Loose doors

[bahbzilla]

When I close my doors, they latch, but not tightly. The trailing edges stand proud and will still move in and out a bit. I have moved the striker on the body as far "in" as it will go and the latch on the door as far "out" as it will go and they are still loose. I am wondering if I am doing something wrong, or if part of the latch mechanism is worn and needs replacing. Any thoughts? Thanks...

Bob
1980 TR7 DHC

[mb4tim]

Mine were a mess, too. I moved both the striker and the latch. Took an hour, or so, to get both doors in order; adjustment after adjustment.

Have you looked at up adn down adjustments?. Mine looked to far out, but realized the vertical adjustment was out, that helped mine.

-Tim
http://www.morSpeedPerformance.com

[FI Spyder]

My passenger door is like that. Not sure if I loosened the latches enough to tap in their respective directions to get them to go where I want. Still haven't given up. I would like the door a little tighter as it makes a noise when going over bumps. A new door seal would tighten it up but I'd still have it sitting a little proud at rear edge.



- - - - TR7 Spider - - - - - - - - 1978 Spitfire - - - - - - 1976 Spitfire - - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra - - Yellow TCT

[HDRider]

Are you sure that the door is not adjusted too tight casing the door catch to only be on the first "safety" catch.

Edward Hamer
Petaluma CA

[bahbzilla]

Edward - That is possible... The striker is "U" shaped, and I assumed that the latch should just grab the outside leg, when it should probably grab the inside one and cover the whole "U".[B)] Let me try this again...

Bob
1980 TR7 DHC

[TR Tony]

The door latch should not have any adjustment in it, the B post striker is where the adjustment should be made.

With the door latch screws tight, loosen the striker cover plate screws just enough that you can move the striker. Then shut the door firmly but carefully, maybe give it gentle pressure to hold it in the shut position while you then release the door catch before opening the door without moving the striker.

Carefully tighten the striker plate screws & try the door closing action. Maybe need to repeat the process for best results.

Poor alignment of the rear edge of the door so that it does not sit flush with the bodywork is very common - both my cars have it! I have improved it by setting the closing action as best I can, but I think complete perfect alignment might involve adjustment of the hinges at the front, which is a whole lot more difficult!

Tony

<font size="1">1981 2L FHC Cavalry Blue
1980 3.5L V8 DHC Jaguar Regency Red - sadly sold!
1977 TR8 FHC EFI Factory development car Inca Yellow</font id="size1">

[Beans]

It's also worth remembering that there are shims behind the B-post striker.

<center>
<font color="blue"><i>1980 TR7 DHC (my first car, now restored and back on the road)
1981 TR7 FHC Sprint (better known as 't Kreng)</font id="blue">
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[bahbzilla]

That was it! I had the strikers pushed too far inwards, so was only catching the outside post. Doors now close nice and snug, if not perfectly aligned...

Bob
1980 TR7 DHC

[darrellw]

Another thing to check is the "hook" above the latch. There is a spring-loaded wedge in the thing it catches in. That can get gummed up and make it hard to close the door all the way. The wedge can also get stuck too far in, and that will contribute to the door rattling, even when it closes properly.

Darrell Walker
66 TR4A IRS-SC CTC67956L
81 TR8 SATPZ458XBA406206
Vancouver, WA, USA