To remove the under-door rocker panel, do the following:
| 1. | Pop out the rectangular plastic covers in the door sill area, drill out the aluminum pop rivets (1/4" dia) you find there. |
| 2. | Unscrew the screws in each fender well that hold the ends of the panel. |
| 3. | Drill out the plastic rivets that hold the bottom of the panel to the frame of the car. |
| 4. | (now for the trick) There is a latching tang at the back end, at the top of the piece, and two on the front end, where it mates with the body in front of and behind the door. With a thin piece of stiff sheet metal, find these and release them, and the top of the panel will pull out. If you have the replacement pieces, look at these for locations on these tangs. I would recommend NOT trying to use a screwdriver for these, as the fit is pretty tight to the top trim piece, and they're easy to ding up if you're not careful. |
Reinstallation is the reverse. Start with the tangs, then the top rivets, bottom rivets, and finally the end screws.
The bad news is that the 1/4" rivets take a big honker of a rivet gun to set. I bought one...it was about $120 from ToolsUSA. The plastic rivets also take a specific tool to set them, but it's more like $20 or $30. When you get to that point, it may be cheaper to find a local body shop and have them set those aluminum rivets for you. If you go that way, a couple of 1/4-20 stove bolts can be dropped into the holes in the top of the rocker panel to hold it in place temporarily.