driver's side door hanging loose

[Seung]

Well, one of my boneheaded friends decides to lean on the driver's side door while it is open. It now hangs low and rubs the door jambs when closing. I've tried loosening the 6 bolts that hold the door to the car (1986 911 Carrera) and tilt the door up while tightening the bolts. It helped a little, but still not enough. The hinge pins are still loose.

Does anybody know how to fix this? Thanks in advance. Great board.

[Seung]

Could hinge pins actually wear out? How do you properly remove them? Does anybody know what the Porsche service manual says?

Thanks for the help in advance.

[Thomas Owen]

The pins come out pretty easily with a long drift and mallet. I had to remove both pins recently and worried about the proper tool, but John Walker suggested the above method and it worked perfect.
You probably have a worn pin or hinge, and it will be obvious once you drive out the pin.
Warning!
The door must be well supported when removing the pins as it will swing and dent against the front fender.
Good luck

[Evans, Marv]

Seung:
Somebody just leaning on the door (unless they stood on it or something like that) shouldn't have caused it to be out of adjustment unless the hinge bolts were loose to start with. If the hinge pins are worn out, those should have been the first things you should have changed. They are pretty easy to drive out with a long punch, or if you have a tool with a V notch or half circle that will fit around the hinge pin & under the head of it, you can tap them out using that. I haven't had to readjust a door yet, but I understand it's pretty hard to get it right.

[Bill Douglas]

My hinge pins were a nightmare to get out. And that's even with the doors removed for my recent paint job.

What you could try is using the above mentioned methods but dont full remove the pin. Just relocate it by about 5mm and see if that tightens up the hinge - this method bought me about 3 more years before I had to replace mine.

Bill '79SC

[Seung]

Thanks for the help. I'm going to try it tonight.

Happy Motoring!

[Bill Douglas]

Hey Seung, what I want to know is "what are you doing getting your hands dirty"? Living in Beverly Hills, shouldn't the gardener, or your man servant, be doing this for you Have fun, Bill.

[john walker's workshop]

the hinges also have thin brass bushings that wear out. how heavy is your ex friend?

[Seung]

He's only about 165 lbs., but he's one of those racer type guys who are midgets. The doors are perfect for him to cross his arms on. Way too short for me being 6'3".

He's about as tall as one of these smily guys.




Why I oughta...

[john walker's workshop]

there are factory shims that go under the hinge to raise or lower a door. they are usually the least damaging repair method. body shops routinely position a piece of wood under the door and use a floor jack to tweek it up. carefully done, that works well, too.

[Seung]

John,

Do you mean that I should just try and bend the hinges up with a jack on the bottom of the door?

Thanks!