naf

iTrader: (7)

I installed Lon's hinge repair kit about two years ago and my door has apparently wallowed out the lower door hinge pin mounts (holes on the door side hinge). The lower hinge pin kit is provided with two new bushings but these bushings replaced the worn stock bushings in the body side lower hinge. Put a new lower hinge pin in last night (bought locally) and the movement is definitely between the door hinge side and the pin. Any fix for this? Maybe a lower pin with a larger diameter? Or bushings for the lower door-side hinge?

Upper hinge repair is still going strong.

CarterCarbureto

iTrader: (1)

the size of the pin you bought and lons pin might be different, I have his kit aswell, and havent noticed anything like that.

naf

iTrader: (7)

Yes they could be different diameters although they appeared to be the same. Anyway the pin I installed with Lon's kit two summers ago had developed the same amount of play (actually a little more) than the replacement pin I put in last night.

CarterCarbureto

iTrader: (1)

I find that you have to replace both the pin and the bushings, not one or the other

naf

iTrader: (7)

Exactly, only the bushings supplied fit the body side hinge. No bushings are supplied for the door side hinge and that's where my slop is.

naf

iTrader: (7)

Any help on this?

CarterCarbureto

iTrader: (1)

what?

naf

iTrader: (7)

Both the body side hinge piece and the door side hinge piece form two rectangular "C"s once the pin is removed, with holes through each end of the "C"s that the pin goes through, four holes total. Only two bushings are supplied with the lower hinge kit.

Camarogeddon

As far as i have gathered, one set of holes does use bushings, while the other set is supposed to sit snug around the shaft.. So when the door moves, only 2 holes actually have movement between the shaft and the hinge. The other two stays solid.
(Correct me if i'm wrong, it's been a few years since i rebuilt my hinges)

naf

iTrader: (7)

Yeah, my problem is the other set that doesn't use the bushings is not sitting snug around the shaft. With the door wide open you can clearly see the movement of the door side hinge against the pin.

lonsal

iTrader: (2)

Until yesterday I couldn't respond with the solution. Last week I repaired a customers car with the greasable hinge kit. When done the drivers side lower hinge had the problem you described. Upon close examination while someone was raising and releasing the door I could see the hinge portion that is welded to the door (not the bushed part) was where the movement was occurring.

Yesterday he returned for me to repair it. I now have two solutions. Both require use of a welder. The easier repair method doesn't require un-bolting the door from the a-pillar. You simply weld the exposed lower door hinge pin to the hinge. The only problem with the solution is you'll need to grind off the lower hinge pin flush to the hinge before you can drive it out. The only problem wiht this method is that if a body shop is unaware that the pin has been welded to the hinge is they could destroy the hinge trying to remove the pin.

I chose to use a second method so the hinge pin could be removed as normal. I welded a nut to the bottom of the hinge. The nut was very close to the correct diameter, but I did drill it out before installation using a 11/32" drill bit. I also used the lower hinge pin I sell as TDS 201080 which is 3/16" longer than the pin in the upper hinge repair kits. This allows the pin to stick sufficiently below the nut that's been welded in place so you can easily drive it out from below. I did have to un-bolt the door hinges from the a-pillar and pull the door back far enough to get clearance to weld the nut in place properly. I had the old pin seated far enough into the nut to align it when welding.

Lon Salgren
Top-Down Solutions

naf

iTrader: (7)

Good idea. I was stuck with either reaming out the hinge holes and trimming a second set of bushings to fit or replacing the entire door. Solution 2 would be far preferable as it will still allow the hinge pin to be replaced in the future. I installed your kit Summer of '04 so it's been three years and the lower pin/bushings did show signs of wear, so it may need to be replaced in the future.

Once you've gotten used to one of these cars and put that much time and effort into it, it's hard to imagine ever letting it go.