went bought new door panels from bronco graveyard this week for my old work truck and they came with push plastic clips to put them on. would id be better off to get the old hardware to attach them or will these work. truck sees heavy use [abuse] daily and get drove alot on gravel and pasture roads. any thought or your experinces is good.

 

Some of the older ones use metal clips. The metal clips don't work real well on the panels that are made to use the plastic.

The panels that use plastic have a slot on the retainer boss for the head of the clip to slip into. The ones for the metal clip are solid....no slot...... plastic clips will not work on those.
In my opinion neither one is all that good but they work.

 

i know them plastic push trees are hard to get out probably will work better.

 

ya thats what came with them. there repos. hope the push trees hold up. im tired of having to roll my window down to close the door.

 

I think the plastic ones are better for holding it on but I agree they are harder to get off.

When you put them on, get a set of those pull cups that are metal...the plastic ones just don't last.

 

mine have plastic push clips as well. Set up for metal clips, but i just cut a slot in the hole so i could slide them in, then superglued them to the door panel.

i havn't taken them apart since i put them together, but they are holding very well.

 

The metal pull cups still attached to the plastic door panel so metal only gives you a more durable hand pull point. I put them in all my trucks BTW, its a great mod.

If you use the plastic push pin ones with some gasket material (like the factory uses)and they mount tight I think you should be ok.

They probably will be hard to remove after they are on and you will run a chance of breaking the attachment point (on your new panels) if you try to remove later, so have the lubrication of the window track done.

The door panels I have removed at the JY mounted with the push pins were tighter than the metal clips. I have even used a straight hack saw blade to cut the plastic pin so I would not break the attachment points. The pins are cheaper than the door panels.

 

thanks for the help. need them to hold up. the panels i ordered came with the metal door pulls. i have a few of these trucks around just none with a good drivers side door panel.

 

for what it's worth, you can find a really nice door panel removal tool at most parts stores.

something like:
http://www.amazon.com/Door-Panel-Cli.../dp/B0025EQMBK

i use mine every time i work on a panel and i have not ruined a clip or door panel since getting it ... money VERY well spent.

 

I hate braking a perfectily good panel due to a stubbor push pin. And then having to bulid up the broken u shapped mount area on the back.

I'd be interested in that tool, to see how it works. Harbor Freight or Sears?

 

they can be found just about anywhere...autozone,advance auto,harbor freight..they are sometimes called "crowsfoot" . they're a funny lookin tool, work pretty good.

 

all of mine have had the plastic clips and they've done fine.

 

Good to know, thanks.

 

putem on today. only grip is they rub on the door handles when you open the doors. nothing the dermal didnt fix.