Club 80-90 Forums

Hi All,
I need a new sliding door lock for my T25 as the inside locking button just slips down as soon as the door is shut effectively locking everyone in the back in whether they like it or not.  Not too happy with the safety aspect of this in the event of needing to get out quickly...

Anyhow, I'm having a bit of trouble sourcing one as although there are a few out there, they seem to have a bewildering variety of different part numbers.  I know there was a significant change around '84 such that later ones won't fit my 1980 van, but does anyone know which of the various part numbers are applicable to earlier vans?  The one currently on my van is part number 254 843 653.  I might be able to get hold of one with the part number 254 843 653B which sounds to me that it might just be a minor upgrade and so should probably be OK?
Any thoughts gratefully received!
Cheers,
Ian

Difficult to check as the part numbers for obsolete early stuff are not shown on parts catalogues that we generally have access to, the one really good exhaustive parts catalogue was pulled down online a couple of years ago, so pictures will be all you can go on

The letter can make it completely different get pictures of yours and the one offered to compare

Agree - the choice is bewildering and its best to match the part number exactly and compare the part as best you can. I found a few options on Volksmagic when I was looking at replacing mine.

The issue you mention is because a small spring inside the mechanism has a habit of breaking. There is a thread on the Samba forums about someone who managed to repair their old mechanism, but it looked quite involved as they are not really designed to be taken apart!

There is a well used bodge which is mentioned on this forum somewhere, in which you can put a small rubber washer under the internal locking knob, the idea being that the friction stops the knob from dropping down once the door is shut. That would certainly be a cheaper fix and by all accounts seems to do the trick. I've yet to attempt it myself because as annoying as it is, there's always been bigger problems to worry about!

Thanks for the replies all, I decided not to risk the 'b' part and that sounds like it was the right decision.  The rubber washer bodge sounds promising though - I'll give that a go at least until I can source a replacement with the same part number.
Cheers,
Ian