First Post! 69 Drivers door will not Latch?
Thread Starter
1st Gear
Joined: Aug 2020
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
First Post! 69 Drivers door will not Latch?
Long time Vette owner first time here. I have a beautiful 69 and before I pull the door apart I want to post my problem. I have to slam the door several times to get it to latch. What should I look for and how might I correct? Thank You for any help.
Safety Car
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 3,558
Likes: 548
From: Round Rock Texas
Welcome to the forum reb0706. Our ‘72 Coupe’s passenger door behaves in a similar fashion. I’ve not bothered with it yet as usually I’m riding solo and the door is rarely used. Here’s a weekend bump to page 1.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Aug 1999
Posts: 15,175
Likes: 3,990
From: Connecticut, USA
It is usually gummed up at the latch and sticking. Unless the door is really hanging sloppy off the bushings I bet that is the problem. It's a nice sunny day repair.Try spraying it clean in place, be careful of the paint. If that doesn't work then removing for more detailed cleaning/inspection should. Remove the door panel and plastic if it's still there. There is a rod coming down from the outside handle and one from the inside, held by clips. The outside one has swivel nut on it for adjusting the throw, the clip is tricky and probably covered in dirt. Clean it off and there is a tab that locks it in place. The clip slides off the swivel nut, there is a groove in the nut stud. With those out of the way there are 3 screws through the door into latch to remove it. You can reach up from the bottom of the door to work it out. If you want to go one step more you can now reach the 2 nuts holding the outside handle on and remove the handle to check the lever hole where the rod goes. They do wear there and touch with a welder and drill will restore them Clean the latch with brake cleaner and lube it, try it on the bench and it should snap when released. Good luck
