I see tons of cars on here w/ shaved door handles. Are all of you using remote entry, or is there another way I don't know about?
hide a button somewhere like under the car, or a micro switch under a chrome strip, there's lots of ways to do it, just use your imagination.
yeah, just use a detachable door handle, or if you have a sun roof it works well, convertibles even better. But if you can't do that and your windows are up, but you have a trunk key, just crawl up behind the back seat. I have seen alot of hidden buttons, but i like the way old door handles look so i don't have to worry about how my doors open.
Traditionally, you had a hidden button that activated a '50 Chevy starter motor solenoid in the door that was hooked up by cable or rod to the door latch similar to the existing inside door release. You weld the door lock lever on the latch so it can't even accidentally get locked. You also have a manual pull cable release for when the electrics crap out. That works just like the cable trunk releases n most new cars today...Hint? There are also "kits available that have the solenoids and remote buttons that work like your Camry's remote door lock/ alarm fob. Hope this post actually helps!
are ya sayin the smartassed remarks didnt???? i live on gravel...not sure how long a button under would hold up...do, like others have said, ill just leave a window down!
After the untimely demise of the Autoloc solenoids. The wing window is the way to go....and a Club on the steering wheel.
The coolest, more economical way I've seen (actually bought a set-up like this) is to use a house burglar alarm magnetic switch. The kind a magnet will close the contacts. Use this to trigger a regular relay, and have the relay send power to a door opening motor. I use "Ball's" motors in my cars. Have had few failures over the 15 or so years I've been using them. Brockman Muffler people sell them. You can hide the mag switch behind anything that is nonmagnetic. That is, glass, like the lower corner of the windshield, or even your stainless side trim. You carry a magnet around to pass over the hidden switch and the door pops open. I glued a PS pump magnet to the back of a brass Chevy logo that was on my key chain.
I live on a 1/4 mile dirt, mud, and gravel driveway, and the buttons under mine have lived for 18 years. I used waterproof switches, and then covered them with a steel plate that is hinged on the inside, so it hangs down slightly, when I want to open the door, I stick my foot under the car and kick the plate, no hands necessary, great for loading groceries and other times when your hands are full. The plate also protects the buttons from flying debris, like gravel. Another thing I did was to install bearclaw latches----backwards. I got junkyard latches from a dodge omni (I think) and installed the left in the right and visa versa. I did this because it allowed me to put the latch in the quarter, rather than in the door, that way the solenoid is kept dryer, is free from the shock of slamming the door, and I don't have to worry about pinching the wire in the door. I also have cables attached that hang under the car for emergencies, easier to do with the latches in the quarter. I've never had any problem with this set up over 18 years of use, and I mean use. A friend of mine built a truck and his fancy ass remote failed, and he had no backup system.---------- I held the blanket over the back window while he hit it with a hammer to smash it out so he could get in.
Hey Roddinron Just wondering what car you have this done to and what you do for your interior door release?
Mine have hidden buttons but frankly the solenoids are too weak - sometimes it takes two tries to pop the doors.
Buddy of mine put a lock cylinder in the stainless trim and contected it to the door latch. When you put the key in and turn the lock the door pops open. Works so far - who knows if there is too much stress on the internals though.
After doing the no door handles on a couple of cars in the past,,,I came to the conclusion that door handles ain't such a dumb idea. My first car with no door handles ended up with no drivers window,,,thanks to a big rock in Knoxville Tenn. at the Nats South back in 88,,,,poor planing on my part. The second one had the remote switch to roll the window down in my 39 Ford convert,,beware of sticking solenoids,,,a slight fire inside my door,,,,strike two,,, I have door handles now,,,they don't bother me at all! HRP
I removed the door handles on my F-1 about 35 years ago. Had nothing but trouble over the years, a real pain in the ass!.. Left the stock door handles on my 49 Merc. What a trip, ya just walk up and pull the little chrome handle and the door opens, its like magic! I've even seen real stupid people do it. It may be a new fad...............OLDBEET
i always use a choke cable as a back up for the doors and trunk. never know when the battery will go dead in the car or remote. wiring with a relay is the only way to wire a solenoid.
We are developing hidden touch sensors that will work through glass and fiberglass... or anything that is non-conductive. We have a set on our buick already, but there's some development left to do.. Let me know if you (or anyone else) is interested, I'll get you more info.
I've been working on a 51 Mercury with shaved door handles for about a month now, and it's a pain the ass at times...you always gotta plan what you're doing to the car (especially when re-wiring it!) around your predicted need to get inside of the car somehow! The way this car is set up is that it uses a system much like DrJ described...with solenoids pulling on cables to pop the door(s) open. Whoever did this car went one step further and decided that it didn't need no stinking door handles INSIDE the car either! As you can see in the picture, he put a small push button (that actually says (Start" on it!) ner the front of each door on the inside. That gets you OUT of the car when you're in it. The way you popped the door open from the OUTSIDE when I first started on the car was to open the hood, find the door popper wire in a maze of other wires, then unravel it from the mess and touch it to the battery cable. Innovative...and guaranteed to slow would-be car thieves down a little...but I thought it was just a bit too crude, so I added a hidden button to open the door with! Those shiney silver things in front of the passenger's door in the kick-panel area are the relays for the door solenoids. The door popper wiring is all that is left from the wiring that was in the car when I started on it...but it will soon be replaced with remote, key-fob controls and manual back-up devices. Personally, I'd say LEAVE THE DOOR HANDLES ON...but that's just me!! All in all, it isn't complicated to engineer and install alternate ways to pop the doors...but if it's a car you're going to DRIVE often, you'll likely soon find yourself tired of it and wish you'd just kept the handles! Ha Ha...but it IS a conversation starter...everywhere I go with this car (now that it's back to being driveable!) I get people asking "How do you open the doors?". Ha Ha...I have fun with that in all sorts of ways ...distracting them with some sleight-of-hand while I secretly pop the switch!
Not if it's done the way I did mine, I can honestly say that mine have never been a problem, and are more convenient than door handles since I can open the doors with my hands full. As mentioned, you MUST use a relay with solenoids, and install cables as a backup. I also use buttons on the inside, and have cables as a backup, I did my own interior, so I just designed the rear arm rests to contain the backup cables. I use door poppers from an 80 something Olds four door rear doors to pop them open. Oh yeah, and I do have a hidden key switch to shut off the power to the car when parked. Mine are installed in a 39 Pontiac coupe. BUT, with all this said, I'm building a 53 Stude that will have handles, just because they're such a nice design it would be a shame to remove them, and I'm also working on a 36 Ford truck that will also have them, again, because I just like them. Done right, I don't think they're a problem, but I think it's best if you can keep them out of the doors like I did, it eliminates a lot of potential problems.
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