The drivers side vent window rattles like crazy on my 78. I took the door panel off and tried to tighten where the rail bolts to the door but it was tight. So were the 3 screws on the sloped part of the door. Any suggestions?

 

Is it the glass part in the frame that is rattling, or the triangular frame that is rattling withing the larger door frame?

If it is just the glass that is rattling, the rubber seal is probably dried out and shrunk, allowing the rattle. Probably a lot of wind noise too. All the door rubber is available and reasonably priced.

 

No, it's the triangular fram rattling within the larger door frame.

 

Hmmm. I'm afraid I don't have an answer for you on this one.

I just changed that vent window rubber. After looking at it again, I remember that the vent window frame has a U-shaped channel all the way around that the rubber pushes into. The rubber is shaped kind of like a W (without the pointy ends) and the middle (top) of the W goes into the channel and the sides (top) of the W wrap around the channel and seat against the door frame. The middle (bottom) is what the glass seats against.

My vent frame is rock solid in the door frame, but I'm not sure that its necessarily because of the new rubber. I can lift up the rubber that seats against the door frame so its not a solidly tight seal by itself. You are correct in that the only attachment points are the 3 screws on top and the bolt at the bottom. There is no rubber between the channel and the door frame where the 3 screws connect, they are holding metal on metal, so the condition of your rubber shouldn't matter if the screws are in tight.

Are the screws stripped out a little bit keeping you from getting them tight? Might be able to try some oversize screws.

 

Yes, all of the screws are tight, it's the frame that's moving in the door. Rattles real bad and driving me nuts. No Idea what I can do about it either.

 

Jayson,

Not clear on description. Vent Frame fastens to door, is also front windowglass guide channel. If felt/ fuzzy insert is bad window rattles in vent frame & telegraphs it to sound/ feel like vent frame is loose, but it's not. In this case R&R channel insert.

Vent window frame, fastens to vent frame @ pivots. It turns with glass as vent opens & closes. If this rattles, check pivots & receivers on window frame for wear/ damage. Repair/ replace as req.

If latch lever's loose & doesn't seat glass to gasket, chance is it's lever NOT pin lever's on. Drive roll pin out 2 remove lever. Replace with new, or unworn, lever. I upgrade w/ locking vent latch lever. Button must be pressed to open vent window. It stops entry thru vent window of otherwise locked truck.

If vent frame rattles, check screws in top of door along rise that seats @ "A" pillar [3? SSt, phillips head] hold top of vent frame in place, under w/strip, in door. Tighten or R&R.

 

If it's like mine, whats really happening is the whole inner shetmetal of the door is moving in and out (like the bottom of an oil can). I think the inner panel gets spread away from the outer door shell over the years especialy up by the top of the door where we rest our arm. I've noticed mine doing the same thing after I painted my truck and was driving around without the door panels on. I haven't yet done anything to repair mine yet.

Jeff

 

I think I know what the problem is.

If you removed all the glass, vent window frame, weatherstripping, etc. from the door, you would see a 1" wide "strap" that runs across the window slot. It attaches the outside skin to the inside skin. The vent window goes in front of the "strap" and the roll-down window goes behind.

If this "strap" breaks, it will allow the door skins to vibrate like you describe.

My passenger side is broken, and will do the same thing if the window is rolled completely down.

Hope this helps.

Stacey

 

Smaynor,

You may be on to something, like supercab78 said, the sheetmetal of the door is moving wich makes the vent window frame rattle. I will have to pull it and look at that strap. It's really driving me nuts.

 

If the strap is broken, it should be a fairly easy fix. Just squeeze the door skins back to the correct location and weld the strap back together.

I would have done mine, but the truck was already painted, and I didn't notice it until I was putting it all back together. Didn't want to take the chance of a weld spark rolling down the side of the door and ruining the paint.

Good luck,

Stacey