Slaysman

I replaced the hinge last weekend. Not terribly difficult, but it does take some time, patience, and a helper for the final assembly. Materials needed are: - New plastic hinge - Pop rivet tool - Box of 3/16" pop rivets with 1/2" grip range - Aluminum pop rivet washers (optional, but recommended) - Black silicon RTV - 1/2" wide x 1/4" thick medium or high density weatherstripping adhesive foam - Blue painter's masking tape Here is the procedure that I used: Remove the old hinge pieces and save them. You will have to drill out the old pop rivets. Clean off the old RTV from the van where the hinge was attached. I used a single edged razor blade. Also clean out any RTV at the ends of the hinge area where the vertical door seals are located. Measure the old hinge and use a hacksaw to cut the new hinge to the proper length. Use the old hinge pieces as templates and 3/16" drill to pre-drill the new hinge holes for the pop rivets. I did this to minimize the number of new holes needed in the van body and the door. You can clamp or tape the old and new hinges together to get the holes close, or measure the hole positions and mark them on the new hinge and drill them. The idea is to get as close as possible, but you will likely have to enlarge the holes in the new hinge a bit to get the holes to line up when assembling. Check the hole locations by attempting to test fit it to both the door and the van body. I used some #10 bolts and nuts in the end holes, then tried to insert bolts in the other holes. This is where you will need your drill to "adjust" the hole locations. Be sure to get the hinge tight against the van body when doing this, so it will fit flush when riveting. Repeat this process on the storage compartment door side of the hinge. You might find that it will be a good idea to tape down the rubber seals at each end of the door opening so that the hinge will easily slide in ABOVE the ends of the seals. Apply a bead of RTV to the door where the old hinge attached, and smooth it along the area where the hinge will attach. Insert a pop rivet in one of the holes, and place an aluminum washer onto the other end. Use the rivet tool to set the pop rivet. Make sure the hinge is pushed up tight against the door while doing this. Repeat until you have all the pop rivets installed. An assistant makes life easier here. Get some 1" long #10 bolts and nuts, the masking tape, and maybe some boxes or something to rest the bottom edge of the door on while you are attaching the hinge edge. Have them handy by the side of the van. Mask off the area just above the door opening on the van with the blue masking tape. Place it where the original RTV ended. This will keep you from getting RTV all over the side of the van. You may also want to Cut a piece of the weatherstripping foam to the length of the hinge, and apply it to the new hinge on the inboard side of the mounting holes. You can see where the foam goes by looking at your old hinge. Then run a small bead of RTV along the length of the new hinge on the outboard side of the mounting holes. this will seal the hinge against the van body to prevent leakage. Take a breather before the next step, and make sure your assistant is ready! Slide the door and hinge assembly into place, and have your assistant hold it while you put a couple of nuts and bolts in place loosely to temporarily hold the hinge to the van. Then prop the door open with some boxes, or use long strips of tape from the bottom of the door to the side of the van to hold the door open. Insert a pop rivet, work an aluminum washer on to the end of it (it is tight but you can get your fingers in above the hinge area to do this). Take your time so as not to get frustrated! Have your assistant push the hinge against the van and use the rivet tool to set the rivet. Repeat this process until you have all the rivets installed. You may not be able to get washers in place on all the rivets, especially at the two ends. You also may find you need the drill again to enlarge a few holes as the hinge gets attached. When done, take another break! Let the door hang down on the hinge. Apply a strip of the blue masking tape along the top edge of the hinge so that about 1/16" of the top edge is exposed. Mask off the end areas to keep RTV off the van body. This is where you are going to apply more RTV. You will probably not see any RTV coming out of the area between the hinge and the van unless you put too much of a bead on the hinge. If so, wipe the hinge clean before applying the masking tape. Get a bowl of water and some paper towels. Squeeze a bead or RTV along the entire length of the top of the hinge. Apply whatever is needed to get it into whatever gap you have between the hinge and the van. When you are happy, dip your finger in the water, and slide it along the bead of RTV to smooth it. You may need to clean and wet your finger multiple times. When this step is complete, starting at one end, peel off the two long strips of tape and dispose of them. Once all that is done, I would let it sit for a couple hours or a day to let the RTV set a bit. You can re-attach the the door support strut to the door again. Then pull any tape off the end seals and get them in the proper position. you can glue them into position with some of the RTV. You can then mask around the ends of the hinge and door, and fill in the gap with RTV, like it was originally. Let that set up and you are all done. I think I covered it all. Like I said, not difficult, but if you aren't a bit handy with tools, you might want to farm the work out to someone who is.

I love the internet! Found the exact hinges from another forum. Moore Industrial Hardware, 800-543-1677. Item # 4561-2231-020, Continuous Hinges, Plastic. $27.67 plus shipping. Here is the link: http://catalog.mooreindhardware.com/item/hinges-continuous-hinges/continuous-hinges-plastic/item-7812?

I have the same problem with our 2003 Roadtrek 190. I cannot get any dealers here to ever get me a part number for the plastic hinge for the side storage compartment, and Roadtrek themselves are absolutely no help at all.. It finally broke through today, and it was a bit of work to drill out all the pop rivets to pull the broken parts off. I have ordered an aluminum piano hinge, but not sure it is going to work. The old hinge is about 1/2" to 5/8" thick when closed, and the hinge I ordered is only about an 1/8" thick closed. I may have to fabricate some spacers or something. Tape will not work. The sun will eat it up, and it will eventually fail at the worst possible time.