Simon,
Most likely the problem is in the latch mechanism. (6 cylinder roadster)
Remove the interior trim panel and the door pocket inside panels from the
door. You will find 4 screws holding the latch assembly mounting plate
inside the door casing. Remove these and the assembly will swing down on the
radius of the flat pull rod from the inside handle at the forward area of
the door. There will be a slot in the pull rod that you can turn and release
the latch assembly. Take this assembly to the bench. Unscrew the assembly
from the mounting bracket.
Examine the latch assembly. You may find that the alloy casting is cracked
where it pivots the mechanism. Or you may find that the peened over centre
pivot has worn and allowed the sandwiched assembly to come loose with a lot
of excess play and binding. Also check that the latch pin isn't too worn.
Last thing to check is that the flat pull rod may be (or may not be) bent
appropriately to change it's effective length.
Solution:
If the casting is cracked, it's time to buy a new latch assembly. They are
readily available.
If the peened over pivot assembly has worn away the peened edges, it's
possible to set the assembly on a flat hard surface, press things together
and peen the edges over again. I've had good success doing this on many
cars.
If the pin is too worn to allow for good latching action, again buy a new
assembly.
Hope this helps.
BTW, the peened over centre pivot being badly worn is most often found on
the Hundred, where 50 years of people grabbing the interior lever and
pushing forward to open the latch has resulted in a twisting motion that
will eventually cause too much lost motion here. Careful straightening of
the lever and peening things back in place will usually cure the
problem.....if the casting isn't broken.
Rich Chrysler
----- Original Message -----
From: <Simonlachlan@aol.com>
To: <healeys@autox.team.net>
Sent: Saturday, June 26, 2004 3:25 PM
Subject: Door striker mechanism query & ignition light solution
> Thank you for all the help re. the ignition light. I wasn't going to cut
the
> wires to gain access to the bulb holder as someone thought! I squirted
"Duck
> Oil" into the holder, left it for 24 hours and screwid the bulb right
out.
> The bulb's filament was OK, but the contact at the end was a bit tired
and
> flat. As a new one didn't work either, I extended the contact with solder
and
> hey presto!
>
> So, this seems to be a period when my 3000 is giving me a lot of niggling
> worries. Now, it's the driver's (RHS in UK) door. All of a sudden it
won't
> shut.
> The plate on the door seemed to have migrated a few mm, but I had it
marked
> from a time when I had to remove it. So, I put it back. Still no good.
> The exterior handle feels stiff and the visible catch in the door barely
> moves.
> Is there a collective wisdom as to what normally goes wrong with the door
> mechanism? Are there "usual faults" and "can't miss it, once you've been
there"
> issues here?
> The flat(tish) metal connector between the interior handle and the catch
> feels a bit iffy. I haven't seen it yet.
> So, what do you think?
> Simon.
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