Door Height Adjustment

[Mpgeslak]

Been working on windows and door alignment.  A lot of great information in the Tech Manual and in a number of posts.  As has been well documented, the windows are really a tedious exercise of trial and error!  Three questions I haven’t seen a full answer to:

1.  I have all new MB window seals, but can’t seem to get the Passenger side window to fit all the way into the seals all the way around.  I have a small space of probably 1mm or so near the top of the left and right sides.  Any thoughts?  Is this good enough to stop leaks?

2.  I have read about how to adjust the doors, but I can’t seem to get much of a height adjustment in the front of the door, and my drivers side is at least 3mm low.  I can get a lot of height in the back of the door but in the front there doesn’t seem like much of an adjustment available .  Is there a trick to this?

3.  I have greased the hinges and managed to get old grease out of the top of all four, but only out of the bottom of 1.  I tried using my heat gun to loosen up the old grease, but no luck so far.  Any other approaches?

Thanks for any assistance.

Michael

[GM]

Regarding Item 1:
When I had this same problem I found that by raising the stop bracket (see photo) I was able to make the window fit into the rubber just right.
Sorry, no help on Items 2 and 3
Good luck!

[Cees Klumper]

You do want the window to snug into the seals, not just for leaks but more for wind noise. Even a 1 mm visible leak will (I think) produce a lot of noise. Try cracking your window in your modern car just a tadwhile barelling down the highway, it's really noticeable.
A challenge then is not to have the window sit too high, or it won't clear the seal and will get stuck on the outside of the seal as you shut the door. Scary to see, and they can break if not adjusted right (don't ask).

[Pawel66]

Not an expert, but went through this. Some thoughts:
1. Do not touch the glass before the door adjustment is done. No point in doing it.
2. Fit the glass to hard top
3. Fit the soft top to glass
4. The best and true stop mechanism is the stop screw on the lifting assembly

If I read the question 1 correctly - your glass is away about 1mm from top of front and rear seal. Cannot stay this way. You need to lean the glass in a bit. You have the regulators on the sliding rails.

What I found the most important: there cannot be tension/pressure on the glass as you shut the door. They need to touch the seals, but not be pushed out by the seals when you close the door. If they are, they stay under tension and will break.

[Mpgeslak]

Thanks for the replies.

I should have been more specific on the 1mm gap in the windows:  the glass sits fine against the interior side of the seals, the 1mm gap is with the side of the seals, so if looking at the car from the outside the gaps are on the left and the right where the edge of the glass doesn’t  quite reach the seal. 

[Garry]

Are the seals new or old as they do tend to shrink and go hard as they age and thus can give the gap.  If old then new seals may fix the problems.


Garry

[Pawel66]

Still not sure where the gap is, but:
- you can move the glass front and rear a bit, either the glass itself or with the whole lifter
- you canshim the chrome mouldings holding the seals with e.g. 1mm rubber
- perhaps the roof sits a bit low not allowing the glass to go all the way up
- if it is a gap between the edge of the glass and the outer edge of the seal - perhaps some gap in the back is ok, but in the front I would minimize it

In my struggle I have glass fairly tight in the front, but there is some gap in the back side - not sure either if that is ok.

[Peter]

If I understand you well, you can adjust this with these two screws.

^Peter

[Mpgeslak]

Thanks for all the responses. 
 
Garry, the Seals are new MB originals directly from MB classics so I don't think it is an issue with the seals

Pawel, yes the gap is between the outer edge of the glass and the outer edge of the seal.    The thing that doesn't make sense is I have a small gap on either side and thus moving the glass forward or aft solves one side but makes the other worse.   Glass seems to be sitting fine in the top seal so I really can't raise it any more.

Any thoughts on adjusting the height of the front of the door, which is my other problem on the drivers side?

[Garry]

I am assuming that you are trying to fit the glass to the seals with the hard top on. The glass will need to go higher if not fitting at sides but is fitting at top. The Hard Top is not adjustable for glass.


  If that is so then i guess it will come down to door adjustment if you are not able to raise the glass any further as it is already fitting.  Once that is done then you can remove the hard top and then adjust the soft top to the glass.   It must be done that way around for it to work as there is no adjustment on the Hard Top.


Garry

[Peter]

Far as I know there is not trick to adjust the door.

•   Doors are very heavy; you need to do this with two
•   Door to be adjusted via these bolts
•   If you cannot get to the door in the right position, question is way: ….not the original door, accident car….
•   If no other remedy, adapt the bolt hole of the hinge to get to the right door height.

^Peter

[Mpgeslak]

Thanks Peter for the tips, the tech manual indicates the height can also be adjusted with the bolts where the hinges attach to the body, is this not accurate.   Seems like I may need to take the door off the hinges to see what is going on inside.   I don't have the history on the car, definitely possible a new door was fitted which could be the problem.

[stickandrudderman]

This is actually a very tricky and time-consuming task and is definitely a two man job.
Start with the hard top fitted.
1. Remove door striker or door lock so it does not influence rest position when closed.
2. Close door and observe for correct alignment at all edges and swage lines.
3. Adjust for correct door alignment at door hinges; both on the door and on the "A" post.
4. If you cannot get the door aligned high enough using the hinge adjustments, you can place a piece of wood under the door and use a trolley jack to lift it (door only partially open). If you cannot get it low enough you can lean on the top of the door (door partially open).
5. Once the door is aligned properly with even gaps all around, swage lines aligned with adjacent panels and door panels fully flush with adjacent panels, install the striker or lock and adjust the striker for correct function so it doesn't lift or drop the door.
6. Check for excess free play in the door glass runners and be sure to rectify this before progressing to step 7.
7. With hard top installed, adjust door glasses to fit into aperture so as not under stress but giving full contact on all three sides. This is a very time-consuming job and in extreme cases it may be that you have to remove the chrome rails that carry the seals and pack them out with rubber in order to get good alignment. The glasses can be adjusted in all angles using a number of different adjusters.
8. Once you are satisfied that glasses are correctly aligned, remove hard top and raise soft top. Adjust soft top so that it aligns correctly with the door glasses.

This can easily take two days to get a good result!

[Mpgeslak]

Thanks Stick, great guidance on the door and window.   I think i will need to try the rubber behind the chrome!