VCP Door mounting Tricks

[Wayne Presley]

Here's how I mount the doors after mounting sidepods, rear panel, and engine cover.
I mount the striker support up against he body, snug the bolts in the middle of the slots. Hold a bright light behind the bracket so you can see through the fiberglass and drill the holes in the middle of the slots.

you can see the print through in this pic.


I mount the latches directly to the frame and countersink the screws. Latch the door frame to the striker and mount the hinges. Adjust the height of the front of the door frame to .250" above the sidepod, then tighten all hinge bolts. The door frame should now swing open and closed easily.
You can see 2 out of the 3 bolts holding the latch on in this pic.


Trim lower front corner off the door skin so the door can swing without the skin hitting the sidepod.


Now put a piece of masking tape along the edge of the door skin where the striker will go. Cut strips of regular cardboard and lay in the gap between the door and sidepod.
Door open, I use strips from the bottom of striker to the front of door (only one piece shown)

Door closed


Slide door skin into opening and tap on skin to mark on the masking tape where the door needs to be slotted for striker. Measure and mark door skin to allow for the complete striker to clear the skin. See pic 3 above.

Drill two 3/16" holes in the door frame as shown by the two 10-32 screws in the below pic.


Slide door skin back in on the cardboard shims, make the back of the door flush with the sidepods and drill top hole only. Install countersunk 10-32 screw in the top hole and tighten snug. Close door and recheck that the door skin is still flush with side pods and drill lower hole. Install countersunk 10-32 screw in the bottom hole and tighten snug.

On the top front of the door skin, drill the hole for the mirror mount so that edge of the skin overhangs the door frame by 3/16" and install a 10/32 screw. You will be using a different screw for final mounting, the 10-32 is to use until final mounting. Adjust front lower edge to the desired position and mark the lower frame to skin. Unbolt the 3/8" bolts and remove door leaving the hinges in place. Drill the lower hole in the skin and install the countersunk 10-32 screw, you will want a countersink due to the very limited clearance.

Install front door aluminum, mark and slot aluminum for 3/8" door bolts, install bulb seal on aluminum and final mount it to the door frame with rivets.

Install complete door back on the car with cardboard shims in place, the 3/8" bolts. Remove cardboard and fine tune hinges for smooth opening if necessary.

[07FIREBLADE]

Very good tips. Really wish this was posted Saturday morning would of saved so much time and headaches. I was wondering what those brackets I had left over were for. Just happened to stumble upon them the other day after I got my powder coated parts back. About how much would you say should you trim from the front edge?

[Wayne Presley]

Maybe 3/4" from the point of the door. See the above pic #4

[07FIREBLADE]

Did you remove the locking mechanism in your car or just in the photo? My door is stuck shut and I can't get it to release.

[wallace18]

Did you remove the locking mechanism in your car or just in the photo? My door is stuck shut and I can't get it to release.

I made the locking mechanism inop. on both my doors. What good would it be on a roadster anyway IMO.

[Wayne Presley]

There are two locks on the rear door latches, regular locks and the child lock. Make sure both are unlocked.

[GUNS]

Thanks for posting this Wayne, it saved me a ton of time and mistakes. Had I followed the manual it would not have been correct. Their method of mounting the striker is not correct, your's ensures it lines up with the underbody bracket that mounts to the chassis. Once again, building this car would not be possible without the help of the community.

[07FIREBLADE]

Yes very true. Thanks Wayne it help a bunch when I did my passenger door today. The manual sucks with trying to explain on how mount the doors. Do you happen to have a fender headlight how to. That's my next hurtle to conquer and it's not going to well.

[CanadianYank]

Wyane, Excellent write up thank you. Booked marked for build!

Frank

[Wayne Presley]

Final door fitting tips:
I used the FFR supplied aluminum piece to mark the cutout for the door release handle. Then I mount the panel to the door using 10-32 speed nuts and countersunk flat top phillips screws.





I build a raised plate to mount the door handle to on the door frame and with the handle placed in its cutout, I fully install the panel. I screw the handle to the plate and then remove the panel.

[Wayne Presley]

Final door fitting tips:
I used the FFR supplied aluminum piece to mark the cutout for the door release handle. Then I mount the panel to the door using 10-32 speed nuts and countersunk flat top phillips screws.





I remove the claws on the back of the handle with a belt sander
Before

After

[Wayne Presley]

I build a raised plate to mount the door handle to on the door frame. It is about .800" taller than the frame. I place the handle in the door panel and fully mount the panel. I screw the handle onto the plate and remove the panel.


While you are in there, safety wire the lock unlocked.



Put the release rod in the handle and it should look like this



Put gentle Z bends in the rod to make the rod the right length



reinstall the door panel and snap on handle trim ring


And you're done

[wallace18]

Great tip!

[Wayne Presley]

On the last car, I also made adjustable door stops to customize just how far the door opens.

Drill the hinge from the back side and drill and tap it for a 10/32 socket head bolt. Thread the bolt in and adjust the swing of the door by screwing the bolt in or out. When you have it where you want, open the door and put a lock nut on the other side.

[Hindsight]

On the last car

Ok Wayne.... how many are you up to now??

[Wayne Presley]

Four

[Buzz Skyline]

I used the FFR supplied aluminum piece to mark the cutout for the door release handle.

Is that aluminum piece just for finding the right place to cut for the releases? Or is it supposed to be installed on the door. The manual isn't clear about that. If it is supposed to be mounted, is it only decorative? Or does it serve a purpose?

-Buzz

[Wayne Presley]

You can leave it off, cover with a contrasting color/texture material, or paint/powdercoat it.

[Buzz Skyline]

Does anyone know the part number and formal description for the FFR supplied aluminum piece with the door release cutout in it?

I don't seem to have it, and I can't find anything missing on my inventory list that appears to correspond to it either.

[gwarden]

I counter sunk the holes to mount my latch's but the Subaru screws are too short.
any one else have this problem

[07FIREBLADE]

I just replaced the Subaru bolts with some stainless ones I found at the store. Countersunk them too everything worked out perfectly.

[Wayne Presley]

I use longer bolts on them also

[Mechie3]

I replaced mine as well, but used black oxide as they're stronger than stainless and I want to make sure that door has every chance it can to remain in place in the event of an accident.

[gwarden]

I must be over complicating this but what hardware did you use to mount the brackets that hold the striker.
I ended up using the aluminum pieces as shims between the door frame and the latch on the inside of the door frame otherwise the latch would not mount flush.

[freds]

I must be over complicating this but what hardware did you use to mount the brackets that hold the striker.
I ended up using the aluminum pieces as shims between the door frame and the latch on the inside of the door frame otherwise the latch would not mount flush.

This is fairly common check http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showt...-won-t-bolt-up

The strong medicine I refer to in that thread involved notching, heating with an oxy acetylene torch, bending and re welding the notch for strength.

cheers

fred

[Wayne Presley]

I used longer flat headed screws instead of the oval headed for slightly more clearance and tighter door gaps.

[gwarden]

This is fairly common check http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showt...-won-t-bolt-up

The strong medicine I refer to in that thread involved notching, heating with an oxy acetylene torch, bending and re welding the notch for strength.

cheers

fred

Ok that post told me that I might want to use carriage bolts but what size? were they supplied with the kit?

[gwarden]

I used longer flat headed screws instead of the oval headed for slightly more clearance and tighter door gaps.

what did you use to mount the bracket to the main frame?

[Wayne Presley]

Bracket is mounted to the frame with the FFR supplied carriage bolts

[gwarden]

thanks wayne I sure didn't find that in the manual

[Buzz Skyline]

This is one of my favorite mods, Wayne. Thanks for posting it. It's simple and effective and much more flexible than going with the hinge stops that come with the kit.

(I used a slightly heavier M6-1.0 bolt, just because I had the right tap and drill handy.)

On the last car, I also made adjustable door stops to customize just how far the door opens.

Drill the hinge from the back side and drill and tap it for a 10/32 socket head bolt. Thread the bolt in and adjust the swing of the door by screwing the bolt in or out. When you have it where you want, open the door and put a lock nut on the other side.

[craigfree]

Here's how I mount the doors after mounting sidepods, rear panel, and engine cover.
I mount the striker support up against he body, snug the bolts in the middle of the slots. Hold a bright light behind the bracket so you can see through the fiberglass and drill the holes in the middle of the slots.

you can see the print through in this pic.

Does anyone have a picture of these striker supports? I'm assuming they are installed in the side skirt?

Thanks,
Cf

[Wayne Presley]

Does anyone have a picture of these striker supports? I'm assuming they are installed in the side skirt?

Thanks,
Cf

they are, supports bolt to the frame in the slots behind the door and below the engine cover

[ben1272]

Mine are on the car, so sorry for lousy exposure down in the hole. They are heavy steel brackets.

Also, you can see in one photo that I have rubber seal where the engine hatch sits. I have not seen where anyone recommends having this in place and not sure that I am going to keep it, but it needs to be there when fitting the doors as it holds the hatch higher than it would be otherwise.

I hope to keep the seal as I dont like the idea of the hatch rubbing against the side sails.

-Ben

IMG_8554.JPG IMG_8553.JPG

[Jim Haar]

With the latch mounted to the door frame and the striker mounted
the support is not long enough to reach the striker when bolted
to the frame.
Anyone else have this problem ?

[Harley818]

Hi Jim,
I had to elongate the slotted holes to get the right placement. It was a pain, but now fits right.
Otherwise I was having a problem where the bracket was forcing the fiberglass behind the striker to be oriented at the wrong angle.
You want the support behind the striker not to stress the fiberglass but just provide solid backing for the striker.

[iblackwe]

With the latch mounted to the door frame and the striker mounted
the support is not long enough to reach the striker when bolted
to the frame.
Anyone else have this problem ?

Hi Jim, I also had this problem and ended up putting an aluminum spacer behind the striker just to extend it slightly. Others have solved this problem with having less than a paint stick thick gap around the doors which thus places the latch close enough to the striker. I am currently looking for a different striker from another vehicle with a longer striker pin. I will keep you updated with what I find.