Can't Get Doors to Shut and Latch After New Weatherstripping/Rebuild (1 Viewer)

[Green Bean]

I rebuilt our early (1970) doors after they were painted. New OEM weatherstripping was installed and new door latch mechanisms. Now, I can't get the doors to close far enough to engage the latch. It feels like the weatherstripping is too large to allow the door to close all the way. Has anyone encountered similar issues? I sure would appreciate any and all suggestions on how to get the doors to latch closed.
Thanks again for all of the help.

 

[Engineer8000]

They really are not a design failure. I do believe they require patience , but these were not to be removed or loosened often. I replaced my door weather-strip when the vehicle was 30 years old. First time they needed adjusting. If one has patience and the correct tool , it can be done as I have done it. I am restoring a 1965 and removed all hinges for powder coat. Maybe since I have seats out there is more room to get comfortable and get my arm and tools in there.

Ok thank you for your input.

 

[73FJ40]

@cyrilward

I got mine from CityRacerLLC:

Front Door Seal Weatherstrips for '73 to '74 Land Cruiser FJ40

Front door seal / weatherstrips for 07/1972 - 12/1974 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40. Can also be fitted on earlier doors as an upgrade to the original weatherstrips. Meticulously created, high quality reproduction. Equivalent to OEM part #s 68108-90300 (RH) and 68109-90300 (LH). Discontinued by...

www.cityracerllc.com

This a a repop of what @65swb45 referred to..

 

[cyrilward]

@cyrilward

I got mine from CityRacerLLC:

Front Door Seal Weatherstrips for '73 to '74 Land Cruiser FJ40

Front door seal / weatherstrips for 07/1972 - 12/1974 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40. Can also be fitted on earlier doors as an upgrade to the original weatherstrips. Meticulously created, high quality reproduction. Equivalent to OEM part #s 68108-90300 (RH) and 68109-90300 (LH). Discontinued by...

www.cityracerllc.com

This a a repop of what @65swb45 referred to..

Thank you! Great site, a lot of goodies!!!

 

[70 FJ40]

I've got the same issue going on here. Bought new City Racer weatherstripping for the front doors on my '77 and now the front of the door is so tight and bound up on the hinge side that I have to slam the door to get it to close. And trying to open it is even harder. I'm afraid I'm going to break something. I adjusted the the catch all the way out. That's how I got the doors to close at all. I've now got the hinge bolts loose on the driver's side except for the very top back one. Still working on it. But my question is what do I do once they are loose? From the picture shown here on page one, the holes in the hinge are not slotted for adjustment. I've got the bottom hinge really loose but it won't slide out at all. Is it supposed to?

 

[brian]

I've got the same issue going on here. Bought new City Racer weatherstripping for the front doors on my '77 and now the front of the door is so tight and bound up on the hinge side that I have to slam the door to get it to close. And trying to open it is even harder. I'm afraid I'm going to break something. I adjusted the the catch all the way out. That's how I got the doors to close at all. I've now got the hinge bolts loose on the driver's side except for the very top back one. Still working on it. But my question is what do I do once they are loose? From the picture shown here on page one, the holes in the hinge are not slotted for adjustment. I've got the bottom hinge really loose but it won't slide out at all. Is it supposed to?

i can tell you from experience the seals will not compress with age....i fought with mine for a year and half thinking if i was patient they would "wear in"...they did not.

 

[70 FJ40]

Ya. Just found a post you made about this in a different thread. Sounds like you switched to OEM weatherstripping. Where did you get it? Did it solve your problems?

 

[70 FJ40]

Sure did seam like something was wrong when I got it all put together after all the work and worries about getting the weatherstripping on just right and now the doors won't close without seriously slamming them. Ahhh!!! Why should I have to adjust the hinges? They are right where the factory pit them. Good new weatherstripping should fit tight but shouldn't require hinge adjustment. Or door slamming.

 

[brian]

Ya. Just found a post you made about this in a different thread. Sounds like you switched to OEM weatherstripping. Where did you get it? Did it solve your problems?

local dealership.
yes the doors close like they should, very little effort required....but i had to re-re adjust the hinges back in. the 3m adhesive also works the way it should on teh oem....so make sure you're putting the rubber where you want it....there are no do overs.

 

[brian]

Sure did seam like something was wrong when I got it all put together after all the work and worries about getting the weatherstripping on just right and now the doors won't close without seriously slamming them. Ahhh!!! Why should I have to adjust the hinges? They are right where the factory pit them. Good new weatherstripping should fit tight but shouldn't require hinge adjustment. Or door slamming.

because they are made from epdm, not the foam rubber the oes are made of.....epdm makes great seals, but he sheet metal profiles need to be designed with it in mind.

 

[70 FJ40]

Argh! How come I didn't find this out before wasting my time and money on the stuff from City Racer.

 

[70 FJ40]

local dealership.
yes the doors close like they should, very little effort required....but i had to re-re adjust the hinges back in. the 3m adhesive also works the way it should on teh oem....so make sure you're putting the rubber where you want it....there are no do overs.

Did you use the super black 3M adhesive?

 

[brian]

Did you use the super black 3M adhesive?

yes but i cant recall if i used the 008 or 011 version.

 

[brian]

the good news is that it's super easy to get the aftermarket weatherstrip off the door.

 

[70 FJ40]

the good news is that it's super easy to get the aftermarket weatherstrip off the door.

I used super glue to put it on because I couldn't find the correct 3M glue and because people were saying it didn't work very well anyway. Hopefully it won't be too bad to get off if I use the super glue release stuff.