Doors, when you think you are done, you are not

[tr6oldtimer]

Here is my problem on the door I applied a new skin to then painted and all that good stuff.

Door problem solution.jpg

Notice that the window opening is larger at the rear then the front. This gap was not caused by the installation of the skin, but was there from the factory (I verified in some photos). I also took measurements before the old skin came off and like a rock, I put the new one on with the same dimensions. I replicated the problem to a tee.

So the problem is that the gap is too large for the inner and outer window seals to touch the window.

Now if I had caught this before the skin was applied, I would have corrected the problem at the arrow points. I have been racking my brain to see if I could come up with a way to bend the inner frame at those points and not ruin the finish coat on the outside.

The other option is to make a tapered u-channel and epoxy it as indicated by the yellow lines. There is an armrest piece that should cover it all.

I may just bit the bullet and bend the metal, the refinish the door. After all, I do have that nice sander.

We are looking a 1/8-3/16 inches.

Thoughts>

[Len]

If it's that way on all cars of this model then you want to be careful that fixing it doesn't cause fit problems between the door and quarter.

[tr6oldtimer]

The door I am having a problem with was from a later model of the TR. The '73's and earlier, all the way back to the TR4's had these slits on each end of the door in the center of the widow channel. Their purpose was to adjust the gap. Later cars did not have them, as my door does not. So, I am contemplating cutting them into the door to facilitate fixing the problem. Even if I can get it close, that will be fine, and the up shoot is that it is 'original'.

There may be some other bending and such needed, but if I do it right, then only each end of the door will need touch up.
P8160001 (2).jpg

[tr6oldtimer]

If it's that way on all cars of this model then you want to be careful that fixing it doesn't cause fit problems between the door and quarter.

Len, no it is not. This was definitely a quality control issue. That door should never had made it to a finished product. That said, the door was a replacement for the original damaged door, and may have been a "second" that was dumped into the repair parts stream. Stranger things have happened.

What is disturbing is that for all the years I have had the car, I just accepted as normal. But then again, back then all I was concerned about was to get a female buttock in passenger seat.

[Len]

Len, no it is not. This was definitely a quality control issue. That door should never had made it to a finished product. That said, the door was a replacement for the original damaged door, and may have been a "second" that was dumped into the repair parts stream. Stranger things have happened.

What is disturbing is that for all the years I have had the car, I just accepted as normal. But then again, back then all I was concerned about was to get a female buttock in passenger seat.

A lot of American OEM car parts were also seconds back in those days. Many were just damaged but some were assembled incorrectly.