Back side window locks

[jericl2010]

Hi,

I recently bought a 1982 Vanagon and the back side window locks do not lock. These are the windows that are right behind the front seats. The windows slide with ease, but when you close them they will not lock. I thought it was suppose to be automatic locking when you closed them, but I can slide them open from the outside.
Please help.
Thanks.

[DAIZEE]

have you cleaned the area plus cleaned the locking mechanicism. Get out the toothbrush and good cleaning agent. Locking mech might be so dirty it can't drop.
_________________
'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)

[McVanagon]

You can toss a dowel in the window track to keep them locked in the meantime.
_________________
'69 Mike
'85 GL
'87 Wolfsburg Hardtop

[hiram6]

Those lock mechanisms are infamous for getting stuck in either the locked or unlocked position. The best way to tackle it is to disassemble the lock and clean/lube it so it slides up and down easily. A small wire wheel on my Dremel helped clean up the contact areas.

This thread shows pics and gives a little how-to

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1...tch+window
_________________
1985 Westy, 1.9L automatic (Daisy)
1996 Mazda Miata
1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.9 Limited

You can't lie around on the beach and drink rum all day.................unless you start first thing in the morning.

[Wildthings]

Anyone with the will could get those to open when they were new and it doesn't improve with age. My kids figured this out about the time they were tall enough to reach the windows. For the older one that would have been the week we bought the van brand new. Clean like suggested and then buy some dowel rod if you want to make it harder on the honest thief.

[VisPacem]

[madspaniard]

[1621]

The dowel in the slider tray is definitely the simplest method. I liked this one as it seemed a little 'cleaner' - I think the idea came from a Samba member. It's a 10-32 socket screw placed directly to the rear of the latching mechanism. Prevents the window from sliding open until it's removed. I keep the Allen wrench 'key' in the drawer. I eventually replaced these with stainless as these began to rust.

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'85 Westy

[VisPacem]

[blakeck2]

Little Threadjack: If the slider is open anymore than the first notch, a thief could easily reach in and unlock the front door thus the dowel method is useless, any way to combat this?
_________________
1986 Vanagon Syncro GL, westy interior, GW 2.4 and all locked up

1973 Thing

[DAIZEE]

Since the above post I have been chewing on this subject! We had to take the rear driver's window out of Scooby for a rust repair. It was not easy, nor hard, just darn picky!! Need patience.

OK so if a full back window comes out and it has to go back in the same way due to shape of window what about this. Supposing middle windows(1/2) sliders are the same shape, could one not reverse so that the window opens from back to front? This would give more air to rear of van PLUS ensured security from all the locks.

IF they are different shapes then changing from side to side may help. I'm going to look into this possibility. It it's possible then I want to do.

What are your thoughts, opinions.

Also I have the original silver metal screens, I'd like to change to black. Anyone done this
_________________
'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)

[blakeck2]

[DAIZEE]

Keep us tuned in. We may start a new trend or a 30 yr improvement
_________________
'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)

[spitsnrovers]

Without my van to look carefully into, I'm not sure if I see this correctly...

Won't swapping the windows back to front (in effect side to side) result in he slider portion being at the back? I think that is the intended reason for doing this swap.

However - won't this also put the opening between the slider and the fixed portion facing forward? Thereby the possiblity of forcing a lot of rain and or snow into the space, and probably leaking past the fuzzy seal into the vehicle?

Just my thoughts
_________________
'88 VW Westfalia
'75 Triumph Spitfire 1500

[noganav]

If you turn the side windows around you are definitely going to have all kinds of problems with wind noise and probably with water being forced in when it rains. They overlap front to back to prevent this.

Frankly, these windows are nothing more than the illusion of security. The screw trick is a really good one for preventing opening, but you can pull the whole frame out of the van from the outside just by pulling on it at the corners. I tried this after a thief broke my slider window just to see if it was possible and it is.

On a separate occasion a guy broke my passenger door window, and the slider door wasn't even locked. He apparently wasn't clever enough to check. I was so mad that I chased him down the street in my underwear (The smash woke me up at 1am). The cops got him with a police dog 3 blocks away breaking into another car, so obviously he didn't think through the idea that we might call the police, and that they might be here looking for him in just a few minutes (they're really cracking down in Vancouver, I was impressed).

Luckily, most thieves are just opportunistic morons, but if they want in, they're getting in.

[DAIZEE]

all your thoughts will be taken into account, I suppose they were designed the way they were for a reason. I'll chew on it some more. Thanks for the input.

Is there anyone out there who has actually done this?
_________________
'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)

[DAIZEE]

Ok just walked the dog and stared at my windows. Remember that I have aluminum screen frames that screw on outside the window. They actually screw into the black rubber surround.

If one were able to use a 1" or 1 1/4" weather strip, flat, on that edge, one would think that there would be no problem. The trick is getting the correct width (probably wider than narrower) of rubber and a method to fix it. Remember the windows slide open inside. I still think it could be done and would be an enhancement IF one could find the right kind of strip.

So many people here are creative, someone, someone should be able to come up with something for what would become the leading edge.
_________________
'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)

[Wildthings]

[DAIZEE]

I'd just like to move more air into rear area, that's all. I still think it can be done with a 1 1/4" weather strip down the leading edge of the set up. Will think some more.
_________________
'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)

[noganav]

Hi DAIZEE,

Please don't consider this rude, but I think the reason why you're not getting responses is because your mission is a little off topic for the thread. Folks are trying to answer your inquiry as best they can, and move back to the topic of securing the side windows on a Westy. Flipping around the windows on a Riviera is quite a different operation I think.

Perhaps if you started a new thread with a concise description of exactly what you'd like to achieve and specifying that you'd like to do it with a Riviera, you might get more responses from people who have experience with the windows on a Riviera specifically.

The best posts, and the ones that are most helpful to others, are those that have some discrete piece of new information on the original topic. I often think I'd like to post an idea, but sometimes stop myself when I realize that while what I'm posting is interesting for me, it's not likely to help the original poster.

Most of the time this happens because I realize that my post is not a source of much new information, but sometimes it's because my idea is not directly related to the topic at hand. In those cases I search for an existing thread on my topic of interest, or if I can't find one I start a new thread.

If the glass is different on a Riviera, flipping the windows might be a really good idea, and I'm sure that other Riviera owners would love to help you with that, or even better, hear about what happened when you gave it a test run.

Most of the people reading this topic are interested in the merits and troubles of securing Westy side windows, and most probably lack the information needed to help you (as much as we would like to).

Best wishes,

Noganav