Door interchangeability.

IIRC, every year door will fit into and install into every year body. Interchangeability concerns that I know of:

1. '84*** and up doors exclusively use the Bosch power windows, so the window raise and lower mechanism and attachment points are different from all previous.
2. '87 and up doors had the large plastic exterior molding in the plimsoll area, so they have two rows of mounting studs that previous years do not.
3. Pre-'84 cars could have come with wind-up windows or electric windows. IIRC the general cable mechanism is the same, the difference is that an electric motor is grafted into the cable run to effect the motion (wait for others to confirm this before taking it to the bank), and there is a difference in cable lengths depending upon years
4. Door accoutrements, mainly the finish of the post between the fixed and sliding window and the finish of the exterior beltline molding, changed over several years bit by bit from bright to black. The actual pieces are interchangeable if you disregard matching finishes. There was a change from door mounted mirror to thru the glass mirror that I think drove a change in the post as well, but I don't have much info
5. Other interior door structure may be different between early cars (USA '74-'78 and late cars (USA '79 and up) IIRC to accommodate the changed style of the door opening lever.




***As with many coach built cars, model years are "fuzzy" in that they are not always hard and fast delineations of when a certain item was discontinued/replaced/added. If you look at the Door pages at Midwest-Bayless, the listings and what they fit can help you figure out to a certain degree what is interchangeable.
 
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IIRC, every year door will fit into and install into every year body. Interchangeability concerns that I know of:

1. '84*** and up doors exclusively use the Bosch power windows, so the window raise and lower mechanism and attachment points are different from all previous.
2. '87 and up doors had the large plastic exterior molding in the plimsoll area, so they have two rows of mounting studs that previous years do not.
3. Pre-'84 cars could have come with wind-up windows or electric windows. IIRC the general cable mechanism is the same, the difference is that an electric motor is grafted into the cable run to effect the motion (wait for others to confirm this before taking it to the bank), and there is a difference in cable lengths depending upon years
4. Door accoutrements, mainly the finish of the post between the fixed and sliding window and the finish of the exterior beltline molding, changed over several years bit by bit from bright to black. The actual pieces are interchangeable if you disregard matching finishes. There was a change from door mounted mirror to thru the glass mirror that I think drove a change in the post as well, but I don't have much info
5. Other interior door structure may be different between early cars (USA '74-'78 and late cars (USA '79 and up) IIRC to accommodate the changed style of the door opening lever.




***As with many coach built cars, model years are "fuzzy" in that they are not always hard and fast delineations of when a certain item was discontinued/replaced/added. If you look at the Door pages at Midwest-Bayless, the listings and what they fit can help you figure out to a certain degree what is interchangeable.
Old thread revival time. So a door from a ‘86 will fit in a ‘74? I’ve got what could be an expensive passenger door repair, likely rust, where cutting, welding, finishing and matching paint could be much more expensive than changing doors and matching paint.
 
I bought a 76 door once. I asked the seller why he had a 76 when his car was an 80+. He told me his car had electric windows and the door internals on the 76 (manual windows) were different from his and therefore he needed a door which would fit the electric mechanism.
 
Old thread revival time. So a door from a ‘86 will fit in a ‘74? I’ve got what could be an expensive passenger door repair, likely rust, where cutting, welding, finishing and matching paint could be much more expensive than changing doors and matching paint.
Yes, an '86 door will fit the opening of a '74, but the door opening latch on the inside is totally different and the window mechanism is electric instead of cables.
 
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