20 replies to this topic

[xu1kid]

hi all my lj doors need lifting up at the door handle end the car was in accident years ago so im not sure if thats why they have dropped , so whats the best way to adjust the doors ??

[rodomo]

Check to see if the hinge pins are worn by opening the door slightly and lifting it up and down.

[Bart]

Could be worn hinges, that�s a real possibility, careful using a jack to lift the door, you don�t want to damage the door skin and inner door, use a piece of wood (maybe the length of the door and 3 inch wide) between the door and jack, take small steps, like put a bit of pressure on the door with the jack then push the car down a bit. You don�t want to go too far the other way.
But first thing first, check the hinges are not worn out.

[xu1kid]

yea the door gap at the bottom of the door is out good gap near the front gaurd but slopes down at the back of the door and its hard to shut, its like i need to lift the door up at one end

[S pack]

yea the door gap at the bottom of the door is out good gap near the front gaurd but slopes down at the back of the door and its hard to shut, its like i need to lift the door up at one end

G/day xu1kid

1st check your hinges and pins for wear as already suggested. If they check out OK then put pieces of masking tape around the strikers to mark their position for ease of installation, now remove the strikers and see how the doors line up in the opening.
If they line up better then the strikers are pulling the doors down when you close them. Had a similar ordeal with my brothers LJ 4dr after fixing some rust in the front L.H pillar. A panel beater told me that to adjust the LC/LJ hinges you get a block of hardwood and a Gympie hammer and give the barrel part of the hinge a whack, with door installed of course. Remember that a small amount of movement at the hinge translates into a larger gain over the full length of the door. Anyway after using that method to adjust the top hinge the door gaps lined up beautifully.

Cheers
Dave.

[xu1kid]

thanks fellas il check the door pins and see how they are, and then do as S PACK suggested, have to wait til the weekend to go out to my parents and work on it

[S pack]

yea the door gap at the bottom of the door is out good gap near the front gaurd but slopes down at the back of the door and its hard to shut, its like i need to lift the door up at one end

G/day xu1kid

1st check your hinges and pins for wear as already suggested. If they check out OK then put pieces of masking tape around the strikers to mark their position for ease of installation, now remove the strikers and see how the doors line up in the opening.
If they line up better then the strikers are pulling the doors down when you close them. Had a similar ordeal with my brothers LJ 4dr after fixing some rust in the front L.H pillar. A panel beater told me that to adjust the LC/LJ hinges you get a block of hardwood and a Gympie hammer and give the barrel part of the hinge a whack, with door installed of course. Remember that a small amount of movement at the hinge translates into a larger gain over the full length of the door. Anyway after using that method to adjust the top hinge the door gaps lined up beautifully.

Cheers
Dave.

On mine the drivers door seems to have shifted back (striker rubs a little on the door frame itself and the gap between the guard and door is larger than it should be) Guess I would need to do this to both hinges equally then to shift it forward again. There dosent seem to be any adjustment in them is there?

No unfortunately GMH didn't give us bolt on adjustable hinges like other holdens of the era. Then again look at the Commodores their hinges aren't adjustable either from what I have seen. Go steady with the adjustment process, get a feel for the amount of force you need to apply with each hit and check the gap after each hit to ensure you don't over do it. In extreme cases it may be necessary to cut the door pin tube from the pillar hinge piece and weld it back on in revised position to achieve a satisfactory alignment. Visually check the front end of your door for signs of stretching around where the hinge pieces are welded to the door frame. It may be that the door is at fault not the pillar hinges. Maybe the drivers side pillar had bad rust issues and when repaired the hinges didn't end up in the correct postion. Check it all out thoroughly first.

Cheers
Dave.

[xu1kid]

i checked my door hinges/pins for wear the driver doors i can lift up and down a little bit, so the pins are worn or do the have a bush in the hinge. the passanger door doesnt have any movement in it, i also removed the door striker lock and see were the doors shut and the gap is still out, also my passanger door is tight to shut i have to push it shut pretty firm nearly slam it, it gets tight when its almost shut its like the door rubber is jamming at the front of the door so i removed the door rubber and it shuts alot easier, my drivers door is hard to shut aswel but not as bad as the passenger door, gotta love the old cars haha

[xu1kid]

The passenger pilar has rust but it's only the outer skin that's rusted iv looked up there and the hinges look okay, but as you say maybe the didn't trial fit the door

[grumpy xu1]

The passenger pilar has rust but it's only the outer skin that's rusted iv looked up there and the hinges look okay, but as you say maybe the didn't trial fit the door

G'day Anthony most of these sugestions are correct but being a t/q panel beater 1 of the best tool's 1 can have in there shed is simply a (blunt) brickies bolster with some masking tape or even a bit of rag arrond it. The ammount of panel shops or backyarders that don't gap things properly is rediculas. Anyway grab a mate to help open door & with a big hammer line bolster straight up & down in corner of hinge tube hit (SOFTLY) ie big hammer soft hit much better, fowards whilst stoping & checking gap periodicly for gaping gmh's we allways used a medium phillips head screwdriver basically the same gap on all hq's lc &j's & lh & x's. Please use cutting any of these hinges a "very" last resort anyone. Im sure once u get a bolster a big hammer phillipshead screwdriver a mate + beer for mate when job is complete things will be so much easier. Good luck & keep us posted, Grumpy xu1

[xu1kid]

yea i wasnt going to cut the hinges it would prob end up worse than it is, i get the old man to help me one weekend and il let yas no how i go

[grumpy xu1]

if it comes to the point where you do need to cut the door hinge, take a 2mm cutting blade and only cut half way then you will be abel to fill the cut with weld and it will make it that much easyer to align,,,
grumpy xu1,, i too find the bolster to be a very handy tool, but nothing in my shed is better than the EASYBEAT.

cheers gong

Ah Gong a easy beat well you are a lucky man, yep all good tools & so worth the money. By the way guy's blackwood's sell 1mm wafer disc's great for "straight" cutting but don't twist & load them & definately wear a clear face as they can disintergrate use shitloads of them at work. hope we've helped mate allways ask if unsure. Grumpy xu1