on my camaro the weather stripping is dry rotted all to hell. coming off in some places and just plain crushed in others. could this be the reasson that my doors dont latch unless i slam them. there is no play in the hinges and the doors seem to line up pretty good. some times i shut the door and it closes but does not latch and some times i have to re-open and then shut the door a little harder. any information on the subject and how to fix it will be appreciated.

 

Probably doesnt help matters any. Weatherstripping aside, Are you 100% positive the hinges are in good shape? Grab onto the lower body side end and lift the door. Any hinge movement or play? If not, you can have the doors aligned at a good body shop or purchase the tool to do the job yourself. Otherwise, Replacing the weather stripping isnt all too hard, just takes time once you have the product.

 

yes i did check the hinges for play. there was none. and from what i understand the drivers side is more likely to have hinge failure and in my case both doors are pretty equal to shut. i will try to lube the linkage next time i work on the car too. maybe that will help.