Installing the doors, door strikers and latches.

[Clyde's Keeper]

I am currently installing the door frames, latches and strikers. In my opinion, the manual is a little vague on a couple of points.

When determining where the striker goes, how to be sure the door frame is in the proper orientation? Since there is a fair amount of adjustment is available at the hinges, it seems to me it would be easy to get this wrong. Especially in relation to the bracket that goes behind the body and attaches to the frame that does not get attached to the frame until later.

Under the title Door latches/strikers! It says oem latches and oem fasteners. In the text is says supplied hex head screws. If it is a hex head, that makes it a bolt not a screw? When installed do the hex heads extend out of the latch into the door gap?

When installing the strikers, it says use the "original bolts and Subaru locknuts" If I remember correctly, the striker bolts threaded into the body without any nuts.

I'm just a little worried the strikers will be off some how. I placed the door skins on the frame and it appears it can be mounted to the frame one way or the other, give or take an inch or so depending on where the striker gets mounted. The striker is pictured about 1" from the edge of the body but it seems this measurement is arbitrarily arrived at by using the door frame and installed latch to determine its mounting location.

I may be worrying too much or making a mountain out of the mountain range that assembling this car has become.

Any tips that will ease my mind and make this process proceed smoothly with be greatly appreciated.

thanks as always,

Robert.

[Ajzride]

I've not gotten here yet, but bookmarked a post with some tips for when I do. Looking for entry #333

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?8691-GUNS-818SR-Build-Thread&p=171632&viewfull=1#post171632

[aquillen]

I think you are doing an 818C from your other posts. I just did a mess of hours on mine. I took a bunch of pix and some notes, but haven't decided whether to post any of it because it was so convoluted and I'm not sure I can say "this is how to do it".

But, in general and in hindsight:

Getting the windows to fit the frame as they go up and down and fully up, without a bunch of binding and sloppy fit to the supplied felted push on weatherstrip on the top and sides of the window to frame seems a critical item. I already had set my latches and strikers before ever investigating the window track paths. I would have fiddled with the windows before setting those latch positions if I could start over.

Here is what to juggle in my view, and I know there are several other discussions on how to mount all this. Install the latch on the door frame. Setup the skin on the frame as well. Popsicle stick the skin to the side sail. Verify you can get the door frame and skin to swing in and out of the sail by adjusting the hinges. Investigate how much clearance you'll have for the latch mount bolts. And yes if you use the hex head bolts it will get very tight (I read that FFR went to those for DOT strengh concerns). I may have not followed that change but won't say more. Use some strong magnets to temporarily hold the striker in place (put them behind the fiberglass sail. Figure out what that clearance is going to require. When you think the frame is hinged to a good place so far, mount the glass on the track and use a 6 or 12 volt battery to run it up and down. Play with the weatherstrip / window fitment and tracking to see how good you can get that up/down travel to behave.There is a lot of adjustment available on the window but eventually you'll find it only works well in a very limited choice of position. And you may find you want to adjust the in/out of the latch/striker so you can alter where the main door frame is when it is latched shut, just so you can get the window to track and seal better.

In my case the latch/striker is pretty deep in - i.e. closer to the inside of the car than what I thought I would have at first. I also gave up on the push on felted weatherstrip that goes on the hardtop window surround, too stiff, not likely to seal all around, and hard to push on. I found some bulb seal from Amazon that pushes on and is softer. But may tear up over time. I called FFR about the push on u-channel being too small, they said yah - grind/sand your body to be thinner. Even the stuff from Amazon was too tight but a little easier.

No magic fix in my notes here, but it is a lot of what I wrestled with over the last few weeks. I'm working on a full weather seal around the door and hope to post pix and more info, but may be 2-3 weeks yet before I'm ready to do that. For me this has been the most difficult item to work through on the car to date.

[sgarrett]

For me this has been the most difficult item to work through on the car to date.

Oh great....I've got something to look forward to! The wiring harness kicked my butt. Can't wait to see what the windows do to me.

[lance corsi]

Oh, the Windows.... I spent the better part of 6 weeks on each door, trying to get the windows to operate like they should. I’m pretty happy with the passenger side, but will prolly revisit the drivers side, as it will get most of the use. It needs to be near perfect.
The latches. I think the best one could do as a starting point would be to measure from the door framework to the chassis. Make this parallel if possible since your inner door panel will mate to that surface. Factory striker loops I found to be too short, with the added door skin thickness. I made my own, a bit (3/16) longer than stock in order to allow for a bit wider door gap, no rubbing. Other than that, it’s pretty straight forward. ?

[Clyde's Keeper]

Thank you for the input! After reading your thoughts and assessing the situation, I have come to the following conclusions. I think the one thing that is missing from the build manual but is mentioned above by "lance corsi", the door frame needs to be parallel to the body as a starting point. This is the area that will line up with the body bracket. Number two, I am not looking forward to dealing with the windows, I am working up to it though. Now with renewed enthusiasm, I will proceed. I will update in a few days or weeks, depending on how things go.

[Clyde's Keeper]

Well here we are, a mere few hours and I'm back at it. Making progress but still a little confused. I have installed one of the strikers and it works quite well. I am confused about the bracket that mounts inside the body behind the striker. It looks as if is would be attached to the frame with some carriage bolts but I am presently unable to locate at what point, if any, in the manual that this happens. Currently, the way I have the striker mounted, getting a bolt through the frame part of the bracket is not possible, the striker would need to be moved up a fair amount. The bracket is flush with the frame but it seems to me that the striker would be a lot stronger, say in an accident, if it were attached to the frame instead of just resting against it.
Am I missing something, or does this bracket just rest against the frame and after installing the striker there is no further work on or with this bracket?

Looking forward to the next installment of "How the door swings".

[STiPWRD]

Could you post a picture of the way your bracket is currently attached?

I recall when I mounted my striker bracket against the fiberglass that it was flat where the fiberglass was curved. I had to slightly bend the bracket to follow the contour of the fiberglass. Otherwise, the bracket attached easily to the frame with carriage bolts. Not sure if this is causing you to locate your bracket a certain way. A picture sure would help me figure out why the bolt can't go through your bracket or what you mean by the striker being on the frame vs. resting on it.

[sgarrett]

Check out this thread.....

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?34471-Do-this-FIRST!

[Clyde's Keeper]

In regards to the above mentioned post, Do this first. The bracket pictured is the one I am confused about. Where in the manual does it mention attaching the upper portion to the frame with the carriage bolts? I have looked a number of times but can not find any further mention of these brackets once the striker is mounted to it.

[aquillen]

I have manuals version Q and T, both show the bracket with nuts on the back holding the strikers through the fiberglass onto the bracket, but omit the bolts for the bracket to the body frame. I just dug through the supplied carriage bolts for correct head size to fit the slots in the frame and bracket and put them on. Manual skips detailing that completely.

[sgarrett]

Ditto to what Art said.

[Gheltz]

In regards to the above mentioned post, Do this first. The bracket pictured is the one I am confused about. Where in the manual does it mention attaching the upper portion to the frame with the carriage bolts? I have looked a number of times but can not find any further mention of these brackets once the striker is mounted to it.

What did you end up using to attach the striker to the body/bracket? It does say OEM hardware and locknuts...

[redbudrr]

OEM hardware are tapered bolts that were originally used on the Suby.

[Ajzride]

I tossed the OEM hardware away and use 3/16 bolts. It drives me nuts to have a mix of metric and standard fasteners on the car. For me, everything on the motor has to be metric, but pretty much everything else I've swapped out for AES nuts and bolts.

[Newkitguy]

as far as the doors go i wish i wouldn't have cut my doors or put my windows in (818C) no matter what they don't seal that well and allow wind noise no matter what. All and all the headache to reward just doesn't match.