P500 P500 Door Latch Problem Fixed - Video

[SouthwestORV]

Hello friends,
I've been annoyed since day one at the way that my driver's side door rattles, both during operation and while sitting at idle. I got looking closely and figured out the problem - the door latch was mounted poorly from the factory, so it did not latch tight against the rubber stops. It took a little modification but I think it's a simple, permanent fix. See video below...anybody else have this problem?

 

[Admin]

 

[Gassygordo]

Hello friends,
I've been annoyed since day one at the way that my driver's side door rattles, both during operation and while sitting at idle. I got looking closely and figured out the problem - the door latch was mounted poorly from the factory, so it did not latch tight against the rubber stops. It took a little modification but I think it's a simple, permanent fix. See video below...anybody else have this problem?

PERFECT!

 

[SouthwestORV]

PERFECT!

Were yours both perfect from the factory? I was shocked how far off my driver’s side was.

 

[Gassygordo]

Were yours both perfect from the factory? I was shocked how far off my driver’s side was.

Mine were right on. Now yours are perfect! Nice job!

 

[tomcj2]

Looks great now. That machine should not have left the factory; the dealer should not have delivered it to you.

 

[SouthwestORV]

Looks great now. That machine should not have left the factory; the dealer should not have delivered it to you.

Doesn’t somebody check that stuff? You know, clipboard...one by one, check the basics before it leaves?

 

[SouthwestORV]

Mine were right on. Now yours are perfect! Nice job!

Thanks. I love how these P500’s are so tinker-friendly.

 

[Todd627]

Good fix @SouthwestORV. If Rambo is still under warranty I would be getting a new door from the dealer too.

 

[oldfortyfive]

There’s no question the door latch design sucks. Frame flex affects them a lot. I usually have to readjust when I’m loaded up for a pdog shoot. I suspect in this case that the OP will find the door hinges could have be adjusted to correct most of the problem.

 

[SouthwestORV]

Good fix @SouthwestORV. If Rambo is still under warranty I would be getting a new door from the dealer too.

Funny, that hadn’t even occurred to me. I assumed 6 months, which has passed, but looks like it’s one year. I should look into that...or maybe I’ll be too lazy now that it works fine.

 

[SouthwestORV]

There’s no question the door latch design sucks. Frame flex affects them a lot. I usually have to readjust when I’m loaded up for a pdog shoot. I suspect in this case that the OP will find the door hinges could have be adjusted to correct most of the problem.

So...I looked closely before I began drilling and I did not see an accommodation for adjusting the hinges. I even pulled the hinge bolts to see if there was a way to adjust the hinge mount and didn’t see anything. Can the hinges be adjusted to remedy my problem? Teach me oldfortyfive.

 

[Mudder]

Good job and video. If the extra holes ever bother you, a small piece of metal flashing could be trimmed to the shape of the recessed area, painted black. But like you said, no worries.

 

[SouthwestORV]

Good job and video. If the extra holes ever bother you, a small piece of metal flashing could be trimmed to the shape of the recessed area, painted black. But like you said, no worries.

Genius, that hadn’t occurred to me. I suppose I could probably do the same with some black plastic. In reality, I’ll likely forget about it now and move on to @trigger shield and @Chooglin box and sway bar removal and Rotopax mount-up...etc

 

[Mudder]

Maybe get a scrap piece of Trigger shield to cover the area.

 

[SouthwestORV]

Maybe get a scrap piece of Trigger shield to cover the area.

Again, good thinking!

 

[oldfortyfive]

So...I looked closely before I began drilling and I did not see an accommodation for adjusting the hinges. I even pulled the hinge bolts to see if there was a way to adjust the hinge mount and didn’t see anything. Can the hinges be adjusted to remedy my problem? Teach me oldfortyfive.

I won't get chance to look at mine until next weekend, but that's how I aligned mine. If you can't get enough adjustment between the hinges and the latch that tells me something else is probably out of whack. These are no different than any other machine and are fixtured during manufacturing so there will be parts interchangeability. Worst case you might have to loosen a bunch of roll cage/frame bolts up, jack things into position and tighten them up.

 

[SouthwestORV]

I won't get chance to look at mine until next weekend, but that's how I aligned mine. If you can't get enough adjustment between the hinges and the latch that tells me something else is probably out of whack. These are no different than any other machine and are fixtured during manufacturing so there will be parts interchangeability. Worst case you might have to loosen a bunch of roll cage/frame bolts up, jack things into position and tighten them up.

I follow. If this much sag is allowed by the factory tolerances I will hope that the sag reached its limit and with my modification I can leave it as is and never have to mess with it again.

 

[Gassygordo]

I know when I have a very heavy strain on the winch, neither door will latch due to frame flex.

 

[snakeriver]

I had the opposite problem on the passenger door. There are two latch points on the door when you shut it, and mine was hitting the pad in a manner that it would not let the second latch catch. A minor adjustment on the pad allowed the door to catch the second latch point.

 

[SouthwestORV]

I know when I have a very heavy strain on the winch, neither door will latch due to frame flex.

Interesting! That's a lot of frame flex. I would not have thought it would affect the frame and door latch mechanism to that extent.