Can someone please tell me how to properly align my deck lid on my 71 dodge demon, first when you turn the key the trunk flies open so hard you have to keep your hand on the top of it and the second thing is the side to side fit isn't good. this didn't seen to bad until i put new weather stripping in the trunk.Now when the trunk is closed you can still see the strip all along the bottom edge...help please Doug
deck lid trouble
- Thread starter gsone1
- Start date
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Start by closing the trunk slowly and just latch it! Is it flush with the body or high and low in places? Is there a bigger gap some places more than others! The adjustment points are the latch mechanism, which is your up and down at the center of the rear, the hinge bolts which can be raised or lowered, and "cocked", meaning one bolt goes high and the other low! The lid also slides on the bolts back and forth to adjust the gap!
As always, do one adjustment at at time and close the lid slowly to check your results! If it makes it better, leave the adjustment, if not, reverse it and try another move! Work slow and in small increments! Hope this helps, Geof
As always, do one adjustment at at time and close the lid slowly to check your results! If it makes it better, leave the adjustment, if not, reverse it and try another move! Work slow and in small increments! Hope this helps, Geof
1967 'cuda
Dropped on Head as a Baby
To adjust spring pressure you will need to adjust the trunk torsional springs. They will look like the ones in this picture.
View attachment 2.JPG
On every Mopar that I've had that uses these, there is a bracket that one end of the springs fits in solid and the other end fits into one of a series of holes or slots. To make the adjustment you either increase or decrease the amount of tension (twist) you have by changing which slot you choose.
As far as alignment goes, if the lid is squarely in the trunk opening but is not closing tight enough, the latch will need adjusting downward. If it isn't fitting squarely then you will have to loosen the hinge bolts and slide the trunk back slightly to close that gap.
View attachment 2.JPG
On every Mopar that I've had that uses these, there is a bracket that one end of the springs fits in solid and the other end fits into one of a series of holes or slots. To make the adjustment you either increase or decrease the amount of tension (twist) you have by changing which slot you choose.
As far as alignment goes, if the lid is squarely in the trunk opening but is not closing tight enough, the latch will need adjusting downward. If it isn't fitting squarely then you will have to loosen the hinge bolts and slide the trunk back slightly to close that gap.
1967 'cuda
Dropped on Head as a Baby
If you've never adjusted a hood or trunk before it can seem more difficult than what it is. If you are adjusting the hinge bolts, there is a lot of play in there. It's easy to get confused if you're making too large of adjustments each time. Sometimes a 1/16" movement can make a lot of difference. You should pay attention to the paint on and around the bolt heads. That will be your guide for where you have started at and will help you to see which direction you've moved. Try not to loosen the bolts any more than you have to so you can quickly tighten them back up without the trunk moving around on you while you run the ratchet. If the original bolt location is hard to see you can use a magic marker to make reference marks. As Geof said, use small incremental adjustments until you get a good fit.
Treblig
Well-Known Member
I do it by having someone close the trunk on me while I am inside the trunk. This way the person on the outside tells me where it is high or low or misaligned. I make the adjustments slowly from the inside. Just take a flash light and all the tools you need. I found this to be the fastest and easiest way because it's really hard to judge how much to move it in/out/up/down/sideways each time you open the lid when working by yourself. I'm not saying it can't be done that way but it just takes longer.
It's what works best for me.
Treblig
It's what works best for me.
Treblig
Hmm, never tried that,thanks for the tip Treblig! Sounds like a dandy nap opprotunity also!!
I think Treblig is referring to the latch adjustment since the hinge bolts are
Not accessable once trunk is closed
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