> I have a problem that I am sure someone has a solution for. My drivers
> side door is suffering from an alignment problem. When looking at the
> door, all door gaps are even, front to rear, and top to bottom. When
> sighting down the length of the car (from the rear), the lower contour
> of the door does not match the body contour. The lower portion of the
> rear edge of the door protrudes from the body about a 1/4". Someone
> suggested that this was due to misalignment of the dog leg section
> behind the door that was replaced when the sill was done. Both body and
> door shapes seem correct. Any ideas on how to fix this problem? A
> really poor effort to illustrate the problem is below. BTW, any
> solution must be accomplished without damaging my paint!
>
>
> ||
> ||
> Door || Body
> Side |\ Side
> | \
> | \
>
> Thanks,
>
> Chris Delling
>
Chris,
Check very carefully the other three corners. The hinges and striker can
be moved in and out. If your upper hinge is in a little too much, and the
lower hinge is out a bit, that could throw the bottom corner out. I would
adjust the upper hinge to pull the top of the front edge out as much as
possible without causing an obvious misalignment at the top front, and
pull the lower hinge in as much as possible. Then try adjusting the
striker plate in toward the center of the car. If the lower rear corner
still stands proud of the body, then the next maneuver, to be tried with
teeth firmly gritted, is to put a padded twoxfour between the B post and
the door at the top of the B post, then push the bottom of the door toward
the center of the car. The object, of course, is to bend the door to fit.
The fender might, in fact, be what is responsible, but it is a heck of a
lot easier to tweek the door.
Good luck, and as always, ask if better isn't the enemy of good enough.
If you try the 2x4 trick and bend your door beyond redemption, I never
heard of you.
Ray Gibbons Dept. of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics
Univ. of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington, VT
gibbons@northpole.med.uvm.edu (802) 656-8910
|