How to Repair the Door on a Buick Century

General Motors presented the Buick Century to the American automotive consumer in 1936. The Century was debuted as a full-size performance vehicle. The Century was manufactured continuously through 2005, except for a 12-year period from 1942 through 1954. In 1973, the Century was redesigned as a mid-sized sedan. Buick has remained one of G.M.'s top revenue-producing lines. The majority of door repairs on a Century revolve around adjusting the alignment of the door in the vehicle's door jamb. This is usually due to normal wear and tear on the vehicle. The door alignment can be adjusted with common tools and basic automotive repair knowledge.

Instructions

1

Disconnect the negative battery cable from the vehicle's battery.

2

Open the door that needs repaired or adjusted.

3

Locate the upper and lower hinges on the door being serviced.

4

Place a mark with a grease pencil on the upper and lower door hinges where the vehicle door meets the hinge. This will mark the starting adjustment position of the door.

5

Locate the door-lock striker pin on the vehicle's door jamb. The striker pin can be found halfway up on the non-hinged door jamb. Remove the striker pin using a socket wrench and socket. Set the striker pin aside. Removing the striker pin allows the door to swing free and makes adjusting the door easier.

6

Close the vehicle door and check the inner, outer, upper and lower alignment with the door jamb's and vehicle's body panels. Locate and mark any misalignment with a grease pencil.

7

Open the vehicle door.

8

Place a floor jack under the bottom edge of the door. Raise the floor jack until the weight of the door is supported by the jack.

9

Loosen the three "hinge-to-door" retaining bolts on the upper and lower hinges using an open-end wrench.

10

Move the vehicle door up or down, backward or forward to correct the door alignment.

11

Tighten the "hinge-to-door" bolts using an open-end wrench.

12

Close the door to check the door alignment. Repeat the above steps to further correct any alignment problems.

13

Torque the "hinge-to-door" bolts to the manufacture's recommended torque level using a torque wrench.

14

Install the door-lock striker pin on the vehicle's door jamb using a socket wrench and socket. Make sure the striker pin is evenly seated on the door jamb.

15

Remove the floor jack from under the door assembly. Shut the vehicle's door and make sure the door is latching on the striker pin.

16

Connect the negative battery cable to the vehicle's battery.