Morris Minor Owners Club

Hello .

Basically, the doors open and close normally, but the issue I'm facing is there's a gap between it and the car, but only very slight, which of course, can become a problem at 60 mph when the wind is seeping though . My dad said that it may be the hinges, and I think it might be, but what do you think?

Show us a photo (or alternatively, wear a hat and coat! )

Adjust the catch to hold the door more tightly into the body! But the hat/coat advice is good anyway!!

Before you start adjusting the doors, does the car have the proper door seals fitted? i.e. a rubber seal which starts at the floor/carpet edge and goes all around the door aperature to the carpet edge the other side. There is also another seal under the door (below where the door card is fitted)

regaliaqueen wrote:Before you start adjusting the doors, does the car have the proper door seals fitted? i.e. a rubber seal which starts at the floor/carpet edge and goes all around the door aperature to the carpet edge the other side. There is also another seal under the door (below where the door card is fitted)

I believe that, by the part of the door which is under the pillar, there is a strip of ribbed rubber, but I think that's the only part of sealing fitted to it, shall I buy some rubber sealent so I can fit it onto the door? Or shall I tighten the hinges?

Is it possible for you to take some pictures? Post them on here and we can advise you so you don't end up wasting money on parts you don't need to buy.

Correct me if I'm wrong here but the door is supported in two ways at the opening end. - the handle catch to keep it closed and a support pin below to help support the dead weight and ease the stress on the hinge pillar. If the door drops over time due to loss of support around the hinges - either on the door or on the mounting pillar - then the support pin fails to engage fully into position and actually prevents the door from closing fully. Hence the gap.

I had a similar problem recently and found that the door closed and sealed much much better when I removed the support pin and bracket as a temporary measure when exploring the problem.

This isn't offered as a proposed solution but rather a suggestion for how one might further establish the exact cause of the problem.

How are you going to 'tighten the hinges' ? Adjust the catch inwards to hold the door tightly closed - not the hinges.....

bmcecosse wrote:How are you going to 'tighten the hinges' ? Adjust the catch inwards to hold the door tightly closed - not the hinges.....

Prehaps not, although my mum says it's fine and it was 'the way they were built', which is probably applicable to everyone, but yes, I will upload images .

There should be no wear in the hinges, the door should shut flush with surrounding panels, at the hinge end and the catch end, and be 'inline' with the surrounding panels (ie the rib down the sides should follow across the doors)
Mine met all the above criterea but I still had a draught with new (soft) door seals!
I took the seals off and found the gap between the seals mounting flange and the door was quite variable, which was sorted with a block of wood and a hammer to dress the flange in or out as required - result! sealing is now good!

Sorry about the delay, I didn't get round to it but anyway, here is a picture of the passenger door, I took a picture of the gap, and, thankfully to the weather, it helps you see where the leakages are aswell .[frame][/frame]
But it's not only the door that is an issue, the quarter lights sealing has been afflicted, as with the rear right seat sealing on the window, too.[frame][/frame][frame][/frame][frame][/frame]

Try adjusting the door striker plate as it can get loose or worn. It's this part and you can adjust it by loosening or tightening the screws:[frame][/frame]

Your rear window doesn't look as if it's got a window seal at all, just silicone or sealant! And although the quarter light rubbers don't look too perished in the photos it's worth replacing them if they are showing signs of deterioration.

LouiseM wrote:Try adjusting the door striker plate as it can get loose or worn. It's this part and you can adjust it by loosening or tightening the screws:[frame][/frame]

Your rear window doesn't look as if it's got a window seal at all, just silicone or sealant! And although the quarter light rubbers don't look too perished in the photos it's worth replacing them if they are showing signs of deterioration.

Ok, thank you LouiseM, I did try adjusting the door striker plate, but it didn't really make a difference, I ought to sort out the sealing on the windows, and yes, I'll have to replace them because they don't look like they'll last.

Looking at those pictures, they don't look like proper door seals - just a rubber capping for a panel edge. Proper seals should have a hollow round squashy bit on the side that the door closes up to. Theres one or two different types you can get:
Original which has a coloured fabric part that fits over the metal edge and a black rubber seal that goes up against the door. Would have been blue on a blue car, but you can get it in all black too.
Budget type which is generally all black rubber which has a smaller than original squashy bit. Would still be more effective than what you have.
Modern car type. Either buy new or easy to source from scrapyards. Good point is you can get it with a moulded 90deg corner that fits better in the top corner of the door. The squashy bit tends to be bigger and gives a better seal, but can also make the door harder to close.

I'd guess there is nothing wrong with your hinges or striker plates, but if you get door seals (lookign at your pics, the orig type should be ok) from any Minor suppliers it should make a world of difference.

IaininTenbury wrote:Looking at those pictures, they don't look like proper door seals - just a rubber capping for a panel edge. Proper seals should have a hollow round squashy bit on the side that the door closes up to. Theres one or two different types you can get:
Original which has a coloured fabric part that fits over the metal edge and a black rubber seal that goes up against the door. Would have been blue on a blue car, but you can get it in all black too.
Budget type which is generally all black rubber which has a smaller than original squashy bit. Would still be more effective than what you have.
Modern car type. Either buy new or easy to source from scrapyards. Good point is you can get it with a moulded 90deg corner that fits better in the top corner of the door. The squashy bit tends to be bigger and gives a better seal, but can also make the door harder to close.

I'd guess there is nothing wrong with your hinges or striker plates, but if you get door seals (lookign at your pics, the orig type should be ok) from any Minor suppliers it should make a world of difference.

Thank you very much IaninTenbury, I'll get round to ordering some from a supplier on the internet, and I would like to thank everyone else, too .