Where to go to get door properly aligned...

Rude72* said

Sorry if this post is not in the correct thread... newbie here. Just purchased a 1972 Plymouth Duster 340 Tribute. The car is beautiful in every way, with a few minor exceptions. One of those being... the driver's side door closes, but it is not closing very smoothly. I am thinking that it is "off" a bit where it catches the latch. Is this something a body shop should correct or do you think my local mechanic can tackle this? Thanks for any/all suggestions!

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Ok, first things first.

1. Open the door , grab it by the bottom and lift up on it. It shouldn't move. If it does, the hinges and pins are worn.

2. If hinges are ok, close the door and check the body lines where the panel gaps are. They should line up. If not, you will need to adjust the door. This is done by loosening the bolts holding the hinges onto the door frame and the door itself, BUT, DON'T DO THIS YET!!!
3. If the alignment is off, sight down the door and see if it is standing out from the fender and/ or quarter panel. This will determine how you proceed with the adjustments.

4. If you can provide some pics looking straight at the door when its closed and pics looking down the side from the fender back and from the quarter panel forward , we may be able to help some more.