GTS door alignment?

[tpiini]

Hey All,

Newbie here with my first question. I'm looking at a red '98 GTS on the left coast. Both the black (sail panels?) to the rear of the door-windows tilt rearward so that when the doors are closed they actually touch the door frames. The doors themselves are perfectly aligned. Is there an adjustment for these panels or should I be wary that someone has been using them to lever themselves in and out of the car and has caused irrepairable damage? Thanks for any replies, tom

 

[JimDavis MT 97GTS 650R]

A GTS door is suspended by a single hinge that has a up and down, in and out, and forward and aft adjustment. If you have doubts about the integrity of the doors or hinges, I would suggest you visit a body shop for a accurate assessment of the problem. A good body shop should be able to adjust your doors to close properly if there is no damage.

PS: Welcome to the Viper Board!

 

[tpiini]

Hey Jim,
Thanks for the quick response. The "problem" with this car, however, isn't in the door alignment. That's the weird thing. The door gaps are perfect all the way around. It's only those black panels on the top/back of the doors that seem to be out of alignment. My concern is whether they are "adjustable" or if they are simply bent out of whack.

 

[MES]

I'm not sure if you just think they are out of whack, or if they really are out of whack. The black panels seem rather flimsy to me so I'm sure they could be bent, but the odd thing is why are BOTH sides not aligned and yet the doors are? I think you may just be seeing things, so I snapped a pic of my GTS so you can compare. If you want some more angles let me know and I'll e-mail them to you.

You must be registered for see images

 

[tpiini]

The passenger side has actually rubbed through the paint in one place. I have a friend with a '97 and his are dead-straight. The panels on this '98 are definitely not in alignment with the door or the frame.

 

[GTS Dean]

Maybe when they put the new roof panel on the car, they didn't get it aligned quite right....


Be sure and check the service/insurance history on the car. You never know...

 

[David Jenkins]

The panel that is behind the outer door handle is called an outer stanchion cover. The inner and outer covers are adjustable to clear the body.dj

 

[tpiini]

Thanks Jes & David. I figured that the panel could be adjusted, but wasn't sure.