WrenchMonkey

It's a dealer part, and I don't know if they'll sell it over-the-counter, or only install it as part of the TSB. Either way, it'll cost ten times as much and be half as strong as my way... :thumbsup: Robert

:D :D :D :thumbsup: Robert

That sounds like an awful lot of work, and I don't think I really understand the point. Not to toot my own horn, but the simple 1/4" plate really did work well, super strong and super easy. But hey, good luck with it, and take pictures to show us what you do! Robert

Everything he just said, except I wasn't smart enough to use a magnet. :dunce: That would make it a lot easier, because you will have the plate in and out about a hundred times, to make sure everything lines up. Okay, three or four times, whatever. :D It seems like a lot when you're stretching your stubby little fingers in there to try to maneuver the plate where it needs to be. A simple magnet, or really two of them, would make it a snap. Good thinking! :cheers: Robert

Yep, exactly like that. Those pics could've been taken of my rig. There ya go...He could start making them up as kits and selling them with complete install instructions :idea: We've discussed it: http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=987295 But really, it's easy enough that about anybody could do it themselves. Just a drill, a tap, and a scrap of 2x1/4" plate. So get to it! :D Robert

:waving: :waving: :waving: :cheers: Robert

Once you get the fender and the door back on, it's invisible. Robert

Overall, I'm thrilled with the results. I was hoping just to get the stupid door back on. But the new mount lifts it back up where it should have been all along, and it opens and closes better than it has in years. I was careful to put the hinge right back where it was originally, and like I said, it does work well. If I was to do it again, though, I'd move the hinge forward (toward the front of the jeep) about a quarter inch. That way I could shim the door-side mount to exactly where I wanted it, and even adjust it over time if it started to sag again. All told, it took me about an hour and a half (not counting the time to pull off the fender), and since I picked the plate out of the scrap at work, I was only out seven 3/8" bolts. (Even buying a foot of the flatstock would only be $4 at OnlineMetals.com.) Hope it helps somebody! Robert

First, I cut out the ruined sheet metal where the hinge broke off. That left about a 2-1/2x3" opening. Then I could see that there's enough space behind that panel for a new, stronger mounting plate. So if I needed to mount the hinge like so (the yellow), I figured I'd need a plate shaped something like the blue outline. So I drilled (4) 3/8" mounting holes (red). Then I cut my new mounting plate. I used about 8" of 2x1/4" flat stock. If you were careful and spaced your holes closer, you could get away with less, maybe 6", but I tend towards overkill. I had to notch the bottom corner to clear a bulge in the unibody, then I drilled and tapped four holes to match the ones I drilled in the jeep body. I ground the old welds off of the hinge, drilled a couple more 3/8" holes to bolt it to the plate, then (after test fitting everything) I drilled and tapped the plate to match. Then I shot it all black. It took a little wiggling to get it into position, but the plate bolted in nice and solid. Then I bolted the hinge to it: And finally rehung the door:

(Copied from my writeup over in NAXJA) Like many XJs (especially the two-doors) my driver's door has sagged badly for years. Last week, the damn thing finally fell off in the driveway. That's how I know it's time to fix something. For those that don't know, the problem stems from AMC's lame-brained idea of welding the hinge to the sheet metal unibody (bad enough) and then neglecting to weld the rear edge (even worse.) As those welds start to crack, the hinge separates from the body, and the door sags. Eventually, the hinge can break all the way off, and you're done. I'm a pretty mediocre welder. I can stick plate to plate pretty well, and sheet to sheet pretty badly. But sticking the ~3/8" hinge back onto the cracked, rusty sheet metal just wasn't going to happen for me. I considered paying a friend to do it, but he was busy and I was broke. So I came up with this...

Thanks, guys, glad it worked for you! Not that it matters, but it's WrenchMonkey, as in: "A half-trained, half-bright, half-wit simian, whose only purpose is to rotate bolts." :D Or Robert to my friends... Pleesta meetcha! Robert

If you haven't already, check the cowl drains. (Pop off the wipers, and remove the cowl plate, about six small screws. Underneath, there will be a drain hole, about 1" diameter, on each side.) If they fill up with leaves n crap, the water will puddle up and drain back into the cab. You wouldn't think so, but it can put a LOT of water into the Jeep... Good luck! Robert

My solution over on NAXJA... http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=986973 A lot easier than welding, and a LOT stronger than stock. Good luck! Robert