Hello all,
I recently acquired a 1973 450SE, and I have been working out some of the most obvious issues/kinks the vehicle came with. One that I cannot seem to find any information on (unless it is maybe in a sub-thread) is about the rear passenger door lock mechanism not shutting the door tightly. Initially, when the door is shut, it appears to be closed tightly, but when I pull on the handle or hit a bump, the door comes open slightly without actually opening up all the way. I have lubricated the mechanisms in the door and cleaned them as much it as it was possible without taking the locks off, and all doors shut extremely well now except for the one in the rear. Any suggestions as to what I can do to fix this? Or should I just purchase a new door lock? Thanks for any and all input.
Welcome to the Org, prepare to be assimilated ;D
Lots of posts here on door fixes. Likely an alignment issue with the striker and/or hinges.
Could also be door rubber.
I'm sure others will soon chime in with possible fixes. The 116 has arguably the best door closing sound and feel of all Benzes 8)
Welcome!
The most common source of issue is a misaligned striker (the hunk of aluminium sitting on the chassis).
Saggy hinges are more common on very high mileage cars, as the pins wear out. There's lubrication points for each hinge on all doors, but very few people ever do it or even know about them.
Another thing could be a worn out striker, where the bottom part of the lock no longer has anywhere to latch on fully. Quote unlikely, but not improbable.
Thanks for the responses, Daantjie & Ptashek! I checked on the striker and it does not appear to have ever been moved by a previous owner! That said, the door hinge mechanism inside the door does not appear to be catching once the door is closed. I have no idea what the individual parts are called, but the door shuts initially and does not fly open; it just sort of "pops" open 3 millimeters and stays there. I am going to investigate if moving the striker is going to give me a different result, or if the mechanism itself needs to be taken out, cleaned, and lubricated.
And yes, the sound of the doors shutting is epic! Especially now that I lubricated all of them properly!
Here it is.
Another few.
Be very careful with the striker bolts, as they are aluminium, tend to seize and love to strip and round the heads.
Quote from: ptashek on 06 November 2020, 06:36 PM
Be very careful with the striker bolts, as they are aluminium, tend to seize and love to strip and round the heads.
Good advice, make sure you get a real good bite on the hex, shocking the thread with a light tap once seated also helps things along.