I want to shave my door handles

KC96LSC said:
I'm glad someone reopened this thread. I'm not sure I would have thought of it in time to do it to my car. I ordered a 50 lb. kit today. Can't wait to see how it comes out.

Thanks
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I want to see how it comes out on your car. Post a write up about it and show us some result pics.
 
KC96LSC said:
I'm glad someone reopened this thread. I'm not sure I would have thought of it in time to do it to my car. I ordered a 50 lb. kit today. Can't wait to see how it comes out.

Thanks
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Please tell me you didn't order from AutoLoc.
 
You were OWNED!

Anywho.. the autolocs aren't as bad as everyone says. You just need to REALLY attentive when you mount them... If they are a little out of alignment they will wear SUPER quickly. I have put quite a few kits in, one on a vette with vertical doors. You really need to take the time with the install and you will be fine
 
Stack said:
Anywho.. the autolocs aren't as bad as everyone says. You just need to REALLY attentive when you mount them... If they are a little out of alignment they will wear SUPER quickly. I have put quite a few kits in, one on a vette with vertical doors. You really need to take the time with the install and you will be fine
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I'll disagree. The solenoids themselves are junk. I've had no issues with "wear," it was simply a matter of failure. That's just the beginning, though. Their remote kits are cheap, and if you make the mistake of ordering the remote kit with an alarm, you get the pleasant surprise of getting two separate kits: the remote kit, and the alarm kit. It's pretty much left in your hands to wire the two systems so that they work in conjunction. They use wiring that is too small for some of the applications, they don't provide relays, and their idea of an "emergency" exterior button is a cheap plastic piece that I could get for a buck at any parts store. I could go on, but you get the idea.

I spent a lot of time having to go over their "kit" and making it right. I had one solenoid go out within months, and the second one died within a year. I replaced both with quality units that actually cost half of the Autoloc junk, and they have been flawless for several years now. My opinion is that since you have to pretty much design the whole system yourself, you are better off buying a wireless remote system and building the entire kit yourself. It'll be cheaper and of better quality, and will probably save a little time since you're not backtracking over the B.S. of the Autoloc kit.
 
Great, to bad that info wasn't brought up before I went with someone. I guess I should have figured that one out somehow. That's just :q ing GREAT!!!!:slam :Bang :(
 
Stack said:
So what are the other options then????
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JoshMcMadMac said:
My opinion is that since you have to pretty much design the whole system yourself, you are better off buying a wireless remote system and building the entire kit yourself. It'll be cheaper and of better quality, and will probably save a little time since you're not backtracking over the B.S. of the Autoloc kit.
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;)
 
Frogman said:
So what are the other options then, Josh? :lol:
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I'm guessing you are asking for more specific information on brands and whatnot. I'd have to do some more homework on it. I know that the solenoids I bought to replace the Autoloc were of great quality. You can tell just by looking at a solenoid. I googled "shaved door handle kits" and got a ton of results. One of the first ones I opened looks like the solenoids I bought:
http://www.commandoalarms.com/itm00032.htm

They have a kit on the same site that looks decent, too:
http://www.commandoalarms.com/itm00031.htm

It has what appear to be decent solenoids, not to mention the fact that they include the relays! From there, if you want an alarm on the same system, you can purchase a simple alarm module and wire into the remote that you have for the door handles. When you get to look at a solenoid, look for two things. First, look for the "condom" that sits over top of it; door lock actuators have then, and there is a reason for that. Second, look at the two parts of the solenoid itself; they should not be cheap steel. The outside should be a decent metal, and the inside should pretty much be a large magnet. These units will last, and 35lbs is plenty. I bought into the fact that I have big heavy doors, so more poundage was important, and went with Autoloc as they seemed to have the only 50lb kit I could find on the market. The weight of the door really shouldn't have much bearing on the solenoid, it's more important for using it on a daily basis as opposed to a once-a-month show car.
 
Cool man... pretty much all we ordered at the shop over here were Autoloc's or autolocs under different names...

Haven't had any real issues with them as you speak of. I mena we have had some premature wear but we chalked it up to alignment... If they come back again I will have to bring up the quality issue with the shop owner...

I am going to check out that other site

thanks man!
 
Stack said:
Cool man... pretty much all we ordered at the shop over here were Autoloc's or autolocs under different names...

Haven't had any real issues with them as you speak of. I mena we have had some premature wear but we chalked it up to alignment... If they come back again I will have to bring up the quality issue with the shop owner...

I am going to check out that other site

thanks man!
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My pleasure. You won't be able to get Autoloc to replace anything under warranty, either. They have a "lifetime guarantee" that apparently is good for one year. I called them about the solenoid failures, and after an hour of waiting to speak to a person, I was told that their lifetime warranty was good for one year...I talked in circles with the guy about that for ten minutes before giving up. :confused: From there the guy made it a point that I would have to prove that in no way did my installation cause the failure. The shipping costs were mine to pay for, and even if I paid to send them a worthless chunk of metal and they decided to take fault for it, it would still cost me $75 for the replacement!
 
94BLU8 said:
where can i find a door it other than auto loc
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JoshMcMadMac said:
I'm guessing you are asking for more specific information on brands and whatnot. I'd have to do some more homework on it. I know that the solenoids I bought to replace the Autoloc were of great quality. You can tell just by looking at a solenoid. I googled "shaved door handle kits" and got a ton of results. One of the first ones I opened looks like the solenoids I bought:
http://www.commandoalarms.com/itm00032.htm

They have a kit on the same site that looks decent, too:
http://www.commandoalarms.com/itm00031.htm
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:rolleyes: :confused: :rolleyes:
 
joshMcMadMac, Where did you get your second set of solenoids from and how well have they performed? What did you have to give for them and how long have you had them installed? Thanks for your insight.
 
JoshMcMadMac said:
:rolleyes: :confused: :rolleyes:
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tyhanks man i was reading the last reply before u sent that one at my shop we also order autoloc and weve had people come back for motors or they stop working at a week and ect .. thanks for the heads up on commandos
 
KC96LSC said:
joshMcMadMac, Where did you get your second set of solenoids from and how well have they performed? What did you have to give for them and how long have you had them installed? Thanks for your insight.
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I bought the replacement solenoids from a local "speed" shop. They have performed flawlessly for several years now. They look similar, if not the same, as the solenoids I linked above. They were $50 each when I got them.

94BLU8 said:
tyhanks man i was reading the last reply before u sent that one at my shop we also order autoloc and weve had people come back for motors or they stop working at a week and ect .. thanks for the heads up on commandos
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I'm always glad to share my experience so that others don't suffer the pain I have! :cool: As I've said before, and everyone seems to keep echoing...the AutoLoc parts are notoriously poor.
 
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Beautiful.!
 
That deck lid is just not right. A nice new lincoln emblem from a navigator/MKZ would finish it off, in my opinion.
 
unity said:
That deck lid is just not right. A nice new lincoln emblem from a navigator/MKZ would finish it off, in my opinion.
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I agree......but at that point it was too late due to the fact that it was already done....LOL

I was going to put some graphix in there or maybe the plate holder....but no longer own it and workin on another one.
 
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