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Do I seriously have to remove my front fender to adjust the door up???

COCHEV

COCHEV

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my hing bushings seem fine, but the door needs to come up at the strike end. I can only, kinda get to one bolt top and bottom. anyone have any tricks or special tools for doing this with the fender on?

I thought about removing the door, scribing the hinges on the pillar, moving them up a bit, then re-installing the door. but man, thats a lot of f***ing around. :confused:
 
I've read you have to, but I've also read about the inside bolts being missed and giving people headaches. This is something I need to do as well, the pins are replaced, but the passenger side still rubs the striker pin.
 
door adjustment

there is a special tool to get to that bolt it is an S shaped wrench. Or you can use a block of wood and a floor jack with the door as close to closed as you can and jack up the back of the door to tweek it to not drag the striker!!
 
I'm fighting the urge to be a hack and put a washer under the bottom hinge on the door side. I did this on a totaly beater I had once...got the job done, but looked like, well hackery
 
is the bottom of the door even with the sill/rocker?

big dif between the whole door needing to come up, and just the back...
 
I've never had to take the fender off to remove a door. I have a double boxed end wrench that fits nicely in there. You don't get much swing on it, but it works. Maybe try modifying a cheap wrench to fit.
 
he's not talking about the door to hinge bolts, he's talking about the hinge to cowl bolts... 5 from the outside, one from the inside.. it can be done, but it will try your tool inventory and patience to adjust em with the fender on...
 
ryoken said:
is the bottom of the door even with the sill/rocker?

big dif between the whole door needing to come up, and just the back...
Click to expand...

No, the the bottom latch side is lower and the gap/reveal is tighter at the bottom on the hinge side. Plus the door is starting to hit at the top/latch side...
 
are you 100% that your bushings are good? and is it factory, or has it been messed with?


basically you have 3 choices...

1 - trail rig... open the door slightly, put a 2 x 4 under the door, jack it up and tweak..

2- pull the fender and get the proper adjustment with ease... door closed..

3 - fight for probably a day with every 1/4 drive tool you could think of and adjust it in place... iirc, you can get to 3 of them with the door open, 1/4 drive, swivel and a long extension.. careful of your door paint... you can get to the other lower by dorking with a shallow socket from the jamb... then "pivot" the door on the one that runs from the inside out.. using a block of wood and floor jack..

the problem with trying to adjust it this way, is your trying to adjust it with the door open.... noobs usually end up f*cking it up more than fixing it... and cursing the gods of motor vehicles... then pull the fender anyway...
 
oh, and remember, panel gaps are always started, and based, off of fixed panels, qrters in most cases... so that is usually the gap you start with.. doors, fenders, hood..
 
ryoken said:
are you 100% that your bushings are good? and is it factory, or has it been messed with?


basically you have 3 choices...

1 - trail rig... open the door slightly, put a 2 x 4 under the door, jack it up and tweak..

2- pull the fender and get the proper adjustment with ease... door closed..

3 - fight for probably a day with every 1/4 drive tool you could think of and adjust it in place... iirc, you can get to 3 of them with the door open, 1/4 drive, swivel and a long extension.. careful of your door paint... you can get to the other lower by dorking with a shallow socket from the jamb... then "pivot" the door on the one that runs from the inside out.. using a block of wood and floor jack..

the problem with trying to adjust it this way, is your trying to adjust it with the door open.... noobs usually end up f*cking it up more than fixing it... and cursing the gods of motor vehicles... then pull the fender anyway...
Click to expand...


so does jack it up and tweek = jack it up till something bends/stretches?

don't think i like that. and eventually it will end up where it was. its not a trail truck or show truck. its my work truck. the door closes like crap- have to slam it. the bushings have "some" play. but not enough to give it the sag it has.

I'm wanting to hurculine the bottom 1/4 of the rig this summer and I want my doors lined up right before i do this.

what if i was to pull the door, then losen the bottom hanger a bit and tapy tap it a bit rearword and then re-install the door? :dunno:
 
even if the pins have just a little play, its too much. a little on one end equals alot on the other end.

if you need some crazy tools like moon wrenches or 1/4" wobbly stuff let me know. i have all that if you wanna get crazy with it.
 
1BEATK5 said:
even if the pins have just a little play, its too much. a little on one end equals alot on the other end.

if you need some crazy tools like moon wrenches or 1/4" wobbly stuff let me know. i have all that if you wanna get crazy with it.
Click to expand...

eh, the play in it is really minimal at the latch side. i've replaced the pins and bushings before. this is def a hing alignment deal.

I'll procrastinate a bit longer...
 
yes, you can pull the door, adjust, check, rinse, repeat, etc... but be aware that it doesn't just need the bottom one moved back.. really the top is supposed to be pivoting too... which you can move a bit too at the time... loosen the 2 outers, then just crack free the inner one, and tap it too...

what ends up happening if you just move the bottom is the door sheetmetal will tweak itself into place a bit as you draw the hinges tight to the door.. it's effectively the same effect as bending/tweaking the door.. but yes, it can work, just be ready to pull the door a few times...
 
oh, and don't forget to make scribe marks around ALL the original hinge position before moving anything...
 
understandable.. one of the reasons I don't miss the collision shop...
 
Thanks for the info man. I have more time than money lately so i'm sure i'll break down and take the damn fender off
 
no prob, wish I had an "EASY" button for you guys....

oh, and the bolts that come from the inside may seem impossible to find/do at first.. just feel/spy up in under the dash for the hole in the sheetmetal... shallow 9/16, 3" extension and a ratchet usually gets it easy enough once ya know where they are... you may have to drop the glovebox on the passenger side, but probably not...
 
OK, here's my thoughts (bodyman). If you're not willing to remove the fender to get the door properly adjusted, then you obviously don't have a show truck. If you don't have a show truck, then you can cheat a little and be done with it in short order.

Yes, you can "tweak" the door to remove the sag if you have slightly worn hinges. BUT, if the door is sagging from people hanging on it to get in the truck ("fat man's tweak"), the door will un-tweak itself very quickly. So in that case, use large (not necessarily thick) fender shims between the door and lower hinge. It's important to use the larger type shims in order to help support the load and prevent stress cracks, but also to keep from looking as "hack" (like washers). It usually only takes a very thin shim to do the trick.
 
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