Hi All, My '82 308 GTSi doors are getting difficult to close - need to be almost slammed shut. The passenger door has also popped open at speed. I can't find any advice on a technique to rectify - I've done the obvious slacken, shuffle of the striker plate and re-tighten. Is there a procedure I should be following rather than guessing ? Regards, Peter.
Your doors are probably starting to sag. Instead of slamming the door shut, just lift up on it a little bit when you go to close the door. As far as getting them to stop sagging, I haven't looked to much into it yet.
One of the quick fixes is to clean and lubricate the latch mechanism. I have to give my 328's latches an annual treatment with a graphite lubricant I got at ACE hardware (graphite in an alcohol carrier). It's a bit of a messy job, but it does wonders for getting grit out of the moving parts. When the door is pushed closed (not slammed), check the seams around the door. That should tell you if the door is sagging (mis-aligned with the frame). To shift the door means adjusting the hinge, requiring removal of the inner panel. Good luck.
It also sounds like one of the two door pins is about to go south. My driver door did that on my last car. I replaced all 4 (dr and pass) for about $100 with shipping. After that, no problems.
Ferrari of UK Italian Car Parts Dennis McCann http://www.allferrariparts.com/parts_list.cfm I got mine from Dennis. FoUK might be cheaper.
If your door has dropped then you can pack the bottom hinge. It is a bit fiddly, but not difficult... 1) work out the door drop nearly close the door and look at the fit of the waist line groove door to body (mine was 10mm low). 2) calc shim thickness... drop mm x (distance between hinges / length of door) 3) make shims... thin brass sheet is available in 50mm wide x 0.5mm, 0.8mm and other thicknesses from model shops... just copy the hinge bolt patten and plate size. 4) remove the black trimmer plate and disconnect the interior light switch. Support door on jack, remove bottom hinge bolts and slot in shims to pack bottom hinge out. Take care not to allow the door to move sideways. Also try not to loose the tapped plate the bolts fix into - this is a loose item behind the bracket. 5) refit bolts and try... I shimmed about 0.3mm overthick and this has worked Okay. David.
Thanks gentlemen, - I had a good look and it does not appear to be the door drooping, more like the catch mechanism not locking properly. I 'll try to figure out why this is happening (both sides!) and get back to you. It almost seems like the rubber seals are too hard, and not allowing the doors to close easily. Regards, Peter.
This could be the pull-in alignment. If the door, when closed and latched is further in than the frame, you'll have to adjust the latch mechanism. If the door aligns with the car body, then it's probably just a dirty latch.
Help! My driver door opened several times today. The door aligns perfectly. Now when I try to close the door it is blocked sometimes. (unless pushed in lower near the latch. I just don't trust it to lock. When it opened on the road it was still "locked" sometimes and other times it really opened. i believe the latch is the culprit and it isn't going overcenter to lock. I will try the cleaning and graphite "bath". I'll post if this works.
Well, what's worked for y'all? I had to hold my drivers door half the way to work, and part way home! Blasted thing!
One cause could be the lever (marked with a green arrow) sticking in the "open" position. It has a return spring to keep it closed, but with age / dirt etc. they do stick open. Simple solution - remove the lock, wash off and re-lubricate and it will be as good as new.
Thanks, I'll go try that right now! I'm saving the door R&R process for over the winter, but would prefer to get a few more days of Ferrari noise in before I pack it up!
