Malfunctioning door strut on 2014 Broadway

We have a 2014 Broadway with a Hartal door. We have an ongoing problem with the door strut. The peg at the end of the strut seems to be insufficiently firmly attached and comes off at intervals, wedging in the door and stopping it closing as well as, once, allowing the door to swing back and so stretching the cable that supplies the lock mechanism. If we took off the strut altogether then there would be nothing to prevent damage to this cable.

We are away at the moment so cannot take it in for inspection but it would be interesting to know if anyone else has had problems or needed a fix ?

Q

Unforunately loads of reported problems with all makes of motorhome that use Hartal doors, just google 'Hartal door stay' and you'll see. I have found this 'fix' on outandabout forum and have copied the relevant bit here..

''Over the weekend I have been experimenting with various home-made "sliders" and today I have found a 99p solution!
During a visit to Wilkinsons yesterday morning in their curtain track section I found a pair of stick-on fittings used to hang the plastic coated spring wire used for net curtains. These fittings have a small steel rod (about 1/2" long) coming out of one side of a raised section at one end - which was easily removed with pliers. That was followed by a bit of filing of the flat rectangular base to fit the track and the drilling of a suitable hole in the centre of the raised section. Hey, presto a replacement door slider that is working beautifully.
To top it off there were two of the fittings in the pack, so not only have I saved 40 quid but I also have a spare slider! ''

You can buy replacement slider kit but as mentioned above it's £40




edit - the £40 kit is from Burstner who use the same door but I've just found that Bailey (who also use the door) have the same kit for £17, here

https://www.bailey-parts.co.uk/Product.aspx?PartNumber=1120197

in fact they have several spares for Hartal doors which may be of use in future

https://www.bailey-parts.co.uk/ProductList.aspx?CategoryID=150&SubCatId=150f

Thank you so much Paul. That is all excellent stuff and reassuring to know we are not alone. AS first when we get home and then Wilkinson's for a kit to keep in hand !
Thanks again
Q

Hi.
My broadway door stay was replaced at Wilersey during a habitation service  last December.This was after it failed on our way to Greece last September and were without it for two months. The slider bit is made of plastic and had twisted totally out of shape, making it unusable.

Because of where it is, it tends to get negleted and the groove it slides in on top of the door, gathers lots of grime and needs to be cleaned regularly, then sprayed with WD40 so that the sliding action has no resistance.

Hope this is of some help

Thanks Bad Penny. We've been doing a small survey of motorhome doors and come to the conclusion that a re- design would be a good thing for many. The stay system doesn' t seem to take into account possible hot but windy days when you would like the door open but firmly held ( and a bungee guyed to the ground is not terribly elegant ! ) or the very vulnerable, rather short, electrical cable at the bottom of the door.

When it stops raining here in Spain we will make sure that our channel is clean and lubricated.

Q

the peg on the strut does not seem long enough.  I got over the problem of the peg popping out by not tightening the bolt that holds the strut to the door frame.  this gives the strut a bit of vertical play and it seems to stay in place on the top of the door.  Every so often I just try to tighten it with the flat of my finger to stop it undoing itself.

Thanks Dave: we'll have a look at that tomorrow.
Q

I cannot remeber the thread where I reported my cure for this.
Like lots of other folk I had the screw that secures the stay to the door frame (through the little nylon widget) loosening and eventually dropping out causing the stay to jam the door.  It happened to me in France last year and luckily the screw fell into the step well where I could find it and the widget had stayed in place.
I replaced the screw but it cannot be tightened too much into an aluminium frame and quickly came loose again.  I had no Loctite so put a spot of contact adhesive on the threads.  It has since stayed tight, though I do check it from time to time to be on the safe side.
No cost, no modification, five minutes work - Job Done!  I am wondering why A/S don't put some Loctite on during assembly.

PS  The Bailey strut looks extremely like what I remember of the strut on my Lancashire - complete with the little nylon bush and the short countersunk head allen screw which fell out and is now screwed back in  with Evo-Stik on its threads.

Our problem seems to be at the other end to the screw,it is the peg that goes into the slider which pops out of the stay. It is only a press fit. The effect has been much the same however as the loose stay jams the door if it does come off and it needs daily checking.

Q

Ah!  That's a real pain and sounds like a replacement is required. I have not investigated that end ....... yet!

Quilter wrote:Our problem seems to be at the other end to the screw,it is the peg that goes into the slider which pops out of the stay. It is only a press fit. The effect has been much the same however as the loose stay jams the door if it does come off and it needs daily checking.

Q

As my earlier thread, due to the door fit, if the screw is tightened fully the peg pops out due to the alignment.

Dave 'R' wrote:

As my earlier thread, due to the door fit, if the screw is tightened fully the peg pops out due to the alignment.

So I wonder if the answer is as suggested by a Member earlier: don't tighten that screww fully, but use some Loctite to stop it from moving?

It's ridiculous that we have to resort to such tricks to solve a problem which should not occur but which seems to be common!

Or possibly to put a VERY small bend in the strut?  It would need just a fractional amount.

Thanks. My OH repaired the strut, with a very small bend as suggested, last night. We shall see....!

We talked to another couple on site yesterday with an exact contemporary Broadway. They have had the AS fix ( blob of Loctite) for a loose screw which seems to be holding so far.Perhaps the bend will solve the loose peg that we have.

I wish that a different way could be found to take the necessary to the locking mechanism as we would really like to be able to have the door fold back completely against the side of the van. I wonder why sable

Aagghh! Fat finger syndrome, a tablet and poor WiFi; can't edit but meant to say " I wonder why stable doors went out of fashion ? Surely the technology exists to make a better security better on them ?"

Q

I think there are two problems with the door going right back (which I would prefer as well):
The hinges won't quite allow it
it would (oon our van) partly cover the fridge vent. 
So, sadly, no chance and it gets the full force of the wind when open

Our door stay fell apart late last year after the door got caught on the wind and pulled the end of the stay out of the nylon slider. A/S had the van back for some remedial work and fixed the stay, but I think all they did was to bend the bar down a little and tighten the screws 
After a good look at the steel pin that goes into the slider, I noticed a groove at the end, I assume that there should be a small circlip that holds the pin and slider together

Quick trip to eBay and ordered a pack of E clips (2mm I think. )
Clip fitted and the stay now stays in place
Allan

Very helpful, Allan. Any chance of a photo to make it easier for the likes of me, please?!

Thanks Alan. The peg on our door clips into the slider reasonably firmly but detaches from the stay. My OH put a slight bend in it yesterday but today it came out yet again.

The door will fold back flat against the van side, and only half obscures the fridge and microwave vent - not seriously we think. The door hinges are not under strain but the wire that controls the central locking of the hab door definitely is under strain in this position. Another couple of centimetres longer at the very most and it would be fine.

When the wind took our door, it did so with a vengeance and I expected some damage somewhere, but, apart from the stay, there was none. The cable from the body to door is long enough not to be put under strain when it is wide open, and luckily, the fridge vents are on the hinge side. With the door wide open though, it fouls the window next to it when open..
Cymru, I will post a picture later, it's not pretty, I had to drill the nylon slider a bit to make room for the wider e clip, but it works, my intention was always to get a new stay, but the cost put me off.
Allan

Sorry Cymro, darned autocorrect changed you name to a nearby country!
Allan

Happy with either name, Allan! I respond just the same - like my cat!

No rush for photo: I'm most interestd in this thread because I've not hitherto had a hab door which has a retainer but I will shortly (on a Nuevo). It's clearly a poor system, and so I'd like to learn how to take preventive measures before sustaining any damage.

Its important to understand that the door strut is designed to be the 'weakest link'. It should break before the door frame, door or both are distorted by being blown against a 'hard stop'. I'm not saying this one is a particularly food design, just that if you modify it, make sure it's still the first thing to break.

Peter

Excellent point Peter..thanks. At the moment ours is held in the open position, at 90 deg to the van, by two guy ropes ! Not elegant but it works.

Q

The problem with the door is that there are a few different layouts for the door and they all have the strut problem and potential for damage if the strut fails.
With some, the cable is stressed if the door opens too much, so, the strut breaking and allowing the door to fully open could damage the cables as well.  I was lucky with mine when the strut went, the door slammed open against the body side and luckily, there was no other damage, but it could just as easily broken the side window that it slammed against if it had been open even to the vent setting.  
I understand Peter, what you mean about having a "weakest link" it's just that the weakest ink needs to ensure that when it does break, there is no potential for further damage.
I don't know the answer, I know this is a potential problem for any outward opening door, maybe some sort of strut that stays connected and allows the door to open fully to the body, but with a progressive damping system. I'm sure there must be something like that already available, or if not, there should be.
I don't want to sound too harsh here, we love our van but there are a lot of little things ( and a few big ones) that we would change if we could. I know A/S state ( or used to) that somewhere in the building or designing of their vans, were people that were experienced motor-homers. There are a lot of silly design faults or times when you think " who the heck thought that was the best way to do that" ( winter pack comes to mind here)
But, even with these problems, I wouldn't buy any other make of van.

Allan