Cargo bay door spring pulled out

[BearPaw-KEY]

We have a 2011 Montana. Recently the spring device that holds the door up and out bulled out of the top of the door. We had it repaired but the only replaced the screws and the spring just pulled out again. Now we just use a long handle shovel to keep it open. We contacted Keystone for help as to how to fix this and was told to take it back to the repair shop--Keystone could not help us. Anyone have this problem? Can it be fixed or do we have to buy a new door? Also the spring on the other side of this door is showing signs of pulling out.

 

[Pull Toy]

Pictures please?

 

[chuckster57]

It sounds like your talking about the strut, and most likely the plate that is mounted to the door itself has come loose. That is the most common failure, and proper repair isn't easy. The problem is the screws don't go onto anything substantial to hold them.

I have used bamboo skewers in the holes to hold the screws, and on one with the owners approval, I drilled through the door and then used pan head bolts with washers and nuts on the inside. I cut the bolt length so that it only extended the length of the nut, and then covers the nut with clear silicone to prevent snags, and painted the heads to help them blend in with the door color.

Other than these two repairs, I think replacement is the only other option.

On edit: I guess there is another way..

 

[bobbecky]

I repaired ours a couple years ago, and they haven't budged since. I purchased 1/8" X 2" aluminum bar stock from the hardware store, 1/4" machine screws and 1/2" sheetmetal screws. I tapped the holes for the machine screws into the aluminum and used the sheetmetal screws to attach the aluminum to the inside of the door. The real problem started with the use of screws too small for the holes in the brackets, allowing them to shift up an down as the door was opened and closed, which caused the screws to loosen, and ultimately come out all the way.

 

[chuckster57]

Nice work. I like that repair