its time to rebuild the door hinges on my 86. how big of a PITA is this job?i will be doing it by my self,unfortunately. any tips or tricks reccomended? also does anyone know where to buy the spring installation tool?

 

some say its a PITA, some say its not so bad
its going to depend on how you view working on cars

the job is much easier if you build a support frame that will hold the door, and mount it on a jack to hold the weight of the door and place it where you need it

here is the tool, and its from one of our trusted vendors!

http://www.top-downsolutions.com/too...or-spring-tool

 

Did a set on an 85 iroc a couple months ago..the spring compressor tool you can pick up at harbor freight for $4..

 

Harbor Freight has one for pretty cheap. Can't remember what I paid for mine, but it was less than $10 I'm pretty sure. The hardest part about hinges for my 4th gen Camaro was getting the pin out. I don't have air tools so I had a buddy heat it, put a vice grips on it and use an air chisel to pop it out. It can be tough to get it out with regular tools. Of course, my 4th gen hinges were bolted in on both sides, which was both a blessing and curse. They were easy to get out, but it made for more possible adjustments when putting them back in. So don't forget to mark where they were before you take them out!

 

Check out this website for some good info on 3rd gen f-body hinge repair:

http://www.andyz28.com/3rdGen/installation.html

 

I just did them on my 88 ta. Took the doors off the car, ground off the upper hinge bolts and installed new, installed lower hinge bolt, put back on car. Used a jack, a 10mm gear wrench box a 15mm socket for bolts. had to have someone position door while I installed the top rear bolt, otherwise alone.

 

To support the door (when the hinge is removed) an old style step ladder is idea to put over the door then put a strap or rope around the door to suspend it from the step ladder. Pad the door with a cloth or something so it does not chaffe the paint.

 

Interesting idea. Will have to look into that......

 

I think the worst part of the job is grinding the rivits out of the top hinge. But then I only had a little multi tool thing that was wanting to burn out. The ladder idea makes it a lot easier tho. Using a jack is probably ok but at least if its securely suspended from the step ladder it cant fall. It could fall off of a jack and be damaged.

 

Make sure you mark the current hinge locations for re-installation.

 

I parked my car under a beam that runs the length of my garage. Then strung the door up with ratchet straps (under the door and over the beam). Then put a jack with a block of wood and a towel under the door. The straps were pretty much just to keep the door from falling off the floor jack. I only moved the door a few inches away from the car to work on the hinges..then slowly moved it back into place when I was done. Would have been easier with a door support frame or a helper...but I made due with what I had available.

 

it is easier to grind off the heads of the old upper pin if you remove the large triangular shaped chunk of rubber that is at the top of the door weatherstrip. There is one hidden screw that attaches it to the door. To remove the screw you have to remove the inner door trim panel. The "lazy" way would be to just break off the plastic tab from that triangular shaped piece, then reglue it in place afterward. I've never done it this way, nor do I recommend it. Removing the inner door trim panel is a bit of a PITA until you learn the tricks to it.

Once you have all the attachments free (door handle door lock, ect. Then pop all the plastic christmas tree fasteners free from the perimiter. Now slightly pull the panel out from the door while lifting it, then shove the door trim panel to the front or back of the door. This will release the top clips from their attachments. It is much easier to install than remove.

I sell the door hinrge repair parts and the tools that make the job easier on my web site.

Good luck.

Lon

 

I used the transmission hoist to do the job.



Masking tape to protect the body from scratches.



Alignment marks, like already pointed out.
A 13mm ratchet wrench made the job a lot easier.

 

With my new oscillating cutting tool it took no longer than 2 minutes for each pin, without removing any weatherstripping. The down side is I needed 3 blades, each blade was only good enough to cut 1 and a half pin.





For the door hinge roller pin
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/post...88-post30.html

Write ups
http://www.superchevy.com/how-to/060...-chevy-camaro/
http://andyz28.com/3rdGen/installation.html

Parts
http://www.top-downsolutions.com/Bod...and-roller-kit
http://www.top-downsolutions.com/Bod...ir-kit-(deluxe)

 

[QUOTE=thomas1976;5803105]With my new oscillating cutting tool it took no longer than 2 minutes for each pin, without removing any weatherstripping. The down side is I needed 3 blades, each blade was only good enough to cut 1 and a half pin.

Hello,
Im about to do this repair, and i have one of these tools, a Dremel MM40.
Would it be possible to cut the pins without removing the door? The weatherstrip is not the best, so some damage to it is not a big concern.
I have the other kind of machine too, for the cutting discs, but this seems more efficient...

 

I don't think so, but I would have to look at it again, I remember it being a tight spot, particularly the lower one.

 

Hi,
Thanks. I you could I would be very grateful. My car is 40 miles)70km) away from here and I would like to be prepared and bring all the right tools.
I read up on this from several posts here, but would prefer not to remove it completely. The lower pin has to be cut too?

regards,
Hasse

 

There is no space to work, door has to come off.

The pin on the bottom hinge is simple to remove, though the door has to come off for that one too.



Pic of the lower pin of the top hinge

 

I need to do my doors soon

 

Thanks Thomas, for taking the time.
The part I dislike the most is actually removing the inner panels...
Those plastic clips and things are so prone to braking and the door panel too.
But best do do it properly.

regards,
Hasse

 

I am sorry for bumping this old thread.
I bought a door hinge and bushing kit from Hawk Motorsport hawkmotorsports.com/bushing-pin-camaro-firebird-82-92-greaseable-upper-door-hinge-bushing-and-lower-pin-kit/
They listed this for a tutorial http://andyz28.com/3rdGen/installation.html
and the link is broken or the site is gone
Any help would be appreciated.
Biggest question is do I have to remove the fender?

 

The Grease-able pins are made by (or exact copies of) http://www.top-downsolutions.com/doo...)?search=hinge reach out to him, the owner's name is Lon.

Or call Hawks they sold it make them support it.

FWIW I did mine with my fenders off the car... it is super easy to do just takes time cutting and punching out the old pins.

 

 

Fenders on, if you have a buddy it's a big help, did mine myself almost exactly like Tuned Performance...

 

The only reason I did mine fenders off was I had them off for painting the engine bay. Otherwise I would not pull fenders just to do the pins.


One note I bent one of the light switches in the door jam, so if you do it fenders off pull those switches first.

 

A little trick I came up with was to cut a slot in the end of the lower front bolt. The one that’s hard to get to with fender on. I used a 1/4 socket and stubby ratchet to unbolt it. When you put it back in you can simply push the bolt into the hole with your finger and use an electricians screwdriver to wind it in from the inside until you need to tighten it with a socket.