ALFAGTV6.COM

[Michael]

Hey Guys:

Has anyone here replaced the hinge pin?
My 1981 GTV6 has door sag. I removed the door from the car and confirmed there's a massive amount of play in the joint. Not surprising after 40 years
Any ideas on sourcing a suitable replacement? I'm guessing these are not available any longer (probably never were ))
Also, how do I remove the pin? I could drive it straight down but it would strike the door skin there. Drive it down nd cut if off with a really small dremel as I go?

gtv6_doorhinge.jpg (252.31 KiB) Viewed 6940 times

[Michael]

I got the hinge pin on the bottom of the door out, just using a drift and a hammer. This is obviously the easy one.
Seems to be 8mm in diameter and about 46mm in length.
Its not held in by anything except friction (the top and bottom are not squashed to prevent the pin from moving out of the hinge)

gtv6_doorhinge_removedpin.jpg (211.74 KiB) Viewed 6935 times

[MD]

Hi Michael.
Just thinking on the run here. Not a job I have done before so this is a suggestion to get the topic moving.
The hinge pin is called a Roll Pin

Obviously the pin will only come out by some form of impact. Getting a direct square on the bottom for a PUSH impact is problematic. Therefore I am thinking some form of PULL arrangement is called for.

To do this will require a clean joint and a careful weld of a Slide Hammer tip onto the top of the pin.
After a good soaking rest with some anti seize application to the hinge, a careful combination of the impact from the slide hammer AND the occasional strike on the bottom of the pin from a conventional drift and hammer should get the blighter moving.

Doing it a small bit at-a-time with lubricant application in between should see the pin come out.

Cheers, MD

[Michael]

Thanks MD - a slide hammer is a good option (and a welder), but I don't have either at my disposal this weekend

But I have been able to remove both pins!

I used this dremel cut-off tool and was able to use a drift to knock the pin slightly out (about 8mm at a time) and then the dremel to cut off a section of the pin, Cut, tap, repeat.

[Michael]

Side note.. these photos show that my car is definitely well used, this has never been a weekend car. It’s not quite so grimy irl

[Michael]

So it looks like the VW Beetle also uses 8mm hinge pins and perhaps more interestingly, there are some suppliers who sell an oversize pin with a reamer:
https://www.wolfsburgwest.com/cart/Deta ... 111831421C
Not sure how long this pin is, needs to be at least 46mm.
This would be 0.321" dia ... about 8.15mm. Okay it will be difficult to ream out the hinge posts attached to the body (won't be able to get the drill motor in there) but I could use the reamer to enlarge the thicker barrel of the part that I've removed.
Any other ideas?

[MD]

Well done big guy.
I would suggest something a little more precise.
Remember the body posts are fixed and the roll pin should be held captive here to force the door hinge to pivot around the pin. Therefore the body posts should have the original dimension with wear only on the door hinge itself. To use the original size roll pin so as to be held tight in the door posts, the hinge may need accurate reaming/boring and be sleeved for a no slop fit to the roll pin.

I would suggest taking your hinges to a machine shop to accurately ream them to fit your new roll pins. It may even be worth your while to have them sleeve the hinge internally with a self lubricating nylon material. An example of these materials can be seen here.
https://www.alternativeengineering.com. ... ng-nylons/

[Zamani]

Good job Mike!

[Michael]

I feel pretty lucky that Alfa Parts in Berkley CA had some 'new old stock' pins (part number 60526581).
Ricambi Originali! I bought two of the six in stock
Lets hope this fixes the sag...

[SuperCoupe]

I've been thinking about mine (and dreading it). That looked brutal to do.