I get a couple of loud clicks, or cracks, when I open the driver's door. It seems there is some sort of flat chain that restrains the door, and that the links on this chain are rubbing against the sides of the hole through which it passes. Is this some internal problem that could be expensive?

could just be that the check strap bolts/nuts are loose

I kind of know the sound you mean, but am at a bit of a loss to recall the 'chain' you mention - I thought the door strap was a plastic rod / bar? As long as there's no resistance when opening, it's unlikely that anything's bent / out of alignment, so give the strap and the hinges a good greasing and see if it helps!

Mmm

I was the same , check stap needs tightening

My mate Peugeot did it , til I got the spanners out

used to drive me mad

Check them top and bottom in some

Sarah

I kind of know the sound you mean, but am at a bit of a loss to recall the 'chain' you mention - I thought the door strap was a plastic rod / bar? As long as there's no resistance when opening, it's unlikely that anything's bent / out of alignment, so give the strap and the hinges a good greasing and see if it helps!

The 'chain' is like a set of flat links - it could be plastic of some sort. The links have bumps, and it appears that the noises occur as each bump passes through the hole in the bodywork, behind the grommet. The visible bolts all seem to be tight, so I wondered if something had slipped behind the hole, causing the chain move nearer the edge of the hole.

The 'chain' is like a set of flat links - it could be plastic of some sort.

Fair enough - I've never had occasion to take that close a look...

Hi, something else that i had on my car! I had a new "chain" fitted under warranty. It was the only thing that cured the noise.

Interesting. I would have thought a new chain in the same position would have made the same noise. They must have adjusted the position when fitting in.

it is a plastic check strap , the bumps you describe are so the door will stay open in different positions

it is a plastic check strap , the bumps you describe are so the door will stay open in different positions

Why should the noise have suddenly increased? It is not the same on the passenger's side.

Why should the noise have suddenly increased? It is not the same on the passenger's side.

The whole "is it a chain, is it a rod?" thing meant I had a good look the next time I had one of our cars' doors open - the strap on my wife's has actually split part of the way across. It doesn't make any noise, but I suppose it could be the cause if yours had split in a particular place...?

The whole "is it a chain, is it a rod?" thing meant I had a good look the next time I had one of our cars' doors open - the strap on my wife's has actually split part of the way across. It doesn't make any noise, but I suppose it could be the cause if yours had split in a particular place...?

Yes. On closer inspection, what looked liked flat links seems to be a nobbly strap that could be basically a flat metal strap sandwiched between two contoured pieces of plastic. It makes loud cracks at each stop position, so one split would not be the reason. I will have a closer look. Maybe there is a rubbing strip on the edge of the hole that has split.

I get a couple of loud clicks, or cracks, when I open the driver's door. It seems there is some sort of flat chain that restrains the door, and that the links on this chain are rubbing against the sides of the hole through which it passes. Is this some internal problem that could be expensive?

The car was in the garage for another repair today. They fixed this at the same time under the description "re-tighten check strap."