens? i have the nicer formula door panels but when i bought the car the pass side window had been shattered so water and crap had been getting in for a while before i got it.

i love the look of aluminum door panels. does anyone make them? or how hard would it be to make one? not sure what i would do about arm rests etc. or door handle etc.is it really just as easy as cutting it and riveting it down?

 

i've never seen aluminum door panels. I'd like to see pics if you find any. I'd be affraid to rest my arm on it on a hot summer day

 

i believe hes refering to these....

http://www.swracecars.com/store/Alum...84=95-113.aspx

http://www.digitalbiker.com/trike216.jpg

as seen in most doorslammers at the dragstrip.

jegs and summit carries them also, not sure on the length and height tho. the door handles and locks would have to have a whole cut for themwot work

 

Those are designed for fiberglass doors.

I checked the Ed Quay catalog. He doesn't have anything listed so I doubt there's a commercially available aluminum door panel for a factory door.

I made mine. The cuts are not perfect and a don't have the rolled bead around the edges. I wasn't building a show car, just needed something lightweight to cover the gutted out steel doors.

Normally when you see pretty aluminum interior panels, they've all been custom made.

 

stephen, can u post pics of ur doors? i was looking and i only found jegs that sold a universal 24x48" sheet of alumnum for the doors. at like 80-90$ i think it had a bead in the middle.

how did u cut it? shears? jigsaw? wat size aluminum and thickness did u use?

89 limited.... thats wat i was talking about. my door panels arent exactly perfect and i need a spot to put new 6.5" speakers so the doors would be perfect, i could kill 2 birds with one stone. replace the door panels that arent the color/style i want/ pass side one is ruined. and a mounting spot for the speakers. prob is that the door handles are gona look stupid with the plastic molding just screwed into the aluminum and i lose the arm rest i guess

 

im talkin to a fab guy now whos gonna start makin a custom aluminum pannels for third gens....including door pannels

 

how much are they gona cost? and when is he gona start making them?

 

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Like I said, they're not pretty. I just tracked down some sheet aluminum and cut them to fit. The only purpose of my panels is to cover the gutted out steel doors. At the time when I made them, I had access to some air shears to cut them.

 

doesnt look that bad, what would u expect on a track car. i would def want sum better looks than that tho. i see the prob with the door handle... and how u had to cut a larger hole to get the handle through, which now shows the door.

i wonder if the sheet aluminum would be thick enough to mount some 6.5" speakers in it tho.... and not rattle like a son of a #(&#$.

 

I just thought i'd show you guys these aluminum door panels that I spotted on ebay a few weeks back:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ALUMI...1%7C240%3A1318

 

they look good. wonder how they would fit, shoulda put a pic up of it on a car like a test fit.

 

recieved the SWrace cars aluminum door panels the other day. overall a nice peice, had one ding on each panel on the edeges but not enough to be upset over. the packaged them alil too well. took 20 min to peel the tape off the front of the panels (weak tape but sticky that would rip etc...dunno why they did this to the front of the panel that is seen)

panels do have these 2 light dusted lines on them on the same spot tho... not sure what it is. or how im gona mount these. any ideas? wat about the top bent part? any way to get them to fit like stock... with felt strip on the top?

what do ppl use for door handles to close the door once opened and inside the car?

 

nice, but how do you avoid the door handle cut? think u can get the handle off before installing them. i cant remeber off the top of my head, but isnt the handle roll pinned, that would make it pretty easy.

btw, what did those set u back?

 

im gona cut them out to be stock duplicates. then im gona use the plastic handle covers that where on the door. i have the newer style door panels with the sleek interior not that huge plastic rectangle.

not sure what u mean by the handle. on the inside the only real way to close the door is with the arm rest. since i wont be using the arm rest idk how to close the door from the inside.

they were only 59.99 but shipping brought it up to 87-88$ not to bad i think

 

i gottcha, that should look nice! i was refering to how stephen iroc had to cut a big hole to fit the iside door handle thru.

im gonna have to pick up a set of these for sure.

 

Wonder if it would be cheaper to get a sheet yourself, take out your old panels and use them as a template to cut it out? Just a thought.

 

iroc a 86 berli... i kno what u mean. i was gona just cut it out like a stocker and i was gona use the plastic handle mount/shroud that comes on the door. basically just swapping all the parts over from the stock door and replacing the fiberboard with aluminum.

myroc86.... ive price aluminum and its not really that much cheaper. a 3rd gen door is 22-23" x 47". i bought 2 peices of .025" aluminum from homedepot for 36$ a peice. thats the same price and not nearly long enough. also u have to take into account the bead that they run in the door for strength. and its thicker than .025". they also have the bend on the top. and i am using the stocker as a template to cut it out.

 

just wrap the stockers in aluminium foil, LOL
lets see pics when ur done

 

I was just lazy. I could have unbolted the handle, cut a small home, installed the panel then reattached the handle.

Most race cars with aluminum panels and/or fiberglass doors use a simple lever for a handle. When you pull the handle, you're pulling a rod which releases the door latch. A lever is installed inside the door and extends up through the top. Pulling the lever back, pulls a rod or cable attached to the latch which will open the door. Using this type of handle kit, you don't cut holes through the aluminum panels except maybe at the top.

http://www.swracecars.com/store/Insi...m_=95-552.aspx

If the door is fiberglass, it may not have an external handle. A hole is cut in the Lexan to access the inner handle. This is a race car only option.

 

stephen... how do u close your doors? im doing away with the arm rest and idk how im gona be able to close the door. maybe like a simple U handle or something?

ok so i spent the last 2 days getting my fab work goin. i designed these 2 speaker angles to attach to the aluminum panels... i was adding an 8 speaker system over my 4 speakers i had. but i dont have room in the door for a flush mount and i really didnt want to cut a big hole in it in case i decide to do away with it. i made these uses aluminum to match the door panels. and will be screwed to the aluminum door panel near the kick panels. i cut out one of the doors so i should have both installed tmrw.

now when i attach the doors i need handles to be able to grab them to close them once in the car... any ideas? also should i use the same screws that u see in the pics with the speakers to attach the door panels or go for a nicer screw? dnt want rivets bc i really dont wanna have to drill them out to get the door panel off.

i kno they look call but they give me the clearance for the dept of the speaker i need so i dont have to drill into the door panel.

 

I grab the Lexan window brace or slide my hand down the gap between the Lexan and the panel.

 

finished the one door panel today. how do i get the finger marks off the door?

 

Looks good man. Are those the ones you bought pre-made or the ones you made yourself?

 

http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/p-14...xJgCFQrFGgodsi

i use the nason wax and tar remover, it doesent harm the finish, but it lifts crap really easily

 

they are the SW race car ones that are posted in this thread. i had to trim them to fit. took alot of worrk and planning to get it right the first time.

does the nason wax stuff ruin the aluminum? like take away the polish or ruff it up at all? i kno u said it doenst harm the finish but wat about the shinniness?

 

it shouldnt, but if ur worried, try windex. or that tinted window cleaner. that stuff is safe on tint so it should be fine on polished alum

 

Nice

 

Anyone have the jegs door panels? If so howd they fit?

 

yesss! windex works. thanks iroc86.

from what i see one the jegs door... i think u would hack most of that "lip" they put to reinforce the panels... i hacked sumthing like 8" off the bottom of my panel and they are the same size.... the jegs panel also doesnt have the lip at the top that the SW panels do. which is why i went with them. i think it wouldnt look as good if u cut off the bottom of the panel and cut off the reinforcement bc u had to take more off for it to fit.

still tho try it and see how it looks

 

WOW I never even thought about this before....BUT you got me thinking about it that is for sure