dut

The passenger door of my 1980 is strong and sturdy but sags when open, so of course when you close it, it dosen't line up till finally closed. Does that mean the hinges are bent? .....
any suggestions, much appreciated.

a454corvette

More likely bad pin bushings. Very common on all GM cars (especially '88-98 CK trucks).

My '74 had bad bushings at 45K.

Buddy's '78 has bad bushings at 78K (been bad for quite a while)

Gary79

this is on my "to do" list this winter if it ever warms up again. my drivers door sags, the door locks don't work right, so i'm going to do both sides(99k). i think the pins and bushing are still available from GM

GaryS

These parts are carried by all GM dealers, at least in my area. And, Advance Auto even has the bushings in the "Help" section of their store. The bushings come in a red package, four each I think. Very easy to do.
Gary

Shark Racer

Could you guys outline what you have to do? Mine(78) are bad on both sides, and more than likely will screw the door/window up if I don't get around to fixing it.

-Steve

Mack

Open the door a couple of inches... Not all the way open. Try to move the back end of the door up and down. If it moves, then the bushings need to be replaced. If it doesn't, then the door hinges probably need adjusting.

Shark Racer

My door has noticeable play. How do you go about changing the bushings?

-Steve

8T1-7T9 BIONIC VETTE

I hope someone answers "how to do" question.....Mine have that up and down play in them.......
Where to get the bushings.....and how to replace.......??????????? :confused: Cappy

Gary79

i'll take a shot on the" how to do" section;( Since i plan on doing this and think i remember the procedure from the past forum discussions) i believe you take off the hinge covers on the door first, note the location and number of shims, then take a floor jack with lots of padding, get it under the bottom edge of the door and remove the door,( it helps to have a friend) giving good access to the hinges and pins. i think the top hinge gives the most problem because the fender "lips" out over the hinge a little bit, limiting access to drive out the old pin and bushing. still waiting for it to warm up a little bit.

OkeeGuy

if it is "strong and sturdy" it may be adjustment...
open the door a little bit and lift up on the far, rear, bottom corner...

if you can lift it up and down like theres play in the hinges...it needs new hinge pins...

if there is no play and it feels tight...it needs adjustment...
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DARN! ive gotta learn to read the whole thread before answering! :lol:
you guys had already said what i said! JEEZE!!


[Modified by SIGNGUY, 7:37 AM 2/5/2003]

Mack

There may be a better way, but I replaced mine when I took the door off to work on the guts in the door. At the time, somebody suggested this method (Craig?) and it worked for me. I had a couple of guys to help support the door while I was getting it off.
1. Drive the pin out of the bottom hinge.
2. Unbolt the upper hinge from the door, leaving the hinge bolted to the car.
3. Remove the door and now you can replace the bushing and pin in the upper hinge.
4. Bolt the upper hinge back on the door.
5. Replace the bushings and pin in the lower hinge.

If you do it this way, the door will be aligned like it was when you took it apart, and like it was before the bushings wore out. Only a minor amount of realignment should be necessary, if any. If you have to do any realignment of the door, check the window alignment.

One other comment. I vaguely remember something about grinding one side of the head of the pin for the top hinge, so it would clear part of the body going in. I did this 9 months to a year ago and I guess my memory's goin'. :D

Let us know how it works out.

CF6873

Mack, Your memory is better than you give yourself credit for. The method you describe is exactly the way I have done door removal with the least amount of struggle. Ditto on the grinding of the head of the pin. Craig :cheers:

HotRod123

The best thing for a sagging back door is lots of exercise.
Good luck