Door low in front

[Bitsyncmaster]

My next project is to try to fix my driver door to close without slamming it. It has always needed to be slammed to get the rear latch to catch. The front latch shuts easy I'm guessing because it flexes and has a wide gap (mostly at the bottom) so the seal does not push on the door. I've adjusted both latch pins all the way up but as you can see in the photo, the front is way to low. Look how low it is to the windshield.

I'm going to pull the latches out and do the lock modification but I think I will also try to position the latches a little lower in the door if that is possible. I'm thinking if I can bring that front of the door up, it will increase the gap at the rear of the door and it may fix the closing of the door.

My passenger door has the same problem but it can be shut without slamming it. I've seen many other owners cars with the same (low in front) problem. Does anyone know why our cars do this? Is the under body sagging with age? As you can see with my stripe, it did not have this problem when new.

[David T]

You do not adjust the doors to the other panels. Doors get adjusted to the body and then the other panels get adjusted to the doors. You do not adjust the latches, only the anchor pins. Check the gap along the windscreen to adjust the door. My guess is the front anchor pin is too low. Often the doors get adjusted to compensate for old, worn out door seals. The temptation is to close them tighter to make up for the old door seals. Another thing to check for is that the head of the anchor pins is not supposed to contact the door (or latch) as the door closes. If it does hit the door it will move it sideways. Easy to tell, you will see the marks and as you close it slowly you will see it move. The latch should only grab the shank of the anchor pin as the door moves in an arc. Add or remove washers so the head does not hit the door. Both latches should click simultaneously and both must click twice to get into "second locking position". Probably a good idea to remove both latches and remove the old grease ( it gets sticky and prevents the latches from moving freely) regreasing them and reinstalling them. That also means you will redo all of the interior door adjustments as per the Workshop Manual and the Service Bulletin. If you do not have the door guides you should get them. The plastic ones are much lighter than the metal ones. When testing and adjusting the doors the car must be on flat, level ground. While doing all of this work on the doors you should adjust the torsion bars if necessary and/or replace the struts if they are tired. One last thing, the doors are not supposed to be able to be locked if both latches are not in second locking position. A properly adjusted door should be closable with two fingers pushing the rub strip about in the middle of the door. If you are slamming it you have messed up all of the internal adjustments.

[Helirich]

When I first got mine, I had to adjust the pax door rear pin. I had to grind on the backing plate to make it move the pin enough. I?m not sure this was the right way to do it, but the door lines up nice now. It does require fair amount of force to shut it to the second click. This is not a real problem because I?m usually shutting the door on my wife from the outside.

[Josh]

This is the result of the tub sagging and distorting with age.

The A pillars and header portion (basically everything around the windshield up to the roof box) is very unsubstantial.

You can adjust some of this out, but it can get to be very invasive, such as shimming the front hinges.

Start with the strikers and cleaning/lubricating your latches. This will help the functionality of your door (not having to slam it). Years of slamming the door can damage the latches. Fortunately replacements are relatively affordable.

[Timeless]

You do not adjust the doors to the other panels. Doors get adjusted to the body and then the other panels get adjusted to the doors. You do not adjust the latches, only the anchor pins. Check the gap along the windscreen to adjust the door. My guess is the front anchor pin is too low. Often the doors get adjusted to compensate for old, worn out door seals. The temptation is to close them tighter to make up for the old door seals. Another thing to check for is that the head of the anchor pins is not supposed to contact the door (or latch) as the door closes. If it does hit the door it will move it sideways. Easy to tell, you will see the marks and as you close it slowly you will see it move. The latch should only grab the shank of the anchor pin as the door moves in an arc. Add or remove washers so the head does not hit the door. Both latches should click simultaneously and both must click twice to get into "second locking position". Probably a good idea to remove both latches and remove the old grease ( it gets sticky and prevents the latches from moving freely) regreasing them and reinstalling them. That also means you will redo all of the interior door adjustments as per the Workshop Manual and the Service Bulletin. If you do not have the door guides you should get them. The plastic ones are much lighter than the metal ones. When testing and adjusting the doors the car must be on flat, level ground. While doing all of this work on the doors you should adjust the torsion bars if necessary and/or replace the struts if they are tired. One last thing, the doors are not supposed to be able to be locked if both latches are not in second locking position. A properly adjusted door should be closable with two fingers pushing the rub strip about in the middle of the door. If you are slamming it you have messed up all of the internal adjustments.
Seriously?!

[Michael]

The tech manual is always right.

Except when it isn't

[Patrick C]

Patrick C’s guide to door closing excellence:

Start with new door seals. Then take off your door striker pins. Then take the strut off the door, and slightly loosen the 4 bolts that attach the hinges to the door. Now start letting the door slam down and it should start to position itself to the body and the new door seals. Have a helper slightly lift the door enough to where you can start tightening those hinge bolts back down. Then try slamming the door a few more times to make sure it still feels right and didn't shift.

THEN put the striker pins back in, keep shutting the door, and adjust only the striker pins to try to get the door to shut correctly. THEN put the door strut back on and see how it closes. May need some more fine tuning of the striker pins once the strut is back on the door, as it can affect it a little.

NOTE: Early cars may need a little grinding of the fiberglass lip that the door seal clamps on to, as it can be too thick at the base and cause the seal to sit at an angle instead of vertical. 1880 needed some tweaking here.

I have used the above and both of my doors close with 1 finger.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I pulled the front door pin out. Someone has already ground away metal to get more up and out movement. Not sure if this was factory or a previous owner. Anyway the two large washers are preventing it to let it move that much. I'm going to make a new washer with an offset hole. Think I will make one washer the thickness of the two original washers and make it a little larger so it contacts all the remaining metal. That pin also has three of the smaller washers.

I hot glued that plate to hold it up. How have other owners been able to hold that plate in position while you screw in the door pin?

[glockworks21]

Patrick C?s guide to door closing excellence:


I have used the above and both of my doors close with 1 finger.




If its not too much trouble could you send or make a short vid of this? I think it may be useful to everyone to see how much pressure you are using. I know it would be useful to me. Would love to have mine close that easily.

[Patrick C]

If its not too much trouble could you send or make a short vid of this? I think it may be useful to everyone to see how much pressure you are using. I know it would be useful to me. Would love to have mine close that easily.

Here you go! https://youtu.be/htEbkBSLV3I


https://youtu.be/htEbkBSLV3I

[Bitsyncmaster]

I made an offset washer but it did not let the pin go higher, just lets it go out further. I probably should replace the door seals.

[glockworks21]

dave, im anxious to know how this turns out.. I have a similar issue right now.

thanks for the video patrick. I (we) can now see what is possible.. mine may have too much tension pulling them up and making them harder to close...ive only seen a hand full of other dmc and none were that smooth...

[Bitsyncmaster]

Is the front door pin "floating" nut part of the frame? I see it's a steel plate. Is it just bonded to the tub?

[Patrick C]

Is the front door pin "floating" nut part of the frame? I see it's a steel plate. Is it just bonded to the tub?

Yes, this piece is bonded to the tub:

https://store.classicdmc.com/105679-lh-front-striker-bracket.html

[JohnZ]

Here you go! https://youtu.be/htEbkBSLV3I


https://youtu.be/htEbkBSLV3I

Hi there Pat! Quick question: do you have door struts with the damper at the end or are they "free"?

[Bitsyncmaster]

This is the result of the tub sagging and distorting with age.

The A pillars and header portion (basically everything around the windshield up to the roof box) is very unsubstantial.

You can adjust some of this out, but it can get to be very invasive, such as shimming the front hinges.

Start with the strikers and cleaning/lubricating your latches. This will help the functionality of your door (not having to slam it). Years of slamming the door can damage the latches. Fortunately replacements are relatively affordable.

So what is happening is the front door hinge is lower due to that structure sagging with age. That causes the door to lower at the front. I would guess leaving your doors open longer would put more stress on that structure. I've heard the windshield provides some support. Can replacing the windshield fix that sag?

[Patrick C]

Hi there Pat! Quick question: do you have door struts with the damper at the end or are they "free"?

These are eBay cheapies from a few years ago and have a damper to prevent bounce on hot days. I think most struts do these days.

[Josh]

So what is happening is the front door hinge is lower due to that structure sagging with age. That causes the door to lower at the front. I would guess leaving your doors open longer would put more stress on that structure. I've heard the windshield provides some support. Can replacing the windshield fix that sag?

If the window was replaced in the past improperly, this can contribute. I've seen windshields held in with bathroom caulking and dum-dum (strip caulk). If this is the case, re-installing the windshield can help get things back in shape. HOWEVER, you need to properly support your roof. It is less common than I thought (even at some DMC specific shops) that the roof is being supported during windshield replacement.

[Bitsyncmaster]

If the window was replaced in the past improperly, this can contribute. I've seen windshields held in with bathroom caulking and dum-dum (strip caulk). If this is the case, re-installing the windshield can help get things back in shape. HOWEVER, you need to properly support your roof. It is less common than I thought (even at some DMC specific shops) that the roof is being supported during windshield replacement.

My thought would be remove the windshield and then remove the front door pins. Then with the doors closed holding on the rear pins, you support (lift) the roof to bring the doors up to normal in the front. Then glue in the windshield.

I would think the vendors would know if you need a little higher support after doing many replacements. But this gives a non vendor company a basic measurement of support.

[Josh]

My thought would be remove the windshield and then remove the front door pins. Then with the doors closed holding on the rear pins, you support (lift) the roof to bring the doors up to normal in the front. Then glue in the windshield.

I would think the vendors would know if you need a little higher support after doing many replacements. But this gives a non vendor company a basic measurement of support.

That wont do much of anything other than waste your time and damage your windshield, if you intend on re-installing the same piece of glass.
The DIY "proper" way to support your roof is removing the shifter plate and dome light to expose the frame and roof fiberglass, then using a mechanical bottle jack or a scissor jack (non hydraulic) to slightly lift the roof. It doesnt take much.
Set the bare glass on the frame and match the contour of the header panel with the contour of the glass.

I recall bill robertson doing some variation of the "door trick" but you are keeping the situation the same, or worse. The torsion bars will deform the roof more than anything so you are fighting against that.

Anyway, doing a windshield R&R of any method will not solve your problem as much as you may hope and is a mountain of work.

EDIT:

I re-read your comment. Your idea to crank on the roof like that will absolutely damage the fiberglass. Once again match the contours of the tub to the glass, that is all you can do.

[Bitsyncmaster]

That wont do much of anything other than waste your time and damage your windshield, if you intend on re-installing the same piece of glass.
The DIY "proper" way to support your roof is removing the shifter plate and dome light to expose the frame and roof fiberglass, then using a mechanical bottle jack or a scissor jack (non hydraulic) to slightly lift the roof. It doesnt take much.
Set the bare glass on the frame and match the contour of the header panel with the contour of the glass.

I recall bill robertson doing some variation of the "door trick" but you are keeping the situation the same, or worse. The torsion bars will deform the roof more than anything so you are fighting against that.

Anyway, doing a windshield R&R of any method will not solve your problem as much as you may hope and is a mountain of work.

EDIT:

I re-read your comment. Your idea to crank on the roof like that will absolutely damage the fiberglass. Once again match the contours of the tub to the glass, that is all you can do.

Thanks for the info. I was just looking at all the options. I pulled the passenger side front door pin and it has not been modified as drastically as the drivers side. Somehow, someone was able to get that "floating" nut to move higher on the drivers side. The passenger side does not need the offset washer to move to it's top location. The drivers side does have less front droop then the passenger side.

[mark w]

Like other members have said, door droop that much in the front is a result of Roof sag. either naturally or if the window was removed with the doors up, etc.

My doors close flush, but I do have to slam them, as my new outer door seals are fresh, and perhaps, mounted too far outward.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Yes, this piece is bonded to the tub:

https://store.classicdmc.com/105679-lh-front-striker-bracket.html

I looked and saw two bolts inside the footwells for this bracket. I assume you can get to the outside if you remove the fender. But it looks like the inside bolts are not bolted onto the fiberglass. Looks like the fiber glass was drilled with a large hole. If this part was not bonded, you could move it higher. I can't tell if it's bonded inside the tub. I guessing my PO was able to take it out to make that floating nut smaller. It must have been really bad for that to be done.

[Patrick C]

I looked and saw two bolts inside the footwells for this bracket. I assume you can get to the outside if you remove the fender. But it looks like the inside bolts are not bolted onto the fiberglass. Looks like the fiber glass was drilled with a large hole. If this part was not bonded, you could move it higher. I can't tell if it's bonded inside the tub. I guessing my PO was able to take it out to make that floating nut smaller. It must have been really bad for that to be done.

Here's a good shot of them: http://www.mr7.co.uk/images/deloreanpics/DeloreanBody2.jpg

[Bitsyncmaster]

Here's a good shot of them: http://www.mr7.co.uk/images/deloreanpics/DeloreanBody2.jpg

I guessing those hold the tub sections together. But I bet the two bolts also hold the pin metal bracket inside.

[JohnnyK]

Chiming in for those looking for info about their strikers not moving enough (not the issue here, but seems the topic went that way).

The bracket is just bolted in and comes out, it is not bonded (at least on my tub. It has lots of seam sealer, of course). You can drill the spot welds on the retaining bracket that holds the captured 'nut'. The captured nut is just a square hunk of steel. Too large, and prevents movement. You can remove the captured nut and grind it down to allow more movement, and mill out the square hole to get more movement and then re-spot weld the captured nut retainer back on. You cannot really move the metal bracket around, it's sort of 'molded' in there with the sealer, at least in my case, but I seem to recall it is slotted for movement.

This is going by memory on a very early VIN, your results may vary.


71958

[Bitsyncmaster]

Chiming in for those looking for info about their strikers not moving enough (not the issue here, but seems the topic went that way).

The bracket is just bolted in and comes out, it is not bonded (at least on my tub. It has lots of seam sealer, of course). You can drill the spot welds on the retaining bracket that holds the captured 'nut'. The captured nut is just a square hunk of steel. Too large, and prevents movement. You can remove the captured nut and grind it down to allow more movement, and mill out the square hole to get more movement and then re-spot weld the captured nut retainer back on. You cannot really move the metal bracket around, it's sort of 'molded' in there with the sealer, at least in my case, but I seem to recall it is slotted for movement.

This is going by memory on a very early VIN, your results may vary.


71958

Thanks for that info. That must be what my PO did. He got that nut out and cut it so it could move higher. I was looking at it thinking I could make an offset door pin but could not come up with anything that still makes it adjustable. That nut looks like it it 1/4 inch or more steel plate. The tapped hole is for a 12 mm 1.0 thread.

[glockworks21]

These are eBay cheapies from a few years ago and have a damper to prevent bounce on hot days. I think most struts do these days.

https://youtube.com/shorts/vLLyw3uBguQ?si=lvtGDxgCqRrS0OMQ


I have also had issues with door pin latch. mainly the drivers side rear pin. I have it adjusted fully out now and was still having a hard time closing doors and getting to latch without a lot of force. Today I removed the strut (the only ones i haven't changed) and the door latches easily with barely any pressure other than weight of door (strutless)

So im interested in the cheap ebay struts or suggestions of any other strut that will help with this.

Seems as if the struts are too strong even though they are from DMC. Ive never heard of a strut being stiffer as it gets older but wonder now if there is just too stiff and causing the door to torque and not latch properly on the rear without a lot of force.
If this is making no sense feel free to tell me. Im ordering something either way to try.

[glockworks21]

Just to clarify in that video i am putting a lot more force down than what it looks to make it close. it also appears that the door latched on rear pin but it will unlatch with a slight bit of pressure.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Chiming in for those looking for info about their strikers not moving enough (not the issue here, but seems the topic went that way).

The bracket is just bolted in and comes out, it is not bonded (at least on my tub. It has lots of seam sealer, of course). You can drill the spot welds on the retaining bracket that holds the captured 'nut'. The captured nut is just a square hunk of steel. Too large, and prevents movement. You can remove the captured nut and grind it down to allow more movement, and mill out the square hole to get more movement and then re-spot weld the captured nut retainer back on. You cannot really move the metal bracket around, it's sort of 'molded' in there with the sealer, at least in my case, but I seem to recall it is slotted for movement.

This is going by memory on a very early VIN, your results may vary.


71958

I ground off the welds on that top reinforcement plate rather than remove the spot welded sheet metal. I will drill and tap a new hole with more offset then the original hole rather than cutting the floating nut smaller. I will probably weld that plate back on when I'm done. I will need to make that square cut hole larger to accommodate the new offset hole.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Little info. The front screw clips are stainless steel but the two on lower rear of the fender are steel. Not that is matters since there is so little surface area the rust does not freeze the screws up.

Here is a photo of some worker signing. I guess it is MILI for a name.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Door pin test. I bolted the modified bracket on the car and set the fender back on temperately. Looks like this will let me move the pin more than I really need.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Here is what I did. Probably less effort then cutting the nut smaller. Very easy to tap but you will need an 11 mm drill bit and an 12 mm - 1.0 tap. I start the tap with my drill press so it keep it square. I just start a few threads by turning the drill chuck by hand then finish with the part in a vise.

This gives you about 0.2" higher and 0.2" further out movement. You will need to machine the square hole those distances also. You also may need to machine the plastic so the pin washer can clear.

I also moved the pin bracket up 0.2" by machining the two outer bolt holes lower in the bracket. And machining the two inter bolt holes higher in the tub joining bracket.

I plan to do the same to the drivers side. I bought a new pin bracket for that because what I have found was a PO really cut that door nut a lot smaller and not sure what else was done.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Car is almost all back together. I found one problem with the drivers door needing to be slammed, the rear door pin was a little to long and hitting the guide a little. Both my doors only have the one large washer on the rear pins. The passenger side has 3 extra washers on the front pin and the drivers side has 4 extra washers on the front.

I cut a little of the button end on the rear pin shorter on my lathe. You have to keep that large washer and it needs to be strong.

I'm going to install new NOS latches on the drivers side in hopes it stops the need to slam the door.

[Bitsyncmaster]

For now I'm going to stop fooling with getting the door to close without slamming. It's pretty close to what it was, maybe a little better. I did pull the outer seals with no chage. Something is still keeping a lot of tension on the rear latch because opening the door really pops it up fast. What needs to be done is remove any shims on the rear hing. It is 0.174" to high near the hing line. That is causing the real wide gap on the lower front of the door. Probably also why it needs 4 extra washers on the front door pin and why I had to machine the rear pin "button" to clear the latch with no extra washers on that pin.

Removing the door to remove any hing shims is just to much work right now. Not sure if that will even help with the door shutting, just may let me use 3 washers in the front. using 4 does not give me much thread on the front pin.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I pulled the door strut off and it still needs to be slammed. Torsion bar only holds the door about 3/8" from closed.

What is going on?

[Bitsyncmaster]

Pulled both door pins and the inner door seals and it just closes with a little push. But I can hear it is hitting the vinyl where it is wrapped around the inner body near the rear latch. So the inner seal will require it to be slammed.

Looks like my LH DOOR LOWER REAR INFILL PANEL need to be shimmed to move it in.

It's the panel that hides the rear speaker

[Bitsyncmaster]

Don't think that panel can be shimmed in. I think my only option is to cut some of that lip that holds the inner door seal.

[Bitsyncmaster]

What is the part number of that plastic panel that covers the rear speaker? I'm looking for a picture or drawing of it to decide if it can be shimmed in more. If I were to cut that lip shorter, it would cause problems holding the inside door seal.

All I can find on the DMCH parts is the plastic outer cover. It shows that 105745 part number in both the door sub locations. I think it needs to go in a 1/4".

[Patrick C]

What is the part number of that plastic panel that covers the rear speaker?

https://store.classicdmc.com/110676-rh-rear-trim-panel-late-black.html

[Bitsyncmaster]

https://store.classicdmc.com/110676-rh-rear-trim-panel-late-black.html

Thanks. They used a massive amount of RTV which is gluing it on. I will have to search about removing it. I remember people saying you need to peal the vinyl back. I don't feel any screws but guess there are some.

Also I found my door handle cable is sticking. So if you open the door with the outside handle the latches will stay unlatched. I can press the inside door handle to move it back. I shot some spray lube into the cable on both ends but it still sticks.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Fixed the outer door handle cable. The rod for the inner rocker was rubbing on the lower door panel metal. Only showed up when the lower panel was installed. I put a washer between that panel and bracket so the rod does not rub. The spring on the rocker is what returns the latches.

[Bitsyncmaster]

After studying that interference, the inner door seal mounts on the tub, not on that plastic panel. So it looks like the options are to keep it as is or shave that lip on the tub down. I now see the plastic panel is held on with the vinyl wrapped around that lip.

[Patrick C]

Patrick C's guide to door closing excellence:

Start with new door seals. Then take off your door striker pins. Then take the strut off the door, and slightly loosen the 4 bolts that attach the hinges to the door. Now start letting the door slam down and it should start to position itself to the body and the new door seals. Have a helper slightly lift the door enough to where you can start tightening those hinge bolts back down. Then try slamming the door a few more times to make sure it still feels right and didn't shift.

THEN put the striker pins back in, keep shutting the door, and adjust only the striker pins to try to get the door to shut correctly. THEN put the door strut back on and see how it closes. May need some more fine tuning of the striker pins once the strut is back on the door, as it can affect it a little.

NOTE: Early cars may need a little grinding of the fiberglass lip that the door seal clamps on to, as it can be too thick at the base and cause the seal to sit at an angle instead of vertical. 1880 needed some tweaking here.

I have used the above and both of my doors close with 1 finger.


After studying that interference, the inner door seal mounts on the tub, not on that plastic panel. So it looks like the options are to keep it as is or shave that lip on the tub down. I now see the plastic panel is held on with the vinyl wrapped around that lip.

You may need to do what I referenced on the first page of this thread. My car needed it. I'd adjust the door first in the procedure I mention before grinding the fiberglass, though.

[Bitsyncmaster]

You may need to do what I referenced on the first page of this thread. My car needed it. I'd adjust the door first in the procedure I mention before grinding the fiberglass, though.

Thanks again. Right now I have no striker pins so I can test if the door will close. Without the inner door seal it will close to correct position. I think I will need to cut about a one inch section of door seal so I can use that to test if that one inch area needs to be cut lower. I can then make little cuts in that area as that one inch seal prevents the door from closing.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I had to do some other work so this got put on hold. I went back today and without the door pins, inner seal removed and strut removed it seems to close enough without force. But installing the strut it does not close as good. I think the strut is bottomed out (fully contracted). I do have the Toby strut pin reinforcement so maybe it got installed a little to far in.

I did get inside the car without the upper door panel on looking with a light outside and looking with a flashlight inside and I don't think that tub where the inner seal goes on will need to be cut.

I'm going to see if I can shorten those ball ends on the strut.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I was able to cut 0.050" off each ball end of the strut on my mill. I think that will fix the need to slam (at least some) but it still will need some push to at the rear of the door to overcome the front being so much lower.

This is my door just sitting with no strut and no door pins and no inner seal. Yes my torsion bar needs to be set tighter since it can sit there like this. But this also shows my rear hinge needs to go lower.

So the door will need to twist to get the rear pin to latch.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I just thought of something. Maybe doing the torque rod adjustment now would bring that front of the door up a little more. Since the torque rod applies torque to the front hinge.

[Josh]

The torsion bar changes the shape of the door. It is critical to have the fully dressed door and a properly adjusted torsion bar present when adjusting the doors. Hanging a door only on the hinges with the seals, strikers, and bar not present does not prove much of anything.

[Bitsyncmaster]

The torsion bar changes the shape of the door. It is critical to have the fully dressed door and a properly adjusted torsion bar present when adjusting the doors. Hanging a door only on the hinges with the seals, strikers, and bar not present does not prove much of anything.

Agree for final door pin adjustment. But I'm working on finding why the door needs to be slammed.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Our cars all have little differences. They were not assembled with computer controlled robots and therefor what works for one owner may not work for another.

My problem with the need to slam the door to get that rear latch to engage was three problems. First, the strut was bottoming out. Second, is the rear latch pin has to go higher which required some Dremel work on the pin mounting to get another 1/16 inch. Third was the inner door seal was preventing the door closing to the in position. Working without door pins and a light, you can see where that inner seal is trying to crush to much as you close the doors. In the end I used a sheet of paper held over areas of the inner seal and then close and latch the door. Then you could pull the paper to see if there was binding in that area.

Removing the door latch pins and inner door seal showed me no matter how you adjust your pins, the rear part of the door would not go lower unless you slam it to deform the door shape. It also showed me that the rear door hinge would have to go lower to have my rear latch pin set lower. Maybe another door would not have that problem.

Each little imperfection adds a little to the problem. I do think starting without all the imperfections and adding one at a time will help you solve the issue.

It's still not a two finger close but much better.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Doors shutting very nice today. Maybe the warmer temps have helped. I can close each door to the first click slowly. Then just pushing with my palm at the rear end of the window ledge, I can latch fully closed.

I think the most thing that helped was trimming the tub lip under the inner door seal. All rubber seals are back glued in and outside of car has been cleaned, ready to show off. The front latches are adjusted so the original stripe is aligned. That is still lower then aligning the rub strips but those are pretty close. I guess that is how the car was original adjusted.

Garage temp is 76 deg/F

[Michael]

Doors shutting very nice today. Maybe the warmer temps have helped. I can close each door to the first click slowly. Then just pushing with my palm at the rear end of the window ledge, I can latch fully closed.

I think the most thing that helped was trimming the tub lip under the inner door seal. All rubber seals are back glued in and outside of car has been cleaned, ready to show off. The front latches are adjusted so the original stripe is aligned. That is still lower then aligning the rub strips but those are pretty close. I guess that is how the car was original adjusted.

Garage temp is 76 deg/F

LOL...shutting very nice today. It just emphases the whole all cars are different. I have several sets of door struts! I have one set that is very strong which works good in winter, but makes the doors bounce in summer, so I switch to my "summer" struts which don't work great in winter but are perfect in summer temps. I live in east TN so it's not uncommon to see 100 degreesF+ in the summer/ -10 degrees in the winter.

Personally I think the torsion bars were not really designed to last 40+ years and maybe some batches have weakened over time. Perhaps cars that were stored for decades in a climate controlled environment are less prone to weakening vs. cars kept in varying climates?

[The_J]

I know I am a bit late to the party, but my door had sagged just like yours. I removed all the trim around the windshield and found someone had used butyl to put the windshield in which doesnt dry and allowed the body to sag and the windshield was actually loose from the car. I went to Delorean NW and we jacked the roof back into position and glued in a new windshield with urethane. The door went from being very low in the front, to almost perfect we did have to do a few adjustments to it.