My van has been sitting patiently for nearly two years, while I scrounged
parts and "rebuilt" the engine. Today I pushed it into the garage to ready
it for the engine, which ought to bring up a whole lot of questions for
anyone with an air cooled vanagon, so you have been warned :-)

I would think all vanagon doors are basically the same mechanism. Mine is an
81 Air Cooled.

I opened the sliding door, and discovered that it doesn't work too goodly.
The tracks are all well greased, the door slides back and forth smoothly as
it should, the problem is with what happens when I open it. My handle is a
drooper as it is, so this really makes it a bummer to open.

When pull down the handle, the latch opens, and previously, the door would
pop away from the van at the rear, and I could just slide it open. What
happens now, however, is when I pull down the handle, the latch opens, and
the rear of the door pops about half an inch, and I have to reach back and
pull it out, at which point, it slides nice and easy to the fully open
position. I have looked at the Bentley, and there are some lovely pictures,
but no real hint as to what has failed, or gone out of adjustment.

When the door is open, and pulled away ready to slide back, there is a lot
of up and down play in it, which I don't know if it is normal or not. Is
there some adjustment I can make? I know its not the latch, because it is
clearly letting go the door.

I hope that was a lucid explanation. The door still works, it just needs
that extra step of pulling it out and away at the rear, before it will slide
open, whereas it used to pop out nicely. What makes it "pop out?"

Can anyone comment or suggest a course of inspection/action? A spring
broken, something misaligned? I stand in awe that it was quite functional
and happy when I parked it nearly two years ago, and now its acting up.
Can't be a good sign for what is to come with getting the engine in and
running <g>

Much obliged for any ideas or recommendations.

John