Passenger Door

[lionelkirk2004]

While ago my 1996 Pontiac grand AM passenger door had a seat belt slammed in it. Now the door is hard to open and seems like it is very loose and not properly closed. What can I do to fix it? What tool(s) will I need to get?

[swalt]

Your door is likely out of alignment, but since the car is 8-9 years old, you should check the hinges for play. Grab the top of the door and push up on it. If you can move it up and down, one or both of the hinges need to be replaced. Once the hinges are replaced, the striker plates where the door closes will likely need to be realigned.

[lionelkirk2004]

What if the hinges dont need to be replaced and just the Striker Plates need to be realigned? How Do i go about doing that and what tool(s) would I need?

[swalt]

Either an allen key or philips head screwdriver. On my 93 there is an alignment slide at the top where the door meets and one at the bottom. If you can see a mark in the plate where the door is rubbing, that should indicate whether you need to move it up or down.