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Yeah, I just went and looked at it. I have no idea how you get anything on that bolt, off sets, crows foot, cylinder base nut wrench. Even if you manage to get one of those on there somehow, you’d have no room to swing it anywhere. Love it if someone proves me wrong, that would be a nice to be able to access it. It’s buried in the hinge channel from all sides except the very front.
Pics of it.
Cyl base nut wrench.
Looking at the top hinge from straight on outside.
Looking at too hunger from an angle. Probably 25-30*, not a straight shot, you can just get a finger on the head of it sitting in a narrow channel.
Top drivers hinge inside.
Top hinge looking from below.
Bottom door hinge. You could probably access this one, but still not mush of a swing on it.
I still don’t see how you’d do it with the fender on??
Something cool I figured out when I had door adjustment troubles. You'll need to remove the door panel to get access to the inside of the door/rear of the latch assembly to do this.
I have tried the same thing....adjust the striker bolt thing, close the door, guess how much to move it up/down/in/out, rinse and repeat until you get it pretty close, and pretty close to just living with it. Never again!
First, get your hinges proper. And by proper I mean get your door/fender/cab gaps where you want them. The hinges control this, so you want them right. You don't need the striker bolt in for this part. It's a hassle all around, I agree, but get the door straight in the opening. Replace the hinge pins if there's any sag, or do it anyway if they are original.
Now, once the door is where it should be, put the striker bolt in. Get it close enough that you can close the door on it, but don't tighten it all the way. Snug is good enough. If it moves when you close the door, that's ok.
Ok, ready? There's a hole that goes all the way through the latch assembly that lines up with the striker bolt. Insert your torx driver FROM THE INSIDE OF THE DOOR through that hole and into the striker bolt. Align the door skin with the body, and tighten the striker. Get it as tight as you can. You can tighten it more when you open the door, if needed.
BOOM! That beotch is aligned and your door opens/closes with ease. You're welcome.
Yeah, I just went and looked at it. I have no idea how you get anything on that bolt, off sets, crows foot, cylinder base nut wrench. Even if you manage to get one of those on there somehow, you’d have no room to swing it anywhere. Love it if someone proves me wrong, that would be a nice to be able to access it. It’s buried in the hinge channel from all sides except the very front.
Pics of it.
Cyl base nut wrench.
Looking at the top hinge from straight on outside.
Looking at too hunger from an angle. Probably 25-30*, not a straight shot, you can just get a finger on the head of it sitting in a narrow channel.
Top drivers hinge inside.
Top hinge looking from below.
Bottom door hinge. You could probably access this one, but still not mush of a swing on it.
I still don’t see how you’d do it with the fender on??
Looks like something like this might work? but im not paying that much for a wrench for my door.
to your point: "First, get your hinges proper. And by proper I mean get your door/fender/cab gaps where you want them. The hinges control this, so you want them right. You don't need the striker bolt in for this part. It's a hassle all around, I agree, but get the door straight in the opening. Replace the hinge pins if there's any sag, or do it anyway if they are original."
how can you adjust your hinges without accessing the body hinge bolts? are you saying don't do any adjustment? just put in new pins and everything will line up?
I worded some of that out of order. Replace the pins first. This should be all you need to do as long as there's been no damage or improper adjustments made along the way. IOW, the factory hinge position should be good for the life of the vehicle. It's usually the pins that wear out, or someone hangs on the door while it's open and causes it to sag. If your hinges haven't moved, search for "door sag tool" and you'll see the tool that should help with that problem. A bottle jack and some wood can also tweak it back into place.
Now if you've had an accident or somehow gotten the door out of adjustment using the hinges then you need to get the hinges right first. Still might need new pins, though. Then you can do the striker adjustment like I described.
I haven't had a chance to try the curved wrench with mine (passenger door doesn't close like it did before an accident), but I'll be attempting that soon as I figure out what size I need to get. As for whether all the hinge bolts can be dealt with using that wrench, I don't know yet. I reaaaallly don't want to remove the fender again to get to them, and just needs a little movement, so I may just end up living with it.
Looks like something like this might work? but im not paying that much for a wrench for my door.
I don’t think you’re getting that in there…
If you need to move the door up, down, fore or aft, those bolts must be loosened. The door side of hinge allows adjustment for in and out, towards and away from the cab.
If you try the curved wrench, or anything else like it in a tight space between or near a painted body panel, put some good tape on the edge to protect the paint, and anywhere you might end up rubbing or hitting hard. Several layers of painter's tape would work. Taping the tool can also be a good idea.
I worded some of that out of order. Replace the pins first. This should be all you need to do as long as there's been no damage or improper adjustments made along the way. IOW, the factory hinge position should be good for the life of the vehicle. It's usually the pins that wear out, or someone hangs on the door while it's open and causes it to sag. If your hinges haven't moved, search for "door sag tool" and you'll see the tool that should help with that problem. A bottle jack and some wood can also tweak it back into place.
Now if you've had an accident or somehow gotten the door out of adjustment using the hinges then you need to get the hinges right first. Still might need new pins, though. Then you can do the striker adjustment like I described.
I haven't had a chance to try the curved wrench with mine (passenger door doesn't close like it did before an accident), but I'll be attempting that soon as I figure out what size I need to get. As for whether all the hinge bolts can be dealt with using that wrench, I don't know yet. I reaaaallly don't want to remove the fender again to get to them, and just needs a little movement, so I may just end up living with it.
so unless I am missing something - you have to cut the old pins to get them out?
It's been too long to remember the details, but I didn't cut anything. There might be a retainer ring at the bottom like the replacements have. I really don't remember. I do remember using a hammer to get them out. Have someone hold the door up, or put some blocks under it. There were bushings also. My search found them as a set - 4 pins, 8 bushings, 4 E rings, so they are still easily obtainable. With a little lube the new ones will last another 20-30 years.
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, very helpful tip!
