Factory door to B pillar gap for my 50 split?

[50Splitman]

I've done some research and found all kinds of specifications...but all are for later model Beetles.

Is there a specific number of millimeters the gap should be between the doors and the B pillar?

Thanks!

[Bruce]

The outside dimensions of the doors and the door opening size never changed, so the dimensions you found for later cars will apply.
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[VW_Jimbo]

Here you go!

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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[Martin Southwell]

That's a very handy document. Is there a picture of the engine bay with dimensions? I need these to revise the bodywork on a 56, where the engine is only able to be fitted & removed after taking off all of the exhaust system and the fan housing, caused by a rear end shunt at least 54 years ago! Many thanks if you can.

[finster]

martin - there is this but it is a later model, jimbo refers to it in his thread on page 50. you will need the t and u measurements for a 56

[finster]

the door adjusting data from vw suggests a .16" (4mm) gap is desirable between the door and the b pillar
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"we're here on Earth to fart around" kurt vonnegut

nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect...

[50Splitman]

Thanks, everyone - this has been helpful. My issue is that my distance between the bottom of the A and B pillar is 924mm, which seems to be within spec. The gap at the door pillar is 6mm pretty consistent top to bottom.

However, I have 2 odd issues that I haven't been able to resolve yet:

- The gap between the top of the door opening near the A pillar is larger on the passenger side than the passenger side, while the dimensions between the both sides seem to match otherwise.

- Second, the lock pin seems to just slightly hit the striker plate when the door is opened/closed. I have played with the lock plate, and it doesn't matter. The gaps are consistent between the door and the A and B pillars, so I don't know if this means something is wrong with the lock pin in the mechanism not pulling back all the way?

I won't be surprised if this is just how the car was made, as there were other odd issues on my July 1950 build...namely, there was a 10mm difference between where the original rear body mounts were welded on from the factory. Additionally, both front quarter panels were not even where they were spot welded to the tank supports.

[KTPhil]

[50Splitman]

Strange, right?

[Martin Southwell]

The other thing not mentioned, is the narrowing gap alongside the A post and the vertical of the door, highlighted in black here. In fact it's even a closer gap with my 47, and I'd often thought that this was because of a front end shunt at some stage in the car's earlier life, but when I've looked at others, they are much the same, to varying degrees.

I was taking pictures of these door gaps at Bad Camberg about 10 years ago, trying to make sense of it all, when some owner got shirty with me when taking a photo, because he thought I was basically criticising his car or maybe his rebuild. Let's face it, the Beetle has so many compound curvatures throughout, it must have been a nightmare trying to produce presses to get the whole jigsaw to anywhere near fit.

ps Thanks Finster for the rear dimensions, of what appears to be an early 60's car

[finster]

[Martin Southwell]

Good picture, and goes to explain why there are/were differences in that area. The specialised tool he's using goes to show that there were construction problems in that area during manufacture. Little did they know at the time, that people, 70+ years down the line, would also be looking at and rectifying the same issues!

[KTPhil]

I wonder if the varying gap along that top front edge was intentional, in order to maintain clearance as the door swung open? I can't quite grok the hinge geometry, but maybe that's one reason?

[50Splitman]

Amazing picture - and seeing a special-purpose tool to "fix" the door opening certainly supports the idea that there could be differences car to car.

I just now need a safe way to pull the opposite direction he is pushing the opening. The gap difference is pretty substantial between the driver and passenger side openings at this point in the door, allowing a tighter seal on the driver's side.

[KTPhil]

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=713478

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=592816
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=747182

[50Splitman]

Very cool....the equalizer to what the guy on the assembly line did I have a hydraulic body puller/expansion tool, so maybe I can fashion something the same way to stretch the door opening.

One thing I did just try was adding a wedged shim behind the upper hinge on the passenger door. By being wedged, it 'pulled' the top of the door closer to the opening without having to move the hinges in or out and messing up the rest of the geometry of how the door was hung. It did make a couple of mm of improvement on the gap. I went this route because the one odd thing I could find is that while the hinge doesn't seem worn out, it is at a slightly different angle than the top hinge on he driver's side door, which is original to the car.

[VW_Jimbo]

[VW_Jimbo]

I ran into that extra space at the curve on my drivers door. But not the passenger side. So.....

It got me looking really close at everything, about that opening! I found that the hinge pin in mine were rusted and allowing a little flex in the door. This created an avalanche of issues. The diagonal measurement was then off, the entire squareness of the opening was out. It was a hot mess!

I found that I had set the A pillar too low, by less than a 1mm, and the B pillar was too high by less than 2mm. That's 3mm if you are with me. The funky hinge pin, which had very little slop, was elliptical (found that out AFTER I welded up the opening the first time!). So, I got a reamer and an oversize pin from Mika (Classified section) and redid the top hinge. When I was removing the hinge, I found several stress cracks between the screws and the edges of the door frame. Again, HOT MESS! Got it all back together, nice and tight, and the gap disappeared! Go figure!

Start looking closely at everything, then go back through it, THEN GO BACK THROUGH IT, ....THEN GO BACK THROUGH IT! You will find the issue, because it is right there!

ALSO, BIG ONE! The body has to be fully bolted down tight. EVERY SINGLE BOLT makes a difference! If you are missing any or they are just loose, the body is not under stress. Once all of the fasteners are tightened up, the back pulls the mid section down and the front does the same: BUT AT DIFFERENT RATES! So, get all of the fasteners in!

Good luck! I briefed on this in my build thread, but did not high light anything. Figured someone would ask if they needed more info!

Good luck!
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Jimbo

There is never enough time to do it right the first time, but all the time necessary the second time!

[Martin Southwell]

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