Door alignment

[schusterjo]

99 Dodge Durango,

Truck basically was side swiped passenger front fender. It caught the front part of the door and pilled the front out a little out, The glass was not broken on the door, but the door was bent out at the top and had a inch gap. however this busted the lower door hinge/mount (not all the way just the bottom of the hinge was busted, where it connects to the pin was busted from the pin, the top part of the bottom hinge was still connected to the pin)

Now I have another door and new hinges I see it is not aligning properly. It is sticking out a little further at he rear top of the door then it should. (the door still seals well and no leaks). It sticks out aprox 1/4 inch at the rear top of the door. If you open the door and take a look at the hinges, comparing them to the drivers side you would see that the bottom hinge on the passenger side is tilted inward (towards the rear) a little (this is barely noticeable but with a good eye you can see this). The drivers side does not do this, so I am assuming when the door was caught from the front it pushed the back of the hinge and bent it inward there a little. Well this bothers me and I want to get the door aligned the best I can. I was thinking about shimming the back of that hinge or even welding a small piece of metal to even this out hoping this will cause the rear top of the door to not stick out as far. Anybody have experience with this type of work? am I on the right track here? How would a body shop go about aligning a door with this problem?

I hope that was descriptive enough to understand my issue. I will try to take pics.

[88GT]

its not easy to "tell" someone how to tweak a pillar with a socket, but your method dont sound right. Can you block the door and push in where it sticks out? (with the glass down!)

[dixie1776]

what does the door gaps look like with the door closed? is it wide at the front bottom, and close at the rear back( kinda high at the back of the door)?

[MARTINSR]

This is text book stuff here, the pillar is bent in where the hinge mounts. The back of the hinge as it is mounted on the pillar is bent in. This pushes the PIN in that hinge back and in. THUS the door is going to be back at the bottom and IN at the top rear.

Look at the door jamb right next to the lower hinge. You will likely see a "bulge". That is because the hinge is pushed in on the pillar making a dent and pushing the metal into that bulge.

You may be able to push it out from the inside if you remove the kickpanel trim. But more than likely it is gong to have to be pulled on a frame rack.

If you can get behind it, with a heavy solid bar of some sort and hitting it with a BIG hammer you may be able to push it out. After moving it out a little, tap down that bulge.

Brian