TheExaminer

One of those head scratchers on a 92 Formula I just bought. Looks like someone has removed the rear hatch and not re-attached it properly. Could be when they put the tint on, I don't know. The car has never been wrecked. I see there are four nuts on the outer hinge, and four inside under a plastic panel behind the head rest. I've loosened them all by turn, but can't seem to make any adjustments. Could be its a 2-3 man job because the hatch is very heavy and I tried to do it myself. The electric trunk still works fine in spite of it. But as you can see, the passenger side is much worse, and I think the gap between the roof/sail and the hatch glass is a bit wider than it should be. Any tips?

83Z28/L69

You are going to need a 6 pack, a pizza and a buddy that will work for the first 2. It makes thing so much easier, but if you don't have the first 3, get you a strong stick that wiil hold the hatch all the way open, loosen the bolts, and adjust little bits at a time, Make sure the stick is secure when you loosen the hatch bolts.You really don't want it falling. Another tip, lay a heavy towel or old sweatshirt over the latch assembly , just incase it falls, it has a soft landing.

TheExaminer

Haha, yeah thats what I was afraid of. But is it necessary to loosen both the outer and inner nuts all together, or can you leave the outer nuts tight while you work on the inner? Or vice versa?

83Z28/L69

Its been awhile, but IIRC the in and out adjustment is in the body side of the hinges. Those are only ones you loosen.

Joe Tag

iTrader: (4)

Usually there isn't enough adjustment to get it right with just the body to hatch bolts. The hatch deck over time moves in relation to the glass from the pressure of the support struts. Read this thread.
https://www.thirdgen.org/hatchalign

83Z28/L69

Joe, Thank you for that link. That is info I did not have. I file that for future use.

Joe Tag

iTrader: (4)

No problem. I see people that have drilled out the adjustment holes on the body before. It may fix the rear of the hatch, but the front gets thrown off and too close to the body. That article is the right way to fix it. More work, but it usually is to do things right.

TheExaminer

All that article did was confuse me even more. I guess I need to have my car in front of me and taken apart so I can actually see what he's talking about for it to make more sense. I will have to give the hinges a closer look this weekend.

TheExaminer

Although, I will say that it struck me as a little odd when I got the car that the support struts still worked so well. The car similar to this that I had 15 years ago I had to replace the rear hatch struts on, and the car was only 5-6 years old at the time. Could be they've been recently replaced and actually caused some of this. Who knows.

Joe Tag

iTrader: (4)

Ok, look at your hatch pics and think about it. On one side it is about 1/4'' too far back, on the other it's closer to 1/2''. All the rest of the hatch is still in alignment isn't it? If you try to take that adjustment out through the hinges, the glass will be off. In the other repair, the glass stays where it is (and belongs). You remove the deck part from the hatch and align it to the body resealing it to the glass. The body side of the hinge mount has 2 holes on each side, one square, one not much larger than the stud on the hinge. There is very little if any adjustment there.

TheExaminer

The glass itself is square with the sail at the top, I did notice that, and I also noticed there is very little movement allowed by the hinge nuts. I didn't know the rear deck could be moved separately from the glass in the way he's describing. What confused me was when he said to remove the 13mm nuts connecting the glass and hatch. Now I see he's not talking about the upper connection at the hinge, but the connection at the rear deck. Ive already been working in there because the shipping company that trucked the car here cracked the rear spoiler (idiots) and I had to take it off to get estimates on repair. I'll probably fix the crack myself, have a body shop paint it and pocket the difference. But anyway, yeah, I saw those four bolts that attach the rear deck to the glass when I was in there. I think I get it now. Thanks for all your help.

Joe Tag

iTrader: (4)

Just glad you could understand. So many people have a hard time trying to wrap their head around what the real issue is and insist on doing it through the hinges. This is probably better to do in the summer months on a hot day. The butyl used to seal it will be softer and easier to break the seal on. Also, use a combination of butyl tape and urethane windshield adhesive. The butyl gives resistance when tightening down the deck, but the urethane will not soften in the heat like butyl does and will less likely allow the same problem to happen again.

TheExaminer

I also noticed there was a little rust on the inner side of the rear deck panel, and I wondered how in the world it got there. Now I know. The panel has slipped most likely because part of the adhesive seal is already broken.