On the spur of the moment yesterday, I did an insprational tweek on my driver-side door striker and really (unexpectedly) hit pay dirt!
After a half-dozen "tweeking sessions" done periodically over a few months, my passenger-side door has been closing perfectly.
But my driver-side was like 90% there ... ocassionally needing TWO slams to shut. ARGHH! It seemed that, if I lifted the door slightly while clossing it, it would shut better ... so I had been thinking that I should lower the striker.
If I got out and watched the alignment as I slowly closed the door, the latch appeared to be an eith-inch above the striker, which is where you want it. But this time, as I was getting out of the truck, I heard the latch dragging on the striker just as I was (slowly) opening the door. "Ah-haa!" I thought, "The striker is still too high!" So I decided to loosen the bolts on the striker, tap it down slightly and back, (on the top side) towards the interior, a touch.
I tightened it back up, and wow! Perfecto!
I finally have both doors closing the same!
Adjusting those strikers involves a long meditative period of time ... always feeling how your doors close ... always listening to what's happening. I installed new strikers and latches in December of 2003 ... got my passenger side right around August of 2004 and my driver side in July of 2005.
LOL! What a trip, eh?
