Adjusting and Removing Doors

[nthomas1]

Can anybody advise on whether/how Fulvia Coupe (Series 2) door fit can be adjusted?   The right side door on my car sticks out about half a centimetre at the bottom left, and sits recessed about the same distance into the car on the opposite corner, i.e at the top right.   
It looks as though rotating the door slightly along the top-left/bottom-right diagonal would fix the problem. Do the mounting points allow this sort of movement?   There are 4 bolts inside the door, and four holding the hinge inside the front wing. 

After experimenting with adjustment (I would sooner experiment now rather than after the car has been painted), I intend removing the doors to facilitate refurbishment.  Are there any tips or tricks associated with their removal?

The following pictures 1 and 2 show the upper mounting points, and 3 and 4 show the lower (these are actually for the left side door).

[dhla40]

Removal is simple, just undo the six 13mm bolts and slide the door off, can be done single handed but two person easier. As for adjustment do not be afraid to grab the door and twist it to move the bottom corner in. If this does not work you can shim the door in and out and forward or back on the hinges by loosening the bolts. I dont think you can get much adjustment by loosening the hinge body mounting but if you try an impact driver will probably be needed as the screws are unlikely to have been touched since the car left the factory.

Sean

[nthomas1]

Thanks Sean - I'll see what I can do with shimming, and will focus on the portion of the hinges that are attached to the door.  Logically, you would think that in order to rotate the door along the top-left-to-bottom-right axis it would be necessary to push the top-right out and bring the bottom-right in.  If there are no shims in there at present it won't be possible to bring the bottom right in at all.  Anyway , I'll try what you suggested and see what impact it has.

[DELTONA]

Hi Norm, I realise this thread is old however I have the same issue with my Fulvia. Looking at the passenger door head on the bottom left sticks out and I really have to slam the thing in order for it to sit true. Did you find a solution/way to sort this?
Kind regards Giuseppe

[lancialulu]

Hi Norm, I realise this thread is old however I have the same issue with my Fulvia. Looking at the passenger door head on the bottom left sticks out and I really have to slam the thing in order for it to sit true. Did you find a solution/way to sort this?
Kind regards Giuseppe

You should not need to slam a Fulvia door except Aluminium doors do not have the same weight so need more of push or pull to shut. It seems as if the strike plate on the B pillar part of the door shut has moved in (common problem due to slamming....). Setting it right will not make the door position in the recess any better though.

[nthomas1]

Hi Norm, I realise this thread is old however I have the same issue with my Fulvia. Looking at the passenger door head on the bottom left sticks out and I really have to slam the thing in order for it to sit true. Did you find a solution/way to sort this?
Kind regards Giuseppe

Hi Giuseppe - I decided to wait until the wing and sill welding work was complete on my car so this is something I’ll look at again in October when my car comes out of the paintshop. I’ll let you know how I get on.