<VV> A reason to worry?

[Ken Pepke]

Lack of lubrication is the most like possibility … wear, not so much.  

The chances of the right door latch having the same amount of wear is most unlikely and you did say 'It can occur to either door about equally.'  

You also said 'When I slam it shut, it seems OK for the Moment.'  Does that mean it stays latched until after the next time to door is opened or does it mean it is likely to happen again before the door is operated?

Cornering the vehicle imparts a longitudinal torsion load which would be difficult to duplicate on your garage floor.  It does not usually create the 'pinching' condition on a vehicle with a 'B' pillar as discussed earlier.  It is less than likely that it would even partially unlatch the door.  It is more likely that the door latches would hold a severely distressed car together.

Ken P
Wyandotte, MI
65 Monza 110hp 4 speed 2 door
Worry looks around; Sorry looks back, Faith looks up.

*******************************

On Jan 3, 2013, at 2:35 PM, Chuck McKinley wrote:

> OK, I tried this test, jacking up both the front and back ends of the car (one at a time), and didn't see any pinch at all anywhere around the door frame. I might add that the pawl plates (not sure that's really what they're called) on the doors that enage the latching mechanism are pretty worn, to the point of being deformed, and it might be that they're simply not getting properly engaged unless I slam the door. I might try lubing them a little (once every 20 years, whether they need it or not!) and see if that makes any difference.
> 
> Cheers,
> Chuck
> 
> PS Mark, as far as replacing the floor panels properly, as you suggest, great idea, but I've decided I'm not spending any more serious money on this car. It's either going to be driven as is until it rots, or retired and parted out if I decide it's not safe to put on the road. I've got five cars and a motorcycle, so one less car won't make any significant difference to my mobility. 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>    ________________________________
>    From: Chuck McKinley <cmckinley313 at verizon.net>
>    To: virtualvairs at corvair.org
>    Sent: Thu, January 3, 2013 11:19:16 AM
>    Subject: <VV> A reason to worry?
> 
> 
>    Every so often while I'm driving my '63 Monza 900 coupe, I find that one of the
>    doors has popped slightly open (~1/2 inch). It can occur to either door about
>    equally. When I slam them shut, it seems to be OK for the moment. This just
>    happened to my driver-side door when I made a sharp right turn at walking speed
>    in a parking lot. I'm wondering if that's symptomatic of a dangerous level of
>    frame flex. Is there a simple test I can make to decide whether this is a
>    terminal condition such that I should finally retire at least the body of the
>    car?
>    I can add that the floor pan is full of holes of various sizes and is patched
>    several places with sheet metal pop-riveted through the original floor metal -
>    not welded anywhere.
>    I just did a simple-minded trick of opening the door, standing on the rocker
>    panel and basically jumping up and down several times. I did this on both sides
>    of the car and nothing broke, for whatever that's worth. I weigh about 180 so
>    it's probably not a very good stress test.
>    Advice is welcome, as always.
> 
>    Chuck McKinley
>    '63 Monza 900 80 hp  3-speed
>     _______________________________________________