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I have been studying this for some time and appreciate advice. Second owner for 10 months..front left fender obvious to me some repaired damage from the seam showing slightly and gaps..very difficult to know what was done but did not appear too severe..all said and studying forever i came to the conclusion the drivers door is too high in the front. Comparing Passenger side looks good Driver It appears bottom high too Shuts perfectly right now..gap eh..same as passenger Squeak when driving noticed rubbing on trim and door too high seems logical
g to left side and referencing trim and it’s touching the inside trim like it’s too high i think it is..so according to manual adjust up and down by door panel off and Loosening the hinge and dropping it down and retightening as simple as that.
Can I leave the door striker on and do this adjustment with the door shut?
thoughts?
bushings tight no slack..30,000 miles
Last edited by interpon; Apr 14, 2020 at 05:40 PM.
My thoughts are if you adjust the door the graphic on the door will no longer line up with the fender.
lol
no problem there..! Its 1980 custom paint..not me but heh one thing at a time..prefer aligned door and not rubbing interior or I wouldn’t bother..
the original owner actually had his portrait on hood..with 🔥..for his hair salon..welcome 3m stinger decal
Still see flames under
Last edited by interpon; Apr 14, 2020 at 06:11 PM.
How does the bottom of the door edge line up with the front guard ?
You can leave the striker alone and make a mark around the bolt heads of where it is now , then make small adjustments and retighten , then GENTLY close the door . Support at the rear of the door with something solid , use a jack and some wood/soft rags under the front to control it , make sure it doesn't bind if you use a jack though.
How does the bottom of the door edge line up with the front guard ?
You can leave the striker alone and make a mark around the bolt heads of where it is now , then make small adjustments and retighten , then GENTLY close the door . Support at the rear of the door with something solid , use a jack and some wood/soft rags under the front to control it , make sure it doesn't bind if you use a jack though.
so i need to remove striker? I was thinking loosening hinge tapping down? While shut? Or adjust while open supporting end of door with jack?
trying to not start a nightmare
I would leave the striker alone for now and support the back end of the open door with a solid support so it doesn't move , like I said if you mark around the bolt heads you can get an idea of how far your moving it . Just be real careful each time you close it slowly ,look for clearance or interference as it shuts .
Unfortunately the car has had some bad repairs at the top rear of the door , that top area gap is way off the rest of the rear gap . you will never get it perfect but it can be a little better ,which might stop the squeaking ,
How many shims are behind the hinges ?
Unfortunately the car has had some bad repairs at the top rear of the door , that top area gap is way off the rest of the rear gap . you will never get it perfect but it can be a little better ,which might stop the squeaking ,
How many shims are behind the hinges ?[/QUOTE]
i see maybe two shims? on the hinges..and i will support as you say and mark bolts...
I will repaint and repair later but thought i would line up best i can and grind later..i really carefully examined the car..fender looks like worked on, the rest seemed fair and areas i touched up showed only one layer paint except fender..
here is passenger rear..
Passenger rear
Two shims each? Striker area
Last edited by interpon; Apr 14, 2020 at 08:58 PM.
I think you might well be creating a nightmare for yourself if you adjust it. If you just lower the door, I think the rear edge will get too close to the body so you will then need to move the door forward. Also, as you lower the door the gap at the top of the front edge will get bigger, while the gap at the bottom edge will get smaller. To fix this you'd need to rotate the door a bit, but that might well make your rear gap uneven. Finally it looks to me as if the rear of the door is already a bit lower than the body, so just lowering it more will make this worse. I suspect that the door might already be adjusted as best it can be. Hopefully you can prove me wrong
I think you might well be creating a nightmare for yourself if you adjust it. If you just lower the door, I think the rear edge will get too close to the body so you will then need to move the door forward. Also, as you lower the door the gap at the top of the front edge will get bigger, while the gap at the bottom edge will get smaller. To fix this you'd need to rotate the door a bit, but that might well make your rear gap uneven. Finally it looks to me as if the rear of the door is already a bit lower than the body, so just lowering it more will make this worse. I suspect that the door might already be adjusted as best it can be. Hopefully you can prove me wrong
yup I thought that too..was thinking very small move to get off trim inside..or even a slight twist down forward but im not getting into other hinges..not sure if i can get any forward
OK I took a white paint marker and went around the bolts just in case need to lined them up. they were on their extremely tight it looks like nobody’s been in here before on this one bracket they were all the way slotted to the top loosen them up they were very tight took a piece of wood in a rubber mallet and had the boy gently beat down the front of the door and it just stopped (one tap) at the perfect position. triple checked everything glass up down everything perfect very very happy knowing left is just to re-repair of the front fender when it’s time for a paint job didn’t really screw with the rear gap that much and it shuts like a dream and the trim now has a gap like the passenger side on the interior so there’s no way that’s going to be squeaking again.Are used an AC Delco ramp stand a piece of plywood in a paint stick (and the boy) at the end of the door to hold it in a neutral position while I loosened the bolts.
thanks all! Very happy..
79 drivers door adjustment advice please
