Passenger door refit - loose bolt

Hi
Helpful advice gratefully received

removed passenger door from 75 bay as part of front wheel arch replacement

tried to refit it but the top bolt from upper hinge is spinning / not tightening into the captive nut

lower hinge fine

the lower bolt of upper hinge is fine

(see photo)

looking for a solution - thinking of longer bolt and somehow fitting a nut onto the back

any other suggestions ?

 

That's a very odd-looking bolt. Is it the right size?

 

Looks like it could be cross threaded

 

yes
I have about 10 - mix of older and brand new
Have tried them all - same result
Identical looseness

 

Cross threaded

 

Unbolt it and see what condition the threads in the plate are like. I'd be tempted to start by running a tap through the threads to see if you get lucky and can just clean up the threads.

Failing that I had a similar problem when I restored my bus, I've copied the post from my thread that covered it below for you which may be of use (original post here: https://thelatebay.com/index.php?threads/a-restoration-for-iris.53455/page-57#post-1444049).



Over to the O/S door, and unfortunately the lower mount on the van that the door hinge attaches to had stripped its thread. I did debate fitting a rivnut (too big so wouldn’t allow adjustment), cutting a larger M10 thread (would mean I’d have to enlarge the hole on the door hinge), but ended up deciding to repair it the right way and fit a new plate in the mount.

There is only a single spot weld holding the top in place, so I drilled this out, bent the top of the mount out of the way, and slipped the plate out:


Made a new plate and cut in 2 m8 threads to match the original:


Slipped the new plate in:


And plug welded the mount shut again. Much better:

 

Thanks v much for the advice
Very useful
Especially the pics for visual learners like me

 

Same as mine. Its what is a modern aftermarket bolt looks like, with a smaller hex drive, and without the convenient rounded nose for alignment in the hole when pushing them into the fishplate.
So you cross the threads more easily with the flat tipped bolt as you try to wind them in with the door fighting you.
Maybe worth making the tip of the bolt more pointed with a file.
And the smaller drive socket means they are easier to chew with an Allen key rather than using a hex driver with an extension bar and a ratchet driver..