My heater box is split apart, but so is the picture of the one here:

http://www.auto-parts.spb.ru/cat/au/pics/vw1_004010004.gif

It's marked 7a on that picture.  There are four of these, if you are sure
you only left one out, you have three-fourths of the "retaining" capacity.
 My guess is that that's enough.

They go up against the flap bar marked 29 in the picture; there is a pair
of them that slide into plastic slots on either side of each flap.

If I found I had left one out, I would just save it somewhere, taped to a
letter to myself explaining where it goes.  Then, when I die, my kids might
get a little chuckle or some perspective when they find it as they're going
through my stuff, and thinking "I wonder if he thought he was ever really
going to open that heater box again?".

But I'm not really an authority on these tabs :).

mike

On Mon, Jan 28, 2013 at 5:04 PM, Rocket J Squirrel <
camping.elliott@gmail.com> wrote:

> And yet, despite this bearing plate missing, the lower flap (+ new
> cable) has nonetheless never worked more smoothly. I wonder what my
> hassle-factor:benefit ratio is for trying to get this thing back where
> it belongs. Doesn't the heater box need to be opened to put it back in?
>
> Sure wish I had a spare heater box laying about the house to look at.
> Mrs Elliott would most likely feel otherwise.
>
>
> --
> Jack "Rocket j Squirrel" Elliott
> 1984 Westfalia, auto trans,
> Bend, Ore.
>
> On 01/27/2013 12:39 PM, Jim Arnott wrote:
>
>> One minute with the Googles: Bearing plate, LH, lower vent flap, 251 259
>> 143 01C
>>
>> Condelli's website.
>>
>> Jim
>>
>> On Jan 27, 2013, at 12:24 PM, Rocket J Squirrel wrote:
>>
>>  251.259.143
>>>
>>
>>