Tonight I fixed the two challenging nut plates, and then cleaned and installed tape on the sides of the exit door. I tried to install the cable support assembly, but ran into an interference issue with the engine mount.
I ended up not replacing the nut plates. I was able to eventually work a screw into one hole, which seemed to clear it, and subsequent screw installations were fine. In the other hole I used a tap to just start a thread, maybe 2-3 rotations, and that was sufficient to allow the screw to go in.
The tape on the exit door was trivial to install, although I found it harder to cut cleanly than I would have liked. I may have to finesse it a little when the time comes to install it for the final time.
The problem that stumped me was the interference between the engine mount and the cable support assembly. I emailed Vans to see if I can safely trim the support to create some clearance between the two. The holes are pre-punched, and the parts are all pre-formed at the factory, so it’s weird that they don’t fit well together. I would need to remove about 1/32 or 1/16 to allow the cable support bracket to clear the engine mount.
