Restoring 2001 Sportage

[etripp111]

Hello,

I am in the process of "restoring" a 01 Sporty, and need some advice.

1.) I replaced my damaged front passenger door with one from a 2002, and now it doesn't close properly, any advice on how to adjust it ? I know it can be done, and there MUST be a technique to it, other than "experience".

2.) The rear door locks do not lock with the key fob or when you lock the front door with the plunger. Also one rear window does not operate, I tried a different switch and still no luck. Anyone have experience chasing down these type of phantoms in the sporty?

3.) The heater and a/c fan has stopped working. I smelled a burning plastic smell before it stopped. Any idea if it is the switch, relay or motor? Again another "ghost in the machine".


4.) I am taking parts from an 02 Sporty that I bought. It has a "rod knock". Anyone with experience with this type of issue? I was wondering if it is worth trying to fix, or should I just part it out and junk it?


Once again ANY advice is appreciated.

Thanks

Eddie

[gomer]

Originally Posted by etripp111

I replaced my damaged front passenger door with one from a 2002, and now it doesn't close properly, any advice on how to adjust it ? I know it can be done, and there MUST be a technique to it, other than "experience".

How well is everything lined up? When installing doors, the easy thing to do is drop some bling on a door dolly. I would have checked the gaps on another door/body line and made a few shims to properly gap and line up the new door. Usually, this is all you need to do, but from time to time, it's necessary to loosen the latch or the striker and adjust it. Open and close the door slowly while peering through the gap to see just how much either has to move and in what direction.

Originally Posted by etripp111

The rear door locks do not lock with the key fob or when you lock the front door with the plunger. Also one rear window does not operate, I tried a different switch and still no luck. Anyone have experience chasing down these type of phantoms in the sporty?

On any build, I assume before I start that the wiring all needs to be replaced. I usually upgrade to 14g and, as all of the wires are replaced and rerouted, I rarely run into electrical problems I can't hunt down. But then, this raises the question of how much attention to detail, money, time and effort you want to spend on this vehicle. However, I have the same problem with the rear pass side window of my Sportage and have since discovered both window motors on that side of the car need to be replaced. The door locks are a new one on me. Relay, perhaps?

Originally Posted by etripp111

The heater and a/c fan has stopped working. I smelled a burning plastic smell before it stopped. Any idea if it is the switch, relay or motor? Again another "ghost in the machine".

I would think it's the relay. Fans typically run slower and slower and make all sorts of noises before they finally kick the bucket. Switches rarely smell like that when they go bad. Another reason why I go into a project with the idea firmly fixed that the old stock wiring comes out in favor of new heavier duty wiring. Just a little overkill to help mitigate the odds of future problems.

Originally Posted by etripp111

I was wondering if it is worth trying to fix, or should I just part it out and junk it?

That's a tough one, Eddie. I guess the answer to that all depends on how much time, effort, research and money you're willing to put into this project. There are guys that have spent years and countless thousands of dollars on builds and there are the vast majority that would simply have passed this vehicle over for a runner in the name of convenience and/or immediacy. On the other hand, I would probably see this through to the end.

[etripp111]

Thanks for ALL the info.

I checked out rockauto.com. Pretty good source. As for my dooe problem a local body guy lined it up fot FREE. He use a metal tool that spanned from the latch to the door catch when the door was opened and just pulled up, then he adjusted the dooe latch about 1/8 inch. I guess experience counts for something.

The heater blower turns out to be the motor itself. It seems that water and other debrie found its way down into it. Who would have thunk it? Its realy ironic too, the 2002 sporty has a different blower motor, now that STUPID! I found one on e-bay for 50 bucks, guess I'll go that way.

You say you have a Sporty whose rear windo doesn't work either? Its wierd 'cause both my 01 and 02 the rear driver windows don't work. As for the power locks on the rear where is the best place to start tracking it down? I'm going to disconnect the connections and apply some dielietic grease. Good idea or bad?

I guess I could try the wndow motor from the one in the other to see if that's it. Its alot of work removing it though...

Gotta go the wife needs help with the Sporty.......

Eddie

[bubbashrimp]

Hmmmmm. On the 99 Sportage I just bought, the rear passenger side power window don't work but the other 3 do. I am not going to bother to fix it as there is only me and the wife that ride in the car. Oddly enough, I had to replace the passenger side front window motor 3 times on my previous vehicle, which was a 91 Ford F150. Can't complain though, bought it for 700 bucks and after 4 years traded it in and got 1400 bucks for it.

[gomer]

I'd start with all of the connections first. This will give you a good idea as to routing and what you're looking at if you have to rewire. Clean or replace them (Painless Wiring has pin sets with the picks. Weatherproof, even) as necessary, but I would make sure all connections, hot and ground, were as clean as I could possible get them. If you have a spare door switch, swap that out as well to eliminate it out of hand.

I'm surprise the blower motor gave out without any sort of warning. Like I said before, there is usually a noise associated with failure or they fail slowly.

I wouldn't worry about using dielectric grease just yet as it may interfere with the connection. It is non-conductive, after all, no? Clean up the connections, install and then apply the grease to the assembled connection. Make sure the entire harness is operative before you apply dielectric grease. A hint: when splicing or reconnecting wires in a harness, I'll solder the connection, apply a little orange RTV and cover that with heat shrink tubing before the RTV even gets tacky. You can bank on the durability of such a connection.

As for the window motor, I'd just as soon replace the whole door, but you mention that the door is exactly what you are looking for. I don't have a lot of experience with window motors but the ones I have seen seem fairly easy to replace.