Hi all,

Firstly, new on here - typically enough, got a problem so found a forum...! My better half, Jess, has got an 03 Punto that she dearly loves, and some little sod took it upon themselves this weekend to do the drivers side door lock in, and bend/put hole in the surrounding metal:




Having gained entry to the car, they then took... NOTHING! Left CDs, HU, GPS, frigging everything... not amused, just pointless vandalism..

Anyway, I'm looking for the most cost effective way of getting it sorted, as lock is totally screwed, and it looks a state. She only has the one original key, so can't send that off, and her exess is £500, so no point sniffing out insurance (I hope!).

From what I can work out, a replacement door from a scrappy is only about £60, but what do I do about the lock?? I've got an old school mini, so all this electronic key stuff is a mystery to me - so far a Fiat garage has said ~£150 for a new key...!!

So, can I get replacement door, and lock, and just hook it up? Or does the new lock need to be coded to the car or something?

I saw a whole key/lock set including ignition on the net somewhere for £100 - so with a scrappy door, £160 would be an ok deal. If I were to do that would everything need to be re-coded?? Or just stick it together?

Seriously, heavily lost on this one (local Fiat garage very unhelpful so far), but want to keep it as cheap as possible, whilst not doing a botch job (2 different keys is an acceptable compromise to daft money though).

Any help greatly appreciated, and sorry if this is in the wrong forum... and if there is a similar thread, do let me know, couldn't find with search.

[/essay]

it will be a constant pain but if you can get the door, lock and key, just use that key to open the door and original to drive,

or get the locks removed and smoothed off then get remote locking

you can use a donor lock from the scrapyard door and switch the barrels over as per my guide... https://www.fiatforum.com/punto-guides/122553-door-lock-repair.html that way you can use your original key no problems. its usually just the lock face thats damaged and not the tumblers in the barrel themselves, so by doing this transplant method, you get the lock looking just the way it used to and use your current key with it. done this on 2 puntos now with no problems... both locks looking and working as well as the originals.

Genius!! No pics in the guide though... or is that me being dim?

Ok, will get that door ordered then, seemed like likeliest way to go anyway. So long as all I need to do is play with barrell, I reckon that's doable, many thanks.

How easy is all the door furniture to take off? Not got a haynes yet..!

nope that was my fault. took a load of pics as i did it and managed to wipe them before uploading :doh:

about replacing the door itself, on one of mine, i managed to find the same colour in a scrappies and all the trim matched aswell so i didnt have to bother

on the other though, i did have to remove everything. its not too difficult tbh. just search everywhere for screws and remove them all. theres a few hidden such as under the speaker grill (which prises off) and a couple under small covers on the door handle. once your sure youve found all the screws, gently pull the trim away (comes away in one peice.) there are little clips that hold the trim onto the door and you most probably will break a couple taking the trim off. its not really a problem unless you break a load of them though.
If the door has a window winder rather than electric, these can be a pin to remove. theres a little metal C clip on the handle itself holding it onto the shaft. you have to push the door trim as far in as you can and get a tiny screwdriver in the gap by the winder to try pull the clip off.

lol, oh well, no bother about the pics!

Yeah, fingers are heavily crossed trim will be the same, will save a degree of faff - plus the speaker grill is a little iffy on this one anyway..!

I'll do my best to not break too many retaining clip things, used to them being a pain, so will just be a little patient.

Are there any tips for fitting the door itself - i.e. are they usually an identical fit/easy to hang in place??

My only experience is with minis, where if you watch the production footage youtube.com/watch?v=5mxbUrkDZ34 (hmm, not allowed to post links yet!) you'll notice them being individually "shaped" on the production line with hammers.. As such it can be a bit of a pain to get them straight, as they're quite a personalised fit!!!

the dont need adjusting (well atleast mine didnt - plus im not aware there is anyway to adjust them anyway.) But the doors are damn heavy... ideally need two people - one taking the weight of the door while the other positions it on the hinges. trying to do both on your own is enough to turn you insane then once its lowered onto the hinges it will hold itself in place and you just need to fasten it in.
for removal/refitting of the door, its just a case of pulling the electrical connector clip up and disconnecting the connector. unbolting the door arm from its mount on the car pillar (2 torx heads i believe) and then undoing the 2 10mm bolts from the hinges. Then just lift up off the hinges and remove

Tip - if you have electric windows, wind the window fully down before doing anything. otherwise you regret not doing so when it comes to lifting the door off.

Yeah, window down was already on the cards, will give far more holding options! As for 2 people... suffice to say Jess and I don't get on well when I get her to help me carry/hold something heavy!! I'll come up with a workaround, always do...


Now, time for a really dumb quesiton - where the buggering hell is the paint code?!?! Looked at all the stickers under the bonnet, and none would seem to make sense, can't find squat on the Fiat site, and once again local dealership was just a lesson on sitting on hold on the phone...

tony barnes said:

Yeah, window down was already on the cards, will give far more holding options! As for 2 people... suffice to say Jess and I don't get on well when I get her to help me carry/hold something heavy!! I'll come up with a workaround, always do...


Now, time for a really dumb quesiton - where the buggering hell is the paint code?!?! Looked at all the stickers under the bonnet, and none would seem to make sense, can't find squat on the Fiat site, and once again local dealership was just a lesson on sitting on hold on the phone...

Click to expand...

there's a sticker in the tailgate I think.. can't check for you right now cos the lock and the release lever inside the car is broken!!

tailgate in mk1, bonnet in the mk2

Xen said:

the dont need adjusting (well atleast mine didnt - plus im not aware there is anyway to adjust them anyway.)

Click to expand...

I've got no idea how it's done, but the drivers door on my 55 plate punto was rehung by Grays garage under warrantee - it had worn through the rubber at the front by the bonnet with the upper corner of the doors leading edge.

The door is definately the same one, it shuts with a nice solid thunk, and the replaced rubber is still fine.
There was no trace of the work being done: no chipped paint on bolt heads.

Well, had a bit of a think about the replacement door theory.... came to the conclusion we were more than likely to get stuck with a door that was a slightly different shade, after all, highly unlikely it would of had the same life!

Sooo, decided garage route. Got a quote for new locks today - lmao!! Fiat only do a full set, not 1 at a time... nice guys! Something absurd like £187 for everything inc coding car. So got a lock from a local place at lunchtime for a tenner, and have just modded it to fit the original key - actually very easy job, apart from small amount of plastic damage

Top guides on here!

So will get garage to sort damage, should be pretty cheap all in all now, though might get this kit to make it more solid - atmvehiclesecurity.co.uk/cars.html - anyone used before?? Looks pretty original when in place, and will hopefully keep the little tea leaves out.

This happened to me a while back and all they stole was a Top Gun DVD out my glove box....MORE FOOL THEM!!

tony barnes said:

anyone used before?? Looks pretty original when in place, and will hopefully keep the little tea leaves out.

Click to expand...

Not by that company, but i measured up and had lock-plates cut to fit my MK1 punto after an attempted break-in. They ruined the metal around the lock, so i fitted these plates. Now theres no point trying to prise the metal back - you'd need a drill!
I painted them black and didnt want them to blend in. I wanted them to look smart but instantly noticable to thieves.

Nicely - think I'll get them then, as had budgeted for lock being pricier

lol @ Top Gun...!