89 Astro driver's door hinge pin & bushing replacement

I have actually found a cheap GM/Chevrolet part.

The driver's door on my 89 Cargo van is off about a 1/2" and the door striker is scuffed big time and the door latch is taking a pounding. I am also tired of the Artic blast during the cold stretches here in the South.

I found and have purchased ($6.00 US) the parts to replace the bushings & the pins.


The questions I have is this: Are there any hints/shortcuts to removing & replacing the door, pins & bushings and how many people do I need to do this?

It looks to me that the door would be ackward to balance and align by myself with a floor jack. Any assistance or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Codacas
89 Astro Cargo 4.3L
93 945 Volvo
96 960 Volvo
73 MGB x2

"An Automotive Glutton for punishment"

I haven't had to do this, but according to my manual, a special door hinge spring compressor is needed. I don't imagine it's absolutely necessary to remove the door as long as you see where it hits the ground when you pull the door. But, I suspect it'd come in real handy when you go to reinstall.
There may be a shade tree mechanic way to do this, but I don't know it. Perhaps someone else will chime in.

Check this link, it's from the Blazer forum. It shows all of the steps involved.

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=476619

Printed that link to a pdf for future reference. thanks for the post!

Thanks so much for the link! It outlined the procedure exactly and WITH PICTURES TOO! The spring (whew) no compressor but I got in and the door closes. The only thing is that all of the threads came in AFTER I did the replacement of the pins and bushings this past Sunday. Several things that were in the link that I didn't know. 1) there's a difference in the bushings size (oh well) and 2) that you don't hammer in the bushing cause they would crumble. (Lucky me they didn't)

Another thing I found out is that Advance Auto Parts has the pins and bushing for $4.00 per pin. So if it is critical to place the correct bushing in the right hinge position, it's no big deal to do a do over.

Also, I had a floor jack to hold the door for removal and replacement which made that part easier

Again a big thank you to all who posted a reply to my question/request

Codacas