Packard Forum Index » General

After frame off restoration of 1952 Packard convertible the passenger door has a problem It wants to open while you are driving. The gap between the latch and the body is to great. What did I do wrong and how can I correct it?

G'day Geojr,
Although I see you've been a PackardInfo member for some time your first post, so

Regarding your problem I really can't help but I'm sure someone will be along soon to offer advice.

And, I invite you to include your '52 Convertible Coupe in the Packard Owner's Registry.

If the latch toothed wheel is in good condition and nothing is broken or worn in the latch so the wheel is releasing it sounds like you may need to add some shims between the striker plate and the body. If I remember they came in two thicknesses and were about 1/16 and 1/8 inch (1.5 and 3mm) thick. You used whatever combination of thick and thin needed to get the striker and latch to a proper distance of the toothed wheel roughly centered in the striker.

Nothing special about them -- just flat metal. New ones are still available from the vendors or since you are in another country you can make something that will work out of steel or aluminum. If you make them be sure to finish off the edge the same shape as the striker so the shims are not too noticeable.

Here is what they look like if you have anything left over or laying around that you didn't know where went.ebay.com/itm/1951-56-Packard-Door-Striker-Plate-Shim-425757-NOS-/321307579279

Two concerns here:

When you say "frame off" does that mean the body was removed?

And when you say "gap" does that mean the gap on the driver's side is less than the passenger side?

If the gaps are equal on both sides I would go with the striker shim idea, but if the gap is higher at the top then at the bottom that indicates the rear of the body is sagging and needs to be shimmed.

I have seen cases where bodies were set directly on the frame and the mounting pads discarded. That is a favorites of the junk rodders because they think it looks cool. But those cars are junk after they get done chopping them up.

Packard convertibles do flex a lot. I knew a guy, Ken Hines, who used a seat belt across the doors. His car was original. If you put them on a lift you may find the doors won't open.

Thanks for the answer. I think I will order a few shims and see if that solves my problem.

Also check your rearmost body mounts in the trunk. Up here in the salt belt, those mounting locations in the trunk floor pan would rust away and let the back half of the body sag. My Caribbean was an original Detroit car, meaning it spent its entire pre-collector life driving in winter salt. The rear body mounts are long gone and need to be replaced -- the door gap is now wider at the top versus the bottom of the door opening. The result is that the passenger's door sometimes wants to continue in its own direction instead of staying with the rest of the car.