Door alignment

[northeast dmc]

Ok, before I remove the door in an unprofessional way and cause myself alot of added grief. I have followed a door alignment process in which (short version) you remove the strut loosen the hinges remove the striker pins and then open and close, playing with the hinge bolts until they dont move, then one at a time put striker pins in and adjust. Well I have done this on several occasions, and each time the door closes pretty close to what I would call factory. Open and close seams look relatively uniform. Then I put the strut back in and..... well I wont use the words that come out when I do this. On a couple occasions, it wouldnt even close. I then try to readjust the striker pins and I can get close but still clunk, and catching. I had to walk away and reach out for help, because my temper getting the better of me. Thanks for any help... The next effort might require decaf coffee...

[SS Spoiler]

got same problem, passenger door snicks...
drivers door clunks....maybe we'll both learn something...

[CFI]

Neither of my doors close very well. Some day the car will be shipped to one of the DeLorean shops so they can have a go at it.

[Jonathan]

Without knowing anything else about your car other than what you wrote here, this sounds to me like symptoms of a roof box that is separating. With our cars being 39 years old, this kind of repair is going to become more and more common, perhaps even expected.

[David T]

Unless you have a very early car or the door was once removed or the car had an accident, you will not be able to align the door any better than the factory did it. As mentioned there are things to check like the roof box or trying to adjust the anchor pins. The door gets adjusted to the fiberglass tub NOT adjacent panels. Once the doors are set the other panels get adjusted to the doors. To remove a door you MUST remove the torsion bar FIRST! Failure to do that and you will damage the door, possibly beyond repair. Adjusting the hinges also means adding or removing shims. To adjust the door well you need new door seals that aren't flattened or old. The last thing you adjust are the anchor pins. Your goal is to get even pressure on the door seal when the door is closed and good alignment with the "A" pillar. If the hinges are worn or bent you will never get proper alignment.

[Ron]

Since you've moved the hinges already, try:
Check the box. If OK, align the door to the tub.
Adjust the torsion bar such that the door hangs open ~6-8".
Install the strut BEFORE adjusting the pins.
Always shut the door by pushing down with your hand even with the pull strap.

[81dmc]

Just tweaked my drivers door a little a few days ago to close a huge gap between it and the A pillar. I never adjusted that gap when I installed a new door in 2015.

Steps I do:

1.) Remove louvers and T panel.
2.) Raise door and acquire help to untorque torsion bar. Also remove strut.
3.) Remove strikers and note door alignment to the A pillar and weather stripping attached to body tub.
4.) Loosen only one door hinge at a time and move in very small increments to achieve desired door position. You don’t want any part of the door rubbing the weather stripping, unless you want broken seals...

5.) Once door is aligned to tub, tighten hinges and reinstall torsion bar and strut.
6.) Install one striker at a time and adjust as each as necessary.

[northeast dmc]

Thanks to the responses and the support, at least I am not alone. Next attempt will be with decaf. And it sounds like I need to get the outer seals on first, the one suggested sequence talked about removing the outer seals first then doing the adjustment.

[81dmc]

Thanks to the responses and the support, at least I am not alone. Next attempt will be with decaf. And it sounds like I need to get the outer seals on first, the one suggested sequence talked about removing the outer seals first then doing the adjustment.

No, you need to keep the outer seals off so you can adjust the panels afterwards.


You need to install the inner door seals.



When I said “weather stripping” above, I was referring to the inner seals.

[northeast dmc]

No, you need to keep the outer seals off so you can adjust the panels afterwards.


You need to install the inner door seals.



When I said “weather stripping” above, I was referring to the inner seals.

Ok thank you.

[cdrusn]

When the roof box is loose it will cause the door to misalign. Install the roof box bolts to keep it from moving around. Get a TV inspection camera from harbor freight
open up the inspection port and look inside the box for rust damage, you might be surprised.

[DMC-Ron]

When the roof box is loose it will cause the door to misalign. Install the roof box bolts to keep it from moving around. Get a TV inspection camera from harbor freight
open up the inspection port and look inside the box for rust damage, you might be surprised.

I would like to do this. Where is the inspection port? What's needed to open it up?

Thanks,
Ron

[CFI]

I would like to do this. Where is the inspection port? What's needed to open it up?

Thanks,
Ron

The inspection panel is under the t panel. Opening and looking into the inspection panel is easy. My inspection panel was held in by some silicone sealant and duct tape. Getting to the inspection panel is a whole other story. The rear of the t panel is easy enough to deal with, but the front edges (near the back of the driver and passenger door openings) is held in place by screws that are hidden by the outer weatherstrip. That weatherstrip is glued in place, so removing it means ruining it.

[cdrusn]

If you have a razor blade you can shave off the glue holding the weatherstripping down and get to the screws and then reglue the rubber. You don't have to cut the rubber at all. You will see the inspection cover as soon as you get the t panel off.

[CFI]

If you have a razor blade you can shave off the glue holding the weatherstripping down and get to the screws and then reglue the rubber. You don't have to cut the rubber at all. You will see the inspection cover as soon as you get the t panel off.

Depending on how the t panel was adjusted, you may be able to do that. I cut and removed the weatherstripping covering the screws and spliced in a new section after finishing my roof work.