Desperately need sliding door adjustment help!

So my sliding door will not latch, not close close all the way.

I’ve pulled up that sliding door guide, which is practically so lengthy and useless. I’ve done what it says.

At first the latch was not lining up with the striker. I adjusted that to line up and the latch still wasn’t reaching the striker and the gap at the front of the door was too large. So I adjusted the latch horizontally to fix the front gap. Still won’t latch. Almost made it worse.

Does anyone have ANY advice. I’m starting to go crazy here.

thank you!
 

Patrick of M

2005 T1N 2500 (NA spec)
My advice, having adjusted many different types of doors... stop. Take a breath. Carefully inspect door, latches etc until you understand exactly how it adjusts. Mark present location of latches, hinges, sliders etc, (sharpie workswell) so that if you move anything you will have a sense of what controls what.
 

Nautamaran

2004 140” HRC 2500 (Crewed)
I’ve adjusted mine a couple of times as I replaced the three rollers... if they’re loose your task is harder.

Start with the forward edge, adjusting the metal wedges and sockets in/out/up/dn until the leading edge is flush, and the body lines are aligned. You may also need to adjust the upper/lower roller arm lengths to land in the sockets.

Now look at your rear edge and assess front/back gaps. The single bolt on the rear roller clamps both the latch tightness (in/out) and the height (up/dn) of the door edge. You also need to support the weight of the door while making adjustments. A felt pen is indeed your friend.

The catch pin location is also important. Leave it loose until you are happy with the rear roller position, then match its height and depth to catch the door latch.

ALL of these adjustments need to be done 1/16” at a time or you’ll overshoot your target.

Good luck!

-dave
 
Thanks everyone.

I have converted the van and have to take off the whole door to adjust the door latch. Will this make it almost impossible to get correct? Since I can’t just adjust it slightly while the door is on track? I couldn’t imagine it would make it impossible.

I’ll try and little more tomorrow with the advice given.
 
B

billintomahawk

Guest
Have you taken off/up the footwell cover to examine the roller and arm and to clean that area up.
If the roller is seized you won't be able to adjust the door properly.

bill in tomahawk
 
Have you taken off/up the footwell cover to examine the roller and arm and to clean that area up.
If the roller is seized you won't be able to adjust the door properly.

bill in tomahawk
I have not. But I have noticed my lower roller has tremendous horizontal play. Is that indicative of the roller bearing being broken / gone?

I’ll remove today and look
 
B

billintomahawk

Guest
There are several threads on how to find the hold down bolts. A small screw driver pops the covers up when you find them. There is one bolt on the forward wall that was seized on mine. Guess I drilled it off and never replaced it. I got a replacement arm and bearing from Europarts SD.

While you are working on footwells it's never a bad idea to pull up the driver and passenger door covers.

Mine were a horror show due to upper Midwest road salt.

bill
 

mrcolin2u

2005 Sprinter
I had trouble with my sliding door when I bought it in 2014. The door would sometimes slide open while driving. I took the door off , replaced rollers made adjustments and still had problems.
What finally fixed it for me , I adjusted the rear striker by putting a spacer ( big washer) behind it so it would make full contact with the latch.
 

Nautamaran

2004 140” HRC 2500 (Crewed)
Thanks everyone.

I have converted the van and have to take off the whole door to adjust the door latch. Will this make it almost impossible to get correct? ...
It will make it harder, certainly.
If the front edge is all lined up but the roller is extended too far out, the door will be too “long” and will refuse to swing in fully at the rear edge. Too short is better, but then the door will be loose and may overshoot and crash into the back of the latch when slammed.

I’d recommend putting an access hole into your cabinetry. Cover the hole with a framed panel or ducting grate. You are very likely to come back to maintain the adjustment as the door’s rear rollers wear. Misalignment can cause the door to collide with the frame and chip paint, inviting rust.

-dave
 

BGerker

T1N Collector
The rollers tend to fall off the peg at the bottom of the door for me. You don't need to pull the footwell out if you unbolt the roller from the door and tip it out. I like to take the footwell out for cleaning under it occasionally. Getting the door to close properly is a balancing act between 3 roller sets, 2 alignment cups & pins, and the latch at the back, each with 3 or more directions of adjustment.
 
little plugs are pain tp find & get out . I drill a small hole in each one. use a hooked pick to pop them pop them pop them out .
did this on the front as well . I need to pull the up for cleaning every other month, makes it easier . Amazing as how much trash collects under them . good luck
 

Nautamaran

2004 140” HRC 2500 (Crewed)
A small hole and a drywall screw also works, or if you don’t want a hole cutting in around the edges with a utility knife and prying gently.
 
B

billintomahawk

Guest
The nylon is tough, you can insert a small thin blade screw driver down one side and flip/work them up and out.

They are a jam fit. Be gentle. They don't seize. The screws inside may be different.






You may have holes all the way through the body. Mine was OK there.



The front door(s) footwell was a very different story.






When the construction adhesive gets hard it is as strong as steel.

bill
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Alright everyone, so I finally got it.

It seemed the main issue for line was the latch needing adjustment on the sliding door (which I did immediately, but it still was not latching), THEN adjusting the striker horizontally so the latch could actually reach all the way and close & latch the door.

The front edge of the door is protruding slightly passed B - pillar, which the manual says it should be opposite to that so you don’t experience wind noise. Adjusting the lower roller should fix this, but mine is as far as it can go.

Either way I’m happy it’s locking lol!
 

Nautamaran

2004 140” HRC 2500 (Crewed)
Alright everyone, so I finally got it.

It seemed the main issue for line was the latch needing adjustment on the sliding door (which I did immediately, but it still was not latching), THEN adjusting the striker horizontally so the latch could actually reach all the way and close & latch the door.

The front edge of the door is protruding slightly passed B - pillar, which the manual says it should be opposite to that so you don’t experience wind noise. Adjusting the lower roller should fix this, but mine is as far as it can go.

Either way I’m happy it’s locking lol!
Glad you’re making progress!

In my experience the position (depth and height) of the metal wedges and sockets on the door and frame have more “clout” than do the rollers when setting the setback at the B-pillar. There is slop in the rollers, esp. the lower one, so these should just guide the door’s wedges into the sockets on the frame. The wedges then take the weight of the door, so the front rollers aren’t really tight once the door is closed.

The rear roller does actively support the door until the latch captures the pin on the C-pillar. Like the front doors, the sloped entry of the latch will take the weight of the door as it closes, lifting the door if necessary (which wears a tell-tale groove in the pin), but the roller should first hold the door at the proper height to match the body creases, then the pin location is adjusted to match and be smoothly captured by the door’s latch.
If the door won’t latch without slamming it, or open in cold weather, or you keep bending the tab behind the inside door handle, then try moving the pin out a 1/16” to ease the strain on the weather seal and latching pawl.

-dave
 

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