72 Catalina door adjustment

[Guest 55cruisen]

Hello!

 

Can's seem to figure out how to adjust the doors. Driver's side front and passenger side rear catch but do not stay fully closed. Checked the manuals but they are of little help. Probably something simple but before I make it complicated figured I would ask.

 

Thanks!

Edited September 3, 2015 by 55cruisen (see edit history)

[NTX5467]

On those years of GM cars, one of the FIRST things to look at is the door striker bolt.  Many GM cars, back then, had a striker which had a plastic (PVC) "silencer" on them.  The door lock touched the plastic rather than metal.  With time and age, the plastic would degrade and split off, leaving a gap between the closed lock and the striker bolt.

 

GM supplied these items for a good while, but it got to be iffy as to finding them in the parts book.  Some model years showed it, but others which used it did not.  Good thing is that they are in the HELP! rack selection.  A gray plastic "bushing", about 3/8" long.

 

To install, use a Torx bit to remove the striker bolt.  HOPEFULLY, the nut it screws into is caged on the inside of the body panel!!  With the striker bolt unscrewed, just slide the plastic "silencer" onto it and reinstall the striker bolt in the same position on the panel it was before (look for paint lines and such).

 

ANOTHER place to look, especially if the silencer is gone, is the door hinge bushings and pins.  Those doors are heavy and, with time and use, the bronze bushings can wear and allow the door adjustment to drop at the rear of the door.  The pins and bushings were common to other GM vehicles, so they are also in the HELP! rack selection.  This replacement could well be something which is best left to a body shop or similar repair facility as the door will need to be removed from the vehicle to get to the hinge parts.  In a few cases, there might be enough space to allow the pins to drop in, but that might be rare.

 

On some of the newer vehicles, they use TWO pins for each hinge, an upper and lower, rather than one pin that hits the top and bottom pivot points of the hinge.  IF something like that might be used, it might simplify things, but would not look stock.

 

It could well be that you have wear problems at both areas. 

 

We see much more activity on pins and bushings on GM pickups that we ever did on cars.  When the bushings would wear, the rear of the door would drop and even a very hard slam would not latch the latch unless you physically picked up on the door by the outside handle and closed it.  Then it would latch and stay shut.

 

The third possibility, although a long shot, is that the latches have worn internally such that they will not latch.  In that case, the latch(s) will have to be replaced.  Model year can be very specific on these things, at least in the GM parts book.  The Hollander Manual might be different.

 

Please advise of your progress.

NTX5467