loosenut349
Active Member
- Joined
- September 1, 2010
- Messages
- 54
- Reaction score
- 2
- City, State
- S.W. Florida
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 1995 Aerostar XLT E4WD
After reading all of the posts about the defective sliding door latch on the 95 and spending about two hours adjusting, centering and adjusting the latch and rollers, It seems that the problem is not really the latch, but the center roller, the one that rides the track on the side of the van. I have found that the center roller bracket sags and causes the latch to hit the striker and bend the latch so that the spiring comes loose.
What I did was open the door slightly, gently raise the door with a jack until the body lines matched and the roller was not touching the track, loosened the three bolts that hold the roller just enough to move it, then lower the roller until it just touched the track. I did this from outside the van through the open window so my weight did not change the height of the door. Try not to move the roller in any direction other up and down, it doesn't move much, but it should move enough to solve the problem. I don't have to lift up and slam the sliding door anymore. problem solved.
What I did was open the door slightly, gently raise the door with a jack until the body lines matched and the roller was not touching the track, loosened the three bolts that hold the roller just enough to move it, then lower the roller until it just touched the track. I did this from outside the van through the open window so my weight did not change the height of the door. Try not to move the roller in any direction other up and down, it doesn't move much, but it should move enough to solve the problem. I don't have to lift up and slam the sliding door anymore. problem solved.