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Sliding Door diffilcult to slide.

8K views 9 replies 6 participants last post by  V8Pacer 
#1 ·
I have a '95 Dodge Caravan and the sliding door is very diffilcult to open and close. I've put some silicone/greese spray in this area though it didn't help. I assume there are bearings in here that are shot though I'd like a little advice before I try to take this apart and then don't have a vehicle to drive because the parts aren't in or some other Murphy's Law thing that is sure to happen if I'm not prepared up front. Any advice appreciated.
 
#2 ·
I would say look at the 3 roller hinges and look if the rollers are rolling, if they are siezed, you can take each out out one at a time and try to free them up or just go junkyard hunting or post on here to buy some that are good. According to body shop estimator it wont take but a hour to switch with experiance and figure a couple hours for a novice I looked at my 1994 Town and country to see that they are fairly easy to access with a 10mm socket wrench
 
#3 ·
Try spraying the roller bearings with WD-40 to free them up. Silicon and grease just gum up the bearings at times and they wont turn properly when in use.
 
#4 ·
x2 what V8pacer says. The WD40 flushes the dirt out, as well as lubricates the bearings. I use WD40 periodically on my sliding door bearings, latches, and have had no problems in 20 years.
 
#5 ·
i have also found that some times if the door is rarely used the bearings get a healthy coating of rust buildup and tends to make them not work well.WD40 will break the rust up so they will be freed and can start to roll properly again.
 
#6 ·
I will usually use some WD-40 in the rollers to break up any rust in there, followed by some white lithium grease.
 
#7 ·
Well, the rollers weren't rolling on my 3rd gen. I sprayed them with PB blaster and they immediately started rolling smoothly again. The sliding doors are 10x easier to open and close now, and don't require slamming to get them to latch.
 
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