Re: Stewart's 1955 Packard 400

Posted by HH56 On 2023/6/25 20:31:12

Have you verified the nut plate the bolts thread into is free floating? Don't remember how much the plate can move but it is captured in a box like affair that lets it move in 4 directions. The sheet metal actually attached to the door structure has holes that are larger than the bolts so if the plate can move there should be some adjustment. Once the bolts are tightened the hinge leaf and plate are compressed so tightly the door metal cannot move between them.

After doors were factory aligned, particularly on the heavy long doors used on hardtop and convertible models, a thru hole was often drilled so the hinge and plate were captured in the proper position relative to the door metal by a roll pin or small diameter screw that went thru all pieces including the box. If that pin or screw was broken when the door was removed but enough is remaining unseen, the nut plate could be fixed and not be able to move. If that is the case it could be the cause of the issue.

On early 22nd series convertibles where door sag problems developed they actually tack welded to the edge opening to keep the hinges from moving and doors aligned. I doubt anything like that was done on a 55 since it has the larger bolt heavier hinges designed after that issue first came about. If there is no evidence of a pin and the plate won't move, since they did have so many body build and quality issues in 55 nothing can be ruled out -- either done by the factory or a harried dealer.