HOW TO: remove door trim and clips without breakage.
bam-bam
Council Member
There seems to be a need for this topic, sorry to have not done it sooner. These little 'Z' or 'tetris' or 'chair' shaped pieces are getting hard to come by- junkyard only. Luckily the underlying attaching clips can still be bought.
First, remove the plastic-coated nut at the trailing edge of the door:
then flex the trim out and down to disengage from the bottom of the first clip:
Then work it upward to unhook from the top of that clip
Continue- down,up,down,up- one clip at a time. rear doors have 2, fronts have 3.
When you have it loose except for the clips at the leading edge, open the door like so
to give the trim a place to slide and then bump it forward with the heel of your hand. You'll likely sacrifice the lower clip, but it's the best way I've found. Any other method risks paint or molding damage.
Now on to the fun part. There's a simple combination to this, I had a real EUREKA! moment after breaking a few dozen :oops:
Use something thin and flat, like a knife blade. I used this pocket scale today to reach up from the bottom and unlock the puzzle:
Gently pull out on the lower part until it clears the door, then rotate the clip 90 degrees like so:
AHA! the holes are rectangular, it just falls right out.
I don't know why the front clip on every door is red, but they usually end up like this. If you want this one, the easiest way is to push it inside the door and get it fom there. Good news is the whitish ones work just fine in this position, too.
First, remove the plastic-coated nut at the trailing edge of the door:
then flex the trim out and down to disengage from the bottom of the first clip:
Then work it upward to unhook from the top of that clip
Continue- down,up,down,up- one clip at a time. rear doors have 2, fronts have 3.
When you have it loose except for the clips at the leading edge, open the door like so
to give the trim a place to slide and then bump it forward with the heel of your hand. You'll likely sacrifice the lower clip, but it's the best way I've found. Any other method risks paint or molding damage.
Now on to the fun part. There's a simple combination to this, I had a real EUREKA! moment after breaking a few dozen :oops:
Use something thin and flat, like a knife blade. I used this pocket scale today to reach up from the bottom and unlock the puzzle:
Gently pull out on the lower part until it clears the door, then rotate the clip 90 degrees like so:
AHA! the holes are rectangular, it just falls right out.
I don't know why the front clip on every door is red, but they usually end up like this. If you want this one, the easiest way is to push it inside the door and get it fom there. Good news is the whitish ones work just fine in this position, too.
Comments
Sticky?
I thought of that early on, but there's a door reinforcement beam in the way. I couldn't get to the clips to release them. YMMV.
I did find that the studs slide out of the plastic tetris pieces when you give it the bump; that made it easier to do the second one. I just unclipped the first one, then bumped the whole thing forward. All the tetris pieces came off their studs, and the molding dropped into my hands. I removed the studs at my leisure.
I also confirm that there's a big door beam smack in the way of removing the clips from the inside. I had to push the frontwards clip in and retrieve it later, just like bam-bam said.
Side note: If you paint the other door trims (recommended) make sure you also paint any new parts as well. I didn't paint the very parts you're talking about, and it shows.
$6.81 a piece! They can kiss my big ass!
Roll of 3m trim tape for $5.99 will do... (hopefully)
Majestic shows like $2.50 for those clips. I can get em for right at $2 each from a friend at honda. Lemme know if ya need the hook up.
in 2345 years or so...
more ore less...
I think...
buttah.. no j-yard around, no ?
Bam FTW
!
could've used something similar for the window sill trim...
now im a pro.
I discovered this method while pulling apart a Concerto that was destined for scrap metal, it's hard to put it into words without pictures!
bam-bam you have done a great job!!
Just got to take your time when it comes to the old brittle plastics.