I looked over at my passenger door today, and what did I see?



A naked screw. Gasp!

The horror. The horror.


After a brief search in under the floor mat and under the seat it became clear that my little screw cover for that door handle is now covering a bit of parking lot somewhere. On the bright side, this is a repair that's well within my limited mechanical skill set, so I started looking around for a replacement for ol' part number GNC1108CA, which is when I discovered that the cheapest price I could find on this three-cent piece of plastic was $8.49 shipping included on e-Bay.

So, I'm wondering if anybody has a cheaper source. Or possibly an extra one sitting around you'd be willing to send along for a buck plus postage.

Come to think of it, I may be working through the five stages of screw-cover mourning for a Jaguar owner:

Denial - "It can't really be gone. Let me look under that floor mat again."
Anger - "They want HOW much for a screw cover?!!!"
Bargaining - This post.
Depression - "This is why I can't own nice cars. I lose the screw covers."
Acceptance - "You know, it looks better with that shiny screw gleaming at me." (Okay, that may be denial again.)

I'll pony up eight bucks if I need to because it will irritate me to look at that screw. And Lord knows I've had more expensive repairs. But I just hate the notion of paying eight bucks for a piece of plastic that probably cost 1/8 of a cent to manufacture.

 

Use a black sharpie and paint over it or use some of that black gooey stuff that resembles plumbers putty.

 

we need someone with a 3D printer to whip up a batch of these!

 

Your local junkyard! It's where I find a lot of parts for cheap.

 

Picknpulls are good...but realize that you would spend 1-2 hours driving to one, and digging around the yard for the part...not worth that part of your life. It's 8 bucks...order one, and be thankful that you don't have to replace 8 of the black plastic snaps the keep the while inner door from shaking around - they cost similarly, and there are tons of them

 

I've done the same thing; Infact all of those stages I've been through with that little plastic screw cover after losing it in the abyss under my seat. I also looked on Ebay and I don't want to spend anymore than 5 dollars + shipping just for a little screw cover.

I agree with Charlz; we do need someone with a 3D printer to print these out!

 

grad a screw cover form either of the rear door handles and put it in the drivers door. Put a little piece of back cloth tape over the screw hole in the rear door. Your driver's door will look perfect and you will forget about the rear door, at least until you are chauffeur driven

 

Everyday XJ

Contact the guy who runs that site linked above, he has a vast resource of odd vintage Jag parts(many not listed on the website) & genuinely likes to help other enthusiasts.

 

Thanks! He didn't have one listed, but I sent along a parts inquiry. I'll let everybody know what I find out. More importantly, he looks like a really good source for bigger items as they may come up. (And just about EVERY item is bigger than this one!)

 

I like this idea. Wave of the future!

Thanks for the suggestions, everybody. And I'm open to more in case it turns out that Everyday XJ doesn't have one cheap. The math on a junkyard expedition for this item didn't really seem to make sense, and any of the other little cover-ups would probably end up irritating me as I looked at them. Maybe I'll try a junkyard if I have other items I'm aiming for. That's definitely a good way to go for bigger things.

I had planned to eat out for lunch today, but I brought my lunch to work instead, so I've now "justified" the $8.49 on eBay by saving the money on lunch. (Oh, the rationalizations that enter into the Jaguar budget equation some days.)

 

I heard back quickly from David at Everyday XJ. He had a pack with three left and offered up one for $8 or all three for $10, shipping included. I went for all three, thus securing a lifetime supply. But if anybody comes across this thread and needs one, I'd probably be willing to sell the other two for $4 apiece, shipping included, which would at least save you a few bucks.

(Apparently I've reverted to Stage Three of screw-cap grief: bargaining.)

 

Good. Bargaining is the way to go on eBay. Next week you will find the missing one under the front seat rails. Never fails.

 

Considering the issues discussed on this forum lately, I can see the winter is long and dark.
Love the way you describe your philosophical moods, and glad you found a couple of those little buggers.

E.

 

I used the same guy/David that I referred here, I was so agitated on the little pieces missing in my newly acquired X308 that he sent it to me for free. I was so focused on them then, now I can't even recall what it was now lol.

 

Its one of those car-specific trim items hence the stupid price, try and get one of these out without damaging it is the point, I've had to remove the door card a couple of times and chewed up this pesky trim piece in the process, my fault for being such a clumsy b****** I suppose.
One of those solid black liquorice allsorts cut down and pressed in did the job though.
I'm joking of course....

 

I pop mine with a sewing needle or pin when removing.

 

The screw covers arrived lickety-split (two-day delivery) from David at Everyday XJ. I went out to the garage and popped one on the door. I thought they'd just pop right in, but you do have to rotate them a bit in place to get the slots to line up. Instead of the two-second repair I thought it would be, it took me a good six or seven seconds.

Before:



After:



Ahhhhhh. The relief is palpable.

I know this was the tiniest little repair I will ever do on that car, but it's nice to have done it correctly. Thanks for the suggestions and information, everybody!

P.S. I believe I just sold off one of the two remaining screw caps, but there's still one more if anybody wants to buy it for four bucks, postage included, which was what it cost me.

 

All too true, though this has been a much milder winter in Michigan this year than the last two years. I even managed to get the Jag out on salt-free roads for a batch of errands on Saturday, which cheered me considerably as I wait for Spring.

Alas, that I'm better at the philosophy of Jaguar than the mechanics of Jaguar. But hope for improvement on the latter springs eternal.

 

Glad I could help with those.. It's always the little things that are the toughest to find...
When I do these large buy outs of shops and see little bits like that, I always wonder how in the world I'll be able to market all of those little bits.
It's nice to see them put to good use....

David
shop.EverydayXJ.com

 

Looks like I just sold off the second leftover one, so I'm out of the parts biz. Thanks again to everybody for the help. It was the tiniest little repair, but it turned a source of annoyance into a pleasure.