VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND NEWER 1949-1954 Door Adjustment

Hi, I have a 1954 2 door Bel air.

From what I understand from my manual, adjustment to the door, closer or further from the car's body, is done by the 3 bolts of the top hinge and 2 bolts on the bottom hinge that are connected to the body.

I have loosened all 5 of these but the door does not seem to adjust properly and does not close all the way, There is quite a gap at the right side of the door which makes it difficult to meet the latch without slamming it.

Am I adjusting this correctly? Wanted to ask before I take off the door panel and start messing around with the other end of the hinges. I always thought the hinges inside the door and behind the panel were for up and down adjustment of the door.

Thanks.

Adjusting doors is as much an art and skill as a science. Patience is key!!

You talk about a gap at the right side of the door. I assume that you are looking at the driver's door from the exterior of the car. I make that assumption because that is the door that gets the most use and wear.

Exactly where is the gap? Is it a vertical or horizontal gap? Is the door centered in the opening in the body?

Sometimes the rear of the door will not close far enough if the front of the door is pushed too far inboard. That compresses the weather stripping so much at the front of the door and along the front portion of the top and bottom that it holds the door slightly open.

A key point to check is whether the hinge pins and bushings are worn. Sometimes people try to compensate for that by adjusting hinges. That rarely works.

Another way to check things is to remove the striker on the pillar after you mark the position. Then you can more easily check how the door fits in the opening because you are not working against the latch mechanism. After you are satisfied with the fit you can re-install and adjust the striker.

Yes, there is a gap at the right side of the driver's door, looking at it from the outside. I did remove the striker plate. The gap is vertical because the door will not close all the way. All the other gaps around the door, the gap to the fender and the gaps at the top of the door and the bottom of the door seem fine.

The hinges seem fine. There is no play at all.

Do I need to make additional adjustment at the hinge connections behind the door panel to get the right side of the door to move in?

Sorry for the confusion in directions and terms.

I think you are saying that the gap is a horizontal distance between the rear edge of the door and the body. Is it uniform from the top to bottom of the rear edge of the door?

I agree that it seems like you need to let the front of the door move "out" a little bit. The limitation there is the alignment between the rear edge of the front fender and the front edge of the door. If you move the front 0f the door out too far then you might have to adjust the rear of the fender to make that look right.

Like I said, fitting doors is an art.

When I close the door all of the gaps are good. It just will not close all the way to the striker plate.

I am willing to move the front (left side) of the door by the fender outwards to push the rear (right side of the door at the pillar) inwards to get it to close and meet up with the striker plate. That adjustment is made at the hinges that go into the fender area?

Sorry but I am not an expert on the '54 door hinge. I do not know if the "front out" adjustment is made where the hinge bolts to the door or the hinge bolts to the front pillar. In your car the hinge is actually mounted in what is called a "hinge box".

Before you make that adjustment make sure that the weather stripping is ok. Sometimes people will add a piece of sealing strip to stop a water leak or wind noise. That will interfere with the door closing.

You do want some resistance to closing. That means the weather strip is being compressed.

Make sure you mark the location of everything before you loosen fasteners. Make small adjustments. If things are going the wrong way you can easily move back to the prior position.

I often support the rear of the door with a piece of wood covered with a rag or towel on a floor jack. Things can get out of control pretty quickly due to the weight of the door A second set of hands really helps.

Thank you.