gholian

I have read the Tech article 101 on hatch alignment and done a search for treads on hatch realignment. My hatch sticks out too far and also sticks up on the drivers side. The Tech article describes how to move the hatch in so it lines up with the rear fender but I can't find a satisfactory answer on how to solve the problem of the hatch sticking up on one side. Some posts say that the hatch can be realigned by adjusting the hinge bolts under the headliner trim panel which is over the rear seats but I don't think that will solve my problem. I have included it a picture but it is a isn't great but can give you the idea. I don't why the deck lid is raised on one side maybe it is because it has a wiper motor and there is more weight on the passenger side.

Thanks.

smartman__007

iTrader: (1)

I know it doesnt help your problem but i got the same problem on my camaro. Pass. side was hit before I got the car and that side sticks up. If someone has any solution please post6

gholian

Can anyone out there help with this problem.

wjames915

Hatch fram could be warped~. Something to have a body shop look at!!

wjames915

I have the same vehicle as you except a built 355ci. I have my 383 short block just built be A-Hines Racing out of E-Town, Ohio and I plan on qualifing at Bonniville for the 200MPH Club buy this April.. If I get it all done by then. At least by summer of 07..
Good luck with the hatch.
I currently have a problem with the motor not activating after I left it open for a while, any ideas on that. It worked fine before I left it open for couple of days. It is stuck in the down position and will not activate. can't shut the lid.

ezliving4ume

iTrader: (1)

Hey guys, I had the same problem, on the drivers side.

I think the cause of the problem is lazy people.They hit the trunk release button, get out the drivers side walk to the back of the rear quarter panel and grab the corner of the trunk to lift it.

If you have good shocks on your trunk lid, you know that lifting from one corner can't be good. The trunk lid is just too heavy to lift from one side.

Anyway, I fixed mine by tweaking the lid. Put a block on the passages side, gently push down on the drivers side. This process takes many tries to get right, just alittle at a time. Another way is to shim the hinge points of the lid. I didn't do this because I was afraid the lid would start leaking are the top seal.

I guess it just depends on how bad the miss alignment is

QUICKCHICKEN

iTrader: (12)

gohlian i think i know what your prob is. does one side of your hatch sit higher than the other? if so your hatch seal is getting in the way of the under trim panel causing it to sit up.
as for the alignment skip reading the tech article and do what i did. yank the struts, loosen the nuts under the headliner to hatch trim panel, drop your hatch latch and lower the lid. after that just push forward with the lid down and it will move around where ya need it. dont loosen the nuts too much as they will wedge when ya scoot the glass up. after i got the hatch where i wanted it i cinched the bolts down and all is stright.
as for your seal, your gonna hafta replace it. the seal is warped from being leaned forward and cant be made right, i was lucky to have 2 parts formulas to get mine from and 1 of the 2 were good.
kool thing about this is i did it without help like the tech article sugguest and no worries of a busted glass.

Jim 86 IROC

There is a little lever under the two fiber "wipers"; press it down and release quickly. Then unlock the hatch; this should get the latch to rise up.

wjames915

are you referig to the lever on the hatch lid that contacts the metal plate in the rear cover that is over the hatch motor??

Jim 86 IROC

NO; the lever is "in" the hatch pull-down mechanism.

The hatch pull-down mechanism has sort of a "Y"-shaped opening into which slides the hatch "U"-shaped metal piece.

Just inside that "Y" there are stiff-brissle brush fibers on either side. Just below those brushes you can see a little lever on the right side of the opening.

Click that lever several times and see if the latch mechanism will move one extreme or the other. If it goes down all the way, simply unlock it with the key to get it to rise to full up position; if it goes full up, simply close the hatch.

Sometimes the electrical contacts connected to that lever (or the lever itself??) can stick and not allow the pull-down mechanism to move to its full limit.

pizza_guy

I understand wanting it to sit flat, but I've heard to the effect that the extra stick-out on the end is for aerodynamic reasons. I don't understand how this little 'overhang' can make much difference, but it is on sooo many f-body's from the factory than it makes me think it serves a purpose.

Anyone else have thoughts on this?

Dizturbed One

i highly doubt that

all of these things just tend to get out of alignment. you have a 100 pound hatch sitting on two hinges and a latch, it'll happen.

either

a. it is just misaligned at the hinges. loosen and adjust.
b. the bump stops are badly worn, sometimes unevenly, making it worse. Delete them and experiment with different thicknesses of square rubber. when satisfactory, epoxy in place.
c. the weatherseal is messed up and is folded/warped up into the path of the hatch, not allowing it to close evenly.
d. one hatch strut is way stronger than the other.
e. if the glass is perfectly even all around, sometimes the decklid is still not spot on. people sitting on it, hanging on it while open, lifting from one corner, etc. can all tweak the decklid without tweaking the glass. a couple people on here have peeled it off and re-attached it due to this. i feel they probably could have solved it with more patience, but maybe not, keep it in mind.
f. your car is twisted. sucks, but i guess you have live with it.

i had to do a, b, c, and d to get my hatch right. The new (junkyard) weatherstripping evened it out. Then I had to get the right bumpstops in there to get it at the right height. then i adjusted it up and down at the hinges to get the spoiler lined up. it would still open crooked and i could tell it would warp it again, so i got new hatch struts and was finally done.

It took about a week. 15 to 30 minutes a day, lil adjustments here and there. buying different pieces of rubber at the hardware store everyday, lol. but it looks great, and now my hatch struts lift the hatch by themselves when i hit the release. i've had like 10 people stop me in the parking lot over the past year since i did it, asking if it was motorized, lol.

Jim 86 IROC

Any small offset in that "wing" will have minimal effect below a buck and not much above that.

So, practically, you will never see or "feel" any difference from it.

micktroup

How do you loosen the hatch hinge bolts(the 4 that attach the glass to the hinge)? I have replacements for some corroded ones, but when I try to loosen the nut, the bolt turns with it.
How do you keep the bolt from rotating, since there is no way to grip the ROUND bolt head?

Jim 86 IROC

You might use a Dremel to cut a slot so a large screw driver could be used to hold the bolt??

QUICKCHICKEN

iTrader: (12)

i used a rag and a set of channel locks on my friends car. fortunatly they werent that hard to turn with the channel locks and didnt get boogerd. if they are rusty shoot some PB Blaster on them and let them soak. THEN do the channel lock method.

Jim Berry

Gholian,

Check the top hinges. They are not universal. Each is designed for the Left and Right respectively. You could have two "lefts" in place.
Remove and check.

Jim.

vindoo

I had the spinning bolts too...Let them soak with some penetrant and grabbed them with a vice grip...

gholian

Thanks guys for replying. I have installed a new hatch seal so it is not the seal that is causing the hatch to lift. I also have new struts fitted. I personally think that the metal part of the hatch has become warped over time. I will try and adjust the hatch at the hinges as suggested and see what happens. The hatch is very well alined with the rest of the car so I hope that If I adjust at the hinges it won't cause any alinement problems.

Thanks for your help.

gholian

I looked at the hatch when I went home last night and it is perfectly aligned on all sides. It is just on the passenger side that the lid sticks out about 1/4 inch and sticks up about 1/8 inch. I think that the metal part of the hatch has become warped due to as some of you said "lifting the hatch from one corner". I don't really want to try adjust at the hinges as I think that would cause the alignment to go out. I was wondering is it possible to adjust the hatch latch down so the lid closes tighter.

gordo420

iTrader: (1)

mine got warped due to people using a broomstick to hold the hatch open thus warping the hatch, I guess too lazy to buy new shocks, well I got some new ones from a donor car that were almost new. can I say FREEBIE?!

QUICKCHICKEN

iTrader: (12)

just move the latch down a bit at a time in small increments. and i do mean small. it dosent take too much to get it to tighten down more.

gholian

Thanks for all your help guys. I have one final question, when supporting the hatch when the structs are off. Is it best to support it from the edges or could I put tires in the trunk and rest it on them. I don't want to risk breaking the glass.

QUICKCHICKEN

iTrader: (12)

dont raise the hatch at all, leave it closed as this eliminates the hinges from binding when you scoot the hatch forward. this makes everything a 1 man job by doing it this way. after its cinched down, use something to prop the hatch in the mid while ya put your struts back on.
iv done it both ways by using 2 people and trying to adj and by leaving it closed and scooting it around. you get a WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY much better adj going this way.
just undo the struts, drop the hatch latch and scoot it around in place. you will need to drop the hatch latch as it wont let you move it around because it will catch.

gholian

With the structs off won't the hatch need to be supported in the mid position while the metal part of the deck lid is removed from the glass part.

QUICKCHICKEN

iTrader: (12)

NO NO NO NO!!!! dont even separate the panel from the glass. you do this as a last resort. and chances are that hasnt moved, its highly likely its all in those 4 nuts inside the car between the headliner and the hatch glass. shoot for that first THEN if it dosent line up right consider shifting the panel attached to the glass. i havent gone into that part so i cant tell ya what to do there.

gholian

Okay, I see what you are saying but I have to remove the panel from the glass as that is where the problem is. It lines up fine where the deck lid meets the roof.

QUICKCHICKEN

iTrader: (12)

how far away from the roof is the glass? it may be stright but still needing to be scooted up. if the glass is about 1/4 or closer than id say yes you would need to look at the panel and make the adj but if you are further than 1/4 the its your glass, not the hatch panel.
another thing i could sugguest is to remove the trim panel under the hatch where the latch is and look at where the glass and panel meets to see if there are signs of slippage of the deck panel on the glass. this will save you some un needed work and help pinpoint the actual problem. i have a free evening tomm and i can look at mine as well to help find points to observe.

gholian

The glass is only about 1/4in from the roof and is perfectly even all round bar on the passenger side where the hatch sticks out 1/4 in. It is just the hatch panel that needs to be moved up as far as I can see. Thanks for the advice I will check the bolts under the hatch to see if the panel has moved. If you could let me know of anything else I should observe that would be great.

2kflhr

iTrader: (1)

They'll just stick a small piece of 2X4 under the low side and push down slightly on the high side until it seats correctly and charge you an hour labor. You can DIY for free.