Door lift struts

[leroyvette]

Replaced my door struts shortly after purchasing 2126 in May, 2011. Doors opened, stayed up pretty well in warm weather, but as weather got cooler, started to droop some. Now in cold weather, pass door droops badly---I know about the torsion bar adjustment---just dont want to attempt this yet----I have found Bumper to Bumper has replacement struts, in various lift capacity, from 25 to 100 pounds. Does anyone know the factory original lift specs----has anyone tried replacing their struts with one of slightly more lift capacity---any comments of information appreciated.

[Bitsyncmaster]

They all have less force when it gets cold. So I think the only way to fix it is with John's struts (or any with slow movement at the end) that slow down the door at the top of the movement. That way you set your T bar to still work when cold and then in the summer they don't bang or bounce when used.

If you use one with more force you still only get one T bar adjustment at cold or hot temps.

[leroyvette]

Thanks Dave for the response----I am surprised no one else has comented on this seemingly "common " problem---my thought was that its relatively quick/easy to swap to "stronger" lifts in the winter/colder times, then switch back in warmer, summer weather to the standard type struts. I don't mean to overlook the sometime
need for the torsion bar adjustments, only to " fine tune " door opening/lift as the driving temperature changes.
By the way, I have Johns " softlift" struts.

[sean]

Thanks Dave for the response----I am surprised no one else has comented on this seemingly "common " problem.

Well I think it's just that, really common, but you asked for OEM specs on a door struts, probably less common knowledge.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I have the soft lift struts also. I adjusted my T bar so they just keep the doors open fully in the winter. They still work great in the summer with that same adjustment.

[David T]

Ideally the torsion bars should be adjusted around 70 degrees. If you adjust when cold the doors will bounce too hard when you open them in warm weather. Toby's struts are supposed to be temperature compensating. The pressure of struts can vary a lot from different vendors too. The temperature has a BIG effect on the pressure of the struts. I have seen brand new struts that are different when you swap them side-to-side. I like to adjust the doors so they will stay fully open when you fully open them. It is dangerous to have the doors bounce, watch the roof structure when that happens! It makes me cringe.
David Teitelbaum

[jfirios]

I had my struts installed at another garage, they were the ones from DMC, then when I took it to DMC Cali, danny replaced them with I think the ones from John, because he said the ones from DMC really aren't the greatest. Then upon adjusting the torsion bar, the bar itself split in half. Possibly a factory defect when it was originally installed. From what i hear that is a dangerous thing to happen so I am not sure I would ever adjust my torsion bars myself.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I had my struts installed at another garage, they were the ones from DMC, then when I took it to DMC Cali, danny replaced them with I think the ones from John, because he said the ones from DMC really aren't the greatest. Then upon adjusting the torsion bar, the bar itself split in half. Possibly a factory defect when it was originally installed. From what i hear that is a dangerous thing to happen so I am not sure I would ever adjust my torsion bars myself.

The bar will not break while your adjusting it because the door is open. Now it may break when you close the door afterwards.

[David T]

I can't prove it but if the bar breaks during or right after an adjustment it may be because it touched and got scratched by the rear hinge. When adjusting the bars I always stick a small piece of rubber ( 1" X 2") between the torsion bar and the rear hinge to prevent them from touching. It doesn't hurt to leave the rubber there even after adjusting the bars as insurance. Pieces of an old tire tube work great.
The vendors do not sell the same type struts and they do not always sell the exact same ones as they used to. The suppliers change the stock they sell to the vendors too. So even if you bought a great set of struts a few years ago from a particular vendor, the ones they sell now may be different (or not as good). Like tires, the struts are not always the same.
David Teitelbaum

[jfirios]

when my bar broke it split right in half, it looks as if there might have been a small crack in the metal because that is where it broke apart. And DAMN are new ones expensive.