Re: Door removal on 1949 Packard.

Posted by HH56 On 2012/12/7 10:26:58

Perhaps others can say if it is possible to remove the hinge base proper from the body side on a 22-23 series and leave the door side alone. If it is, that will simplify later alignment tremendously. I know on some cars it could be done although the screws are in extremely tight. Other cars, you couldn't access one of the screws with door on. If you can remove from body side, then removal of the cowl panel and liberal use of penetrating oil on the exposed threads beforehand would be a good idea. A proper size Phillips screwdriver or even an impact screwdriver is a must.

If it has to come off from the door side, a couple of things that might help. Before removing any bolts, scribe around the hinge attachment bars inside the doors to mark their locations on the plates. Also, when removing the bolts take extreme care to find and label any shims that might have been placed between the door and the hinge bars. There may be none but it is possible something was placed between those two surfaces and will stick -- only to fall out and then no idea where it goes.

Which ever side you choose for removal, support the bottom of the door while it is open so nothing starts to move or sag when the bolts are loosened. The top will also want to swing various directions so a helper would be nice to prevent unwanted movement. The doors are HEAVY and once loose, not very co-operative.